You know him already as Agent Smith from THE MATRIX, Lord Elrond from LORD OF THE RINGS, V from V FOR VENDETTA, Megatron from TRANSFORMERS and, most recently, Inspector Abberline from the WOLFMAN. Soon, you might know Hugo Weaving as Johann Schmidt, der Rot Schadel, the Red Skull.
Odds are that most of you didn’t know the Australian actor as “Inspector Abberline from THE WOLFMAN” in the list I just rattled off but, ironically, that’s the role most relevant to this bit of news from the Hollywood Reporter. Why? Because Joe Johnston, the director of THE FIRST AVENGER: CAPTAIN AMERICA, also directed that famous monster remake and, apparently, he thoroughly enjoyed working with Mr. Weaving. And why should it end? So, rather than a drawn-out and public casting call/endurance race like we’re seeing for Steve Rogers, the creative people are apparently going straight for him. However, let’s not start counting our chickens before they’re hatched here.
According to THR…
The dealmaking with Weaving is in a delicate stage that will play out in the next day or so. Agencies grouse that Marvel plays hardball in the negotiating process and also demands multi-movie commitments, though the latter usually applies to actors playing its heroes.
I really doubt that a “multi-movie commitment” is going to be an issue for Weaving, considering that he’s already been in two epic trilogy and a third, half-finished, trilogy. I recall him even making a joke one time that he “only does trilogies now."
The Red Skull was last portrayed in “live action” by Scott Paulin in the now twenty-year-old direct-to-video Captain America movie. I recall people having a serious problem the Skull was an Italian fascist in that movie, rather than a German one. I’m sure this take will be a wee more faithful, although I do remember liking the make-up job in that movie, at least. Does that not count for anything? Somebody on the boards, whose name escapes me now, brought up that if John Krasinski did get the Captain America part, then Rainn Wilson, his nemesis "Dwight" on THE OFFICE, should play the Skull. And that prospect absolutely tickled me.
-- Tom Pinchuk is the writer of UNIMAGINABLE for Arcana Comics and HYBRID BASTARDS! for Archaia Comics. Watch out for the HYBRID BASTARDS! hardcover collection this March - - available for pre-order now on Amazon.com.
