# Single best casting choice for a comic book character in film **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** comic-books-manga\ **Created:** [April 28, 2014, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/single-best-casting-choice-for-a-comic-book-character-in-film/687206 "2014-04-28T19:20:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![drewtwo99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d07c76/32.png) [@drewtwo99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewtwo99)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2014, 3:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/single-best-casting-choice-for-a-comic-book-character-in-film/687206/41 "2014-04-29T03:42:20Z")
I am not a comic book reader so I need to GTFO of this thread, but before I do, I will say that J.K. Simmons nailed that character so perfectly, that even though I’d never read a comic in my life, I knew he did a fantastic job back when I saw the Spiderman movies. That’s how good he was. ---
**Author:** ![SirGalahad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/71c47a/32.png) [@SirGalahad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SirGalahad)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2014, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/single-best-casting-choice-for-a-comic-book-character-in-film/687206/42 "2014-04-29T04:08:35Z")
> [@Bricker](#): > > I thought Christopher Reeve was an outstanding Superman, and Hugh Jackman was a great Wolverine. > > But in my opinion, the most perfect fit, the character that simply stepped off the pages onto the screen without “reinterpreting” or adding or changing was J. K. Simmons’ turn as J. Jonah Jameson. He looked the part, and he talked just like I had always imagined JJ would sound. > > Who’s in second place? 🙂 Simmons was as close to J. Jonah Jameson as anyone will ever get, but I disagree about Reeve and Jackman. Neither was really the right physical type. Frankly, Superman should be built like a bodybuilder, not lanky and somewhat muscular like Reeve was at that time. And Reeve just didn’t have the steely fortitude conveyed by the comic book version of Superman. There is a fan flic trailer out there on you-tube where Superman is portrayed as an aging has-been. The actor they picked looked exactly like I imagine Superman. Jackman is also way too lanky. Wolverine should be built like Roddy Piper, broad, burly. I’ll admit Jackson has captured the personality well enough. My pick is Jack Earle Haley as Rorschach. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2014, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/single-best-casting-choice-for-a-comic-book-character-in-film/687206/43 "2014-04-29T04:15:12Z")
No dude who’s “built like a bodybuilder” could pass as a “mild-mannered reporter”. Reeve was right at the happy medium where he could pass as beefy or scrawny, either one, by his mannerisms. ---
**Author:** ![MrKnowItAll](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrknowitall/32/87_2.png) [@MrKnowItAll](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrKnowItAll)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2014, 4:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/single-best-casting-choice-for-a-comic-book-character-in-film/687206/44 "2014-04-29T04:16:31Z")
> [@The\_Batman](#): > > Christian Bale portrayed my namesake the best in Live-Action, but he can’t hold a candle to the Batman from the animated series. I can’t agree. I think Michael Keaton’s was far superior. ---
**Author:** ![Infovore](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/infovore/32/420_2.png) [@Infovore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Infovore)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2014, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/single-best-casting-choice-for-a-comic-book-character-in-film/687206/45 "2014-04-29T04:17:36Z")
> [@SirGalahad](#): > > My pick is Jack Earle Haley as Rorschach. Oh, yeah. I forgot about him. That was some perfect casting, right there. For that matter, Jeffrey Dean Morgan as The Comedian was perfect as well. ---
**Author:** ![MrKnowItAll](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrknowitall/32/87_2.png) [@MrKnowItAll](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrKnowItAll)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2014, 4:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/single-best-casting-choice-for-a-comic-book-character-in-film/687206/46 "2014-04-29T04:18:22Z")
The only problem I have with Jackman’s Wolverine is that he’s just too darn tall. I think he plays the part pretty well, however. ---
**Author:** ![MrKnowItAll](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrknowitall/32/87_2.png) [@MrKnowItAll](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrKnowItAll)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2014, 4:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/single-best-casting-choice-for-a-comic-book-character-in-film/687206/47 "2014-04-29T04:20:21Z")
…and as a change of pace. There’s Thora Birch as Enid in _Ghost World_. ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2014, 4:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/single-best-casting-choice-for-a-comic-book-character-in-film/687206/48 "2014-04-29T04:22:00Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > No dude who’s “built like a bodybuilder” could pass as a “mild-mannered reporter”. And nobody who can juggle stars without breaking a sweat is going to get built like a bodybuilder. And Superman’s never been built like a bodybuilder in the comics. At his biggest he was built like a strong man, or a linebacker, which are very different than bodybuilders. More recently, he’s been built more or less like Reeve, which, IMO, is the perfect build for Superman - for the reasons both of us mentioned. (The other Kryptonian (or part-Kryptonian) characters also tend toward ‘average-to-thin’ builds.) ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2014, 4:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/single-best-casting-choice-for-a-comic-book-character-in-film/687206/49 "2014-04-29T04:27:36Z")
Hate on the guy if you must, but Jim Carrey was born to star in _The Mask_. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Batman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/22d042/32.png) [@The\_Batman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Batman)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2014, 4:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/single-best-casting-choice-for-a-comic-book-character-in-film/687206/50 "2014-04-29T04:35:34Z")
[QUOTE=MrKnowItAll] I can’t agree. I think Michael Keaton’s was far superior. [/QUOTE] You know, my first answer to the OP was to say Michael Keaton was the best, basing myself on his portrayal of Batman as a character of cool confidence and determination. Then, I thought that Batman was much more than that. He is a person confident in his ability and beliefs, but he is also someone consumed by his passions. I think Bale portrayed this better than Keaton. But neither Bale nor Keaton showed the depth of character that the 90’s cartoon did. I can’t blame them, Bale was only in three movies and Keaton in two, but still. ---
**Author:** ![the\_diego](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7bcc69/32.png) [@the\_diego](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/the_diego)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2014, 4:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/single-best-casting-choice-for-a-comic-book-character-in-film/687206/51 "2014-04-29T04:45:00Z")
Bruce Wayne and the Batman are two somewhat different roles. ---
**Author:** ![SirGalahad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/71c47a/32.png) [@SirGalahad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SirGalahad)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2014, 5:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/single-best-casting-choice-for-a-comic-book-character-in-film/687206/52 "2014-04-29T05:35:06Z")
> [@Kamino\_Neko](#): > > And nobody who can juggle stars without breaking a sweat is going to get built like a bodybuilder. > > And Superman’s never been built like a bodybuilder in the comics. At his biggest he was built like a strong man, or a linebacker, which are very different than bodybuilders. More recently, he’s been built more or less like Reeve, which, IMO, is the perfect build for Superman - for the reasons both of us mentioned. (The other Kryptonian (or part-Kryptonian) characters also tend toward ‘average-to-thin’ builds.) [![](http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_4dCqzdKkPHo/TTDLVTtHvLI/AAAAAAAAAM4/k3u7TG0WlTw/s1600/Superman-The-Movie-1-1152x864.jpg) ](http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_4dCqzdKkPHo/TTDLVTtHvLI/AAAAAAAAAM4/k3u7TG0WlTw/s1600/Superman-The-Movie-1-1152x864.jpg) [http://www.superman-wallpapers.com/bulkupload/wallpapers/Superman%20Comic/superman-can-do-it.jpg](http://www.superman-wallpapers.com/bulkupload/wallpapers/Superman%20Comic/superman-can-do-it.jpg) > **[Startseite](https://www.dvd-forum.at/)** > > Entdecke die Welt des Films und der Games mit DVD-Forum.at - dem ultimativen Online-Magazin für Cineasten und Gamer. [http://www.superman-wallpapers.com/bulkupload/wallpapers/Superman%20Comic/superman-flying.jpg](http://www.superman-wallpapers.com/bulkupload/wallpapers/Superman%20Comic/superman-flying.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Lobohan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobohan/32/79_2.png) [@Lobohan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobohan)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2014, 5:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/single-best-casting-choice-for-a-comic-book-character-in-film/687206/53 "2014-04-29T05:53:28Z")
> [@MrKnowItAll](#): > > There have been a lot of very, very good ones. I think Carrey’s Riddler is often underrated. The one that was the biggest surprise for me, though was Nicholson’s Joker. I just could not see Nicholson in the part, but the scene where he’s in surgery and sees himself in the mirror and starts cackling… Even though we hadn’t even seen the makeup job yet, I thought, “That’s him. That’s the Joker.” I’m sorry Heath Ledger fans, in my mind Nicholson portrayed the definitive Joker. I’d say that Nicholson and Carrey were cast backwards. Nicholson’s Joker is a smarmy twat, and Carrey’s Riddler is a cackling loon. The Riddler thinks he’s smarter than you. That’s why he leaves clues. Jack Nicholson acts like that in every movie he’s in. And Carrey was born to play the Joker. The character from The Mask is pretty close to how he should act. ---
**Author:** ![SirGalahad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/71c47a/32.png) [@SirGalahad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SirGalahad)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2014, 6:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/single-best-casting-choice-for-a-comic-book-character-in-film/687206/54 "2014-04-29T06:18:31Z")
> [@Lobohan](#): > > I’d say that Nicholson and Carrey were cast backwards. Nicholson’s Joker is a smarmy twat, and Carrey’s Riddler is a cackling loon. > > The Riddler thinks he’s smarter than you. That’s why he leaves clues. Jack Nicholson acts like that in every movie he’s in. > > And Carrey was born to play the Joker. The character from The Mask is pretty close to how he should act. Joker … Crispin Glover ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2014, 8:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/single-best-casting-choice-for-a-comic-book-character-in-film/687206/55 "2014-04-29T08:39:03Z")
> [@SirGalahad](#): > > [http://2.bp.blogspot.com/\_4dCqzdKkPHo/TTDLVTtHvLI/AAAAAAAAAM4/k3u7TG0WlTw/s1600/Superman-The-Movie-1-1152x864.jpg](http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_4dCqzdKkPHo/TTDLVTtHvLI/AAAAAAAAAM4/k3u7TG0WlTw/s1600/Superman-The-Movie-1-1152x864.jpg) > > [http://www.superman-wallpapers.com/bulkupload/wallpapers/Superman%20Comic/superman-can-do-it.jpg](http://www.superman-wallpapers.com/bulkupload/wallpapers/Superman%20Comic/superman-can-do-it.jpg) > > [DVD-Forum.at: Das Online-Magazin für Cineasten und Gamer](http://www.dvd-forum.at/img/uploaded/superman.jpg) > > [http://www.superman-wallpapers.com/bulkupload/wallpapers/Superman%20Comic/superman-flying.jpg](http://www.superman-wallpapers.com/bulkupload/wallpapers/Superman%20Comic/superman-flying.jpg) Yeah, but some comic artists draw all their superheroes that way. By their standards, Supes has an average build. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2014, 8:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/single-best-casting-choice-for-a-comic-book-character-in-film/687206/56 "2014-04-29T08:52:19Z")
RDJ as Iron Man, Nicholson as the Joker, Wol… ehr, Jackman as Wolverine, that guy who’s been in more comic book movies than Stan Lee as Cap. Oh, and Hiddleston as Loki :D\<— does not grin as widely as Hiddleston. Not a comic book character, but Mortensen as Aragorn has in common with Jackman as Wolverine that both of them are “misses” on some physical information about the character that’s described carefully by the character’s creators, but who are absolutely great. > [@Lobohan](#): > > I’d say that Nicholson and Carrey were cast backwards. Nicholson’s Joker is a smarmy twat, and Carrey’s Riddler is a cackling loon. > > The Riddler thinks he’s smarter than you. That’s why he leaves clues. Jack Nicholson acts like that in every movie he’s in. > > And Carrey was born to play the Joker. The character from The Mask is pretty close to how he should act. Nicholson has been known to occasionally not act like that, but yeah, him as the Joker is like Depp coming up flamboyant and theatrical - what’s unusual is when the director gets them to knock it down a notch or even a whole scale (Depp in Chocolat only does a Depp moue once, otherwise he might be a dude who looks a lot like Johnny Depp). ---
**Author:** ![the\_diego](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7bcc69/32.png) [@the\_diego](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/the_diego)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2014, 9:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/single-best-casting-choice-for-a-comic-book-character-in-film/687206/57 "2014-04-29T09:43:27Z")
The other candidates for the Riddler (so I heard) aside from Carrey will make you wonder: Tom Hanks and Dan Akroyd. ---
**Author:** ![epbrown01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7ba0ec/32.png) [@epbrown01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/epbrown01)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2014, 12:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/single-best-casting-choice-for-a-comic-book-character-in-film/687206/58 "2014-04-29T12:30:58Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > No dude who’s “built like a bodybuilder” could pass as a “mild-mannered reporter”. Reeve was right at the happy medium where he could pass as beefy or scrawny, either one, by his mannerisms. I agree about Reeves, but I’d say he never passed as scrawny. He, like a lot of guys that size, could come off as powerful or just a big goof. ---
**Author:** ![shiftless](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9c0ed/32.png) [@shiftless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shiftless)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2014, 12:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/single-best-casting-choice-for-a-comic-book-character-in-film/687206/59 "2014-04-29T12:38:14Z")
> [@magnusblitz](#): > > I think JK Simmons as J. Jonah Jameson is a great example. Looks and sounds exactly like how I thought the character would. You saved me some typing. He was perfect in the role and I can’t believe they didn’t expand his role in subsequent movies. ---
**Author:** ![Bozuit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/edb3f5/32.png) [@Bozuit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bozuit)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2014, 12:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/single-best-casting-choice-for-a-comic-book-character-in-film/687206/60 "2014-04-29T12:58:57Z")
I agree with most of this thread. J. K. Simmons is obviously great. Shame there’s no J. Jonah Jameson in the new Spider-Men so far (haven’t see #2 but I hear he’s absent). I always liked Jack Nicholson’s Joker. Heath Ledger was great too, of course. I think I will miss Robert Downey, Jr as Tony Stark more than anyone else, though. I honestly don’t know how he compares to the original character, but I don’t really care. > [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](#): > > Hate on the guy if you must, but Jim Carrey was born to star in _The Mask_. He’s exactly perfect for the film, but the film was changed significantly from the original comics _because_ Jim Carrey was cast. As I understand/remember it, the original plan was to do something a bit darker, like the original comics. Then somehow they got Jim Carrey as Stanley Ipkiss so the film ended up being made for him. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/single-best-casting-choice-for-a-comic-book-character-in-film/687206.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/single-best-casting-choice-for-a-comic-book-character-in-film/687206.md?page=4)