March 22, 2014

Who Should Play Villain Omega Red In WOLVERINE 3?


A villain for Wolverine 3 hasn't been revealed or confirmed by anyone involved with the project. However, I've had my own suspicions that Omega Red (or at least his technology) was hinted to a couple of times in The Wolverine. With this in mind, I've put together a wish-list of sorts for who should be considered for the role, if it even exists to be filled.

One of the biggest complaints I've had with the X-Men films is that post-X2 they really haven't had a really solid villain. Magneto and Stryker being the best to date, while there was some interesting elements to Shaw (Kevin Bacon) he didn't give-off a real threat-vibe in First Class. I'm sure Apocalypse will be a worthy adversary for the team, but I'm kind of hoping Fox and producers consider a very familiar X-Men villain for Wolverine 3.

Arkady Rossovich/Omega Red is Logan's second biggest villain next to Sabertooth and has yet to make an appearance in the films. He's a serial-killer turned Soviet super-weapon (came before Brubaker's Winter Soldier storyline) and eventually becomes uncontrollable due to his life-force draining tentacles and madness. A sort of evil version of Wolverine, had Logan been a monster prior to his Weapon-X transformation. There could be a bunch of ways to introduce Rossovich considering the character has ties to the Japanese underworld (The Yakuza). At one point yakuza crimelord Matsu’o Tsurayaba (Matta) becomes his handler. In the comics, Tsurayaba attempts a take over of the Yashida Clan. This eventually leads to the death of Mariko.

My choices for candidates include Daniel Craig (Skyfall, Road To Perdition, Munich, Defiance), Nikolaj Coster-Waldau (Headhunters, Game of Thrones, Gods of Egypt ), Viggo Mortensen (Eastern Promises, The Road, History of Violence) and Mads Mikkelsen (Hannibal, The Hunt, Valhalla Rising)

DANIEL CRAIG: Daniel has bit of trifecta when it comes to links to actors in the Wolverine franchise. He's previously worked with Hugh Jackman on the stage and also co-starred with Liev Schreiber (Sabertooth) in the Russian WWII thriller Defiance. A role which saw Craig speak more than a few lines in Russian, having an actor that can convincing speak a foreign language is a major asset. He also doesn't play many villains and this would be a chance to really let him loose. I loved how cruel and dark he was in Road To Perdition, perhaps this could further explore that dark side. The only problem is that Craig could be called-up to shoot Bond 25 during the expected 2016 shoot for Wolverine 3. Not to mention Craig's price-tag might scare-off studios looking to save a few dollars.

NIKOLAJ COSTER-WALDU: We've already seen his Game of Thrones co-star Peter Dinklage take the villainous role of Trask in Days of Future Past, why not include Nikolaj as well? He's got the look and brooding dark side needed for a role like this. He's yet to really jump feet-first into the comic book genre, even though he was in mix for a role in The Winter Soldier. He surprises me every episode of Thrones and played a solid villain in Headhunters.

VIGGO MORTENSEN: He might be hardest of the bunch to convince, but Viggo has the skills to really pull-off a morbid villain like this. The only problem is that Viggo sees himself more of an actor's actor, taking on more independent roles than big commercial ones post-LOTR. If Fox was aiming to shut-up a lot of critics suspect of the intentions of this project, hiring him could peak a lot of interest of film nerds. Landing the actor could prove to be hardest casting addition to the X-Men franchise.

MADS MIKKELSEN: He's already been linked for meeting with Marvel Studios about roles in Thor: The Dark World and possibly Doctor Strange, but nothing officially has been announced concerning those talks. Obviously, Mads is open to the idea and has starred in genre projects before. Fox could strike before Marvel get's around to finally hiring him, and he'd make a very chilling Omega Red for sure. Unlike, Craig he's likely able to commit to a project like this and has more of an open-mind than Viggo.


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