After taking on his role running the DCU with Peter Safran, it became clear that James Gunn would likely not be the only person to work with both Marvel and DC movie franchises.
This is already coming true, as is particularly evident when looking at the cast for DC’s upcoming Superman movie. In fact, there are seven actors with roles in Superman who have previously appeared in Marvel movies.
Many of them worked with Gunn in various Guardians of the Galaxy projects, but that is not the case for all seven.
Superman will be the first movie of James Gunn and Peter Safran’s new DCU franchise, and it is set to feature at least seven actors who have also had roles in Marvel movies.
Isabela Merced - Hawkgirl
Isabela Merced portrayed Anya Corazon in the 2024 film Madame Web. Anya was one of the three girls that Cassie tries to save in the movie, and she briefly appears in a superhero suit. The film received poor reviews and was not successful at the box office, but Merced isn’t done with superhero roles yet.
Merced is set to play Hawkgirl in Superman, specifically taking on the role of Kendra Saunders. While Kendra is not the original Hawkgirl, she has gained attention recently due to her appearance in the Arrowverse (portrayed by Ciara Renée) and in her own Dawn of DC solo comic by Jadzia Axelrod and Amancay Nahuelpan.
Nathan Fillion - Guy Gardner
Nathan Fillion played minor roles in both Guardians of the Galaxy and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. In the first movie, he played a Blue Alien Prisoner who tried to hurt Peter Quill before Groot stepped in and turned the tables on him. In the third Guardians movie, Fillion appeared as Master Karja, a leader on the Orgoscope.
Fillion will play the Green Lantern Guy Gardner in the upcoming Superman movie. With his quips, brash and obnoxious attitude, and ability to be taken down by Batman with just one iconic punch, Guy is one of those characters people tend to absolutely love or absolutely hate.
Edi Gathegi - Mr. Terrific
Edi Gathegi portrayed Darwin in X-Men: First Class, and his character is often cited as one of the most perplexing decisions made in the Fox Marvel movies.
In the comics, Darwin’s primary power is the inability to die. Regardless of what happens to him, he adapts as necessary to survive. However, this character, who cannot be killed, was killed off in X-Men: First Class.
Gathegi’s next superhero role is as Mr. Terrific, specifically as Michael Holt, the second person to assume the mantle. He does not possess powers, but he utilizes T-spheres, which grant him a wide range of abilities, including flight and invincibility from technology, among many others. An adaptation of the character named Curtis Holt appeared in the Arrowverse, played by Echo Kellum.
Nicholas Hoult - Lex Luthor
Nicholas Hoult portrayed Beast in several Fox X-Men movies, taking on the role of Hank McCoy in X-Men: First Class, X-Men: Days of Future Past, X-Men: Apocalypse, and Dark Phoenix. Although Hank possesses mutant powers, his blue, animalistic appearance was the result of a serum he later injected into himself.
Hoult is set to play the main antagonist, Lex Luthor, in the upcoming movie Superman. Lex Luthor is known as Superman’s arch-enemy and is a wealthy, malevolent genius who utilizes technology and fear-mongering in an attempt to destroy the hero. He despises Superman for being an alien and consistently tries to present himself as a protector of humanity, despite embodying some of humanity’s worst traits.
Mikaela Hoover - Cat Grant
Mikaela Hoover played two roles in the Guardians of the Galaxy franchise. She appeared as Nova Prime’s Assistant in the first Guardians movie but had a far more prominent role as Floor in the third movie. Hoover did both the motion capture and voice work for the bunny who named herself Floor because she was on the floor.
Hoover is set to play Cat Grant in Superman. Many fans may be familiar with the version of Cat from the Arrowverse (played by Calista Flockhart) who runs her own magazine, but in DC comics, she is usually a reporter for the Daily Planet.
With the Daily Planet seemingly playing a large role in Gunn’s Superman movie, it is more than likely this is the version of the character Hoover will play.
Sean Gunn - Maxwell Lord
Sean Gunn has appeared in several of James Gunn’s movies, including as Kraglin in all three Guardians of the Galaxy movies. Sean Gunn has also done motion capture work for various characters in the Guardians franchise, including Young Rocket in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. Sean Gunn is set to voice a character in the animated Creature Commandos show, which is the debut project of James Gunn and Peter Safran’s DCU. In the show Superman, he will play Maxwell Lord, an evil business mogul who eventually acquires mind control powers. Sean Gunn told The Wrap that even though Maxwell Lord has appeared in live-action before, this version will not take inspiration from those live-action adaptations. Instead, he is using “written materials” as one point of reference for his take.
Frank Grillo - Rick Flag Sr.
Frank Grillo portrayed Crossbones in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) and is the only actor on this list who has been in the MCU but not in a film directed by James Gunn. He played Crossbones in Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Captain America: Civil War, and Avengers: Endgame.
Similar to Sean Gunn, Grillo will be lending his voice to a character in Creature Commandos before appearing in Superman.
However, unlike Sean Gunn, Grillo will be portraying the same character (Rick Flag Sr.) in both animation and live-action. In the comics, Rick Flag Sr. has been a leader of the Suicide Squadron and is also the father of Rick Flag Jr.
Honorable Mentions
Skyler Gisondo is the eighth actor in Gunn’s Superman movie to have also appeared in a Marvel movie, as he played Gwen Stacy’s brother Howard in The Amazing Spider-Man and The Amazing Spider-Man 2. However, his role in those movies is extremely minimal. Despite this, Gisondo will be playing Daily Planet photographer Jimmy Olsen in Superman. As Clark Kent’s best friend, Jimmy is one of the most prominent supporting characters in Superman comics. Most recently, Alan Tudyk, who has already been cast as the voice of the radiation-manipulating baddie Doctor Phosphorus in Creature Commandos, was reported to be part of the cast of Superman. Tudyk voiced Alistair Krei in the Marvel-adapted Big Hero 6 Disney animated film before cameoing in Deadpool 2 as a redneck who gets tasered by Josh Brolin’s Cable.
Several actors who worked on the Guardians of the Galaxy movies with Gunn have expressed interest in joining the DCU. Chris Pratt, Dave Bautista, and Pom Klementieff are open to (if not already planning on) joining. Although they haven’t provided details about their potential roles, they have all indicated interest in some capacity.
Superman will be released in theaters on July 11, 2025.
