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Black DC Superheroes with the Best Shot at the Big Screen (And How They Should Get There)

Isn't it time we had more variety on the big screen?

Feature films based on DC Comics have seen varying degrees of success since Richard Donner’s Superman kicked off the modern age of comic book adaptations in 1978. Unfortunately, DC’s wealth of characters has failed to make it to the silver screen in the past 30 years with the same bulk or momentum that Marvel’s superheroes have managed in the past decade, exposing movie-going audiences to not only a criminally small fraction of the DC universe, but also a predictably white one.

Since Batman and Superman have been tasked with carrying most of DC’s box office burden—and the majority of remaining superheroes in their shared universe are white—it stands to reason that whatever upcoming DC movie projects there are will likely lack racially diverse superheroes.

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More unfortunate is that Warner Bros. has actually tried giving heroes of color leading roles a couple of times, but both tries ended in disaster. The ‘90s film Steel, based on the story of the black John Henry Irons in the wake of Superman’s death, was plagued with too much camp, cheese and Shaquille O’Neal to be successful. Although the athlete had shown some comedic talent by the time he was up for the action role, O’Neal’s casting was a clear sign of how seriously the audience should take the material before ever setting foot in a theater. With a low budget that also didn’t do the movie any favors, Steel bombed big time and fell into fast obscurity.

== TEASER ==

Catwoman, too, featured a black lead with the casting of Halle Berry, boldly supplanting the white norm of the comics. However, the movie’s other departures from the original stuff—including the name, home, skill-set and associates of the original character—doomed it to a lack of fan support well before other problems offered nails for its coffin.

Obviously, the ethnicities of these characters weren’t inherently responsible for their failures, nor were their films the only duds from DC properties (Jonah Hex, Superman Returns, Green Lantern). Managed correctly, though, some of DC’s black superheroes have enough big-screen potential to warrant the consideration of Warner Bros. Below are the three with the most promise, along with suggestions of how they should be realized on film.

Steel (John Henry Irons)

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Why He Has Big-Screen Potential:

As mentioned above, Warner Bros. has seen possibility in the character before, and with good reason. John Henry Irons was easily the most grounded and complex superhero to spring from the Death of Superman aftermath, and went on to have a solo comic book during the ‘90s. Although John’s role since has been mostly a supporting one in the Superman books, his presence has endured surprisingly well, as he’s been written into the Justice League’s animated series and comics, emerged front and center during DC’s lauded 52 event, starred in the Infinity Inc. group book as the main character, and even survived the recent DC relaunch to appear in ACTION COMICS. Overall, something about John’s appeal has engaged writers and fans alike for almost 20 years.

How His Film Treatment Could Work:

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A new Steel movie would undeniably necessitate a start-from-scratch reboot, but there are a few aspects of the original film that should remain intact. Like the first flick, a new take should ax the comic book origin story that saw John finding inspiration from Superman. This John’s adventures should feel fully self-sufficient, and while a hint or two at a shared universe with Superman is fine, the audience should believe that he’s a hero entirely of his own making. Another approach that the first film got right was the attention it paid to inner city gangs; when the weapons John invented for military use find their way into his own neighborhood and threaten the youths there, John’s story becomes a compelling tale of desperate redemption, as well as one of potentially biting social consciousness.

However, a new film could benefit from taking itself far more seriously than the first one did. In the comics, a drive-by shooting kills two kids in front of John and critically injures him before he ever puts on a cape, establishing an atmosphere of tragic brutality that the original movie never explored. If a new film fully embraced the gritty nuances of John’s hometown slum, as well as the emotional damage and complex dangers it presents to him and his loved ones, his story could have extraordinary resonance in a way other superhero fare hasn’t tried. Moreover, an adaptation positing that even a man in a suit of technologically advanced armor is still an underdog—considering the cycles of gang violence, poverty and racial oppression he’s up against—would set a Steel movie apart from Iron Man territory, and could even set a precedent for a new kind of superhero movie.

Green Lantern (John Stewart)

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Why He Has Big-Screen Potential:

John Stewart, an African-American Green Lantern, has skyrocketed in popularity due to the Justice League and Justice League Unlimited animated series on Cartoon Network. Originally recruited in the comics as a backup for the more popular, and white, Hal Jordan, John has come into his own as a hero just as autonomous and legitimate in pop culture. Well before the Green Lantern movie opted for Hal as its protagonist, a nearly-made Justice League feature film would have starred Common as John Stewart. Regardless, John still has a prominent role in the Green Lantern comic books, and has shown up on Cartoon Network’s current Young Justice series.

How His Film Treatment Could Work:

Since Warner Bros. is committed to making direct sequels to the Green Lantern film from this summer, it’s clear that Hal Jordan will continue to be the series’ protagonist. But that doesn’t mean John Stewart can’t have a principal role. Much like James Rhodes’ part increased alongside Tony Stark’s in the Iron Man films, the Green Lantern movies could use John Stewart as a friend/foe whose methods and mentality generate friction with Hal before a true partnership blossoms.

A scenario as simple as John temporarily inheriting the Green Lantern ring after Hal seems mortally wounded could easily bring the character into a sequel. Once Hal recovers, but John proves his unexpected worth as a Lantern, the stage would be set for the two to compete for the privilege of the ring—until an adversary requiring their combined efforts forces them to come to their senses. Given Hal’s struggle with responsibility from the first film, a rival with the serious demeanor and iron will John Stewart is known for could make him the prefect foil—especially given how badly Hal needs a compelling conflict for the Green Lantern movies to continue.

Static (Virgil Hawkins)

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Why He Has Big-Screen Potential:

2000’s animated program Static Shock, which lasted an impressive four seasons, introduced the Milestone Comics character to millions of young viewers and indelibly marked the superhero’s place in pop consciousness. Static now has his own comic book series in DC Comics proper, and has appeared on Justice League Unlimited.

How His Film Treatment Could Work:

Very simply, a movie adaptation of the Static Shock comic should stay true to source material. Virgil Hawkins’ success on screen need not be much of a riddle given his relatability; his spunky sense of humor, academic pressures, teenage outlook and secret identity woes provide ample possibility for a compelling hero, and his similarities with the successful Spider-Man character are no accident. Virgil’s TV show proved that he has the personality—and enough interesting enemies on top of it—to keep his story exciting and entertaining should he ever get the live-action try.

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These suggestions aren’t the final word on black superheroes who deserve to be on the silver screen, but they’re probably the ones with the biggest chances of being considered. And with a film industry that’s playing it safer than ever, these three have the built-in fanbases that would make them the “least risky” minorities to take on.

While black heroes like Mr. Terrific and Batwing have their own comic books, and characters like Cyborg and Aqualad have gathered impressive buzz on television, few have seen enough spotlight and “push” like Steel, John Stewart and Static to invite bated breath.

That’s not even to mention DC’s female black superheroes, whose presence altogether in comics is so negligible that chances of prominent film roles for them anytime soon are slim to none.

Likewise, superheroes of color who aren’t black are also regrettably hard to come by. While talks about TV shows for characters like Jaime Reyes and Renee Montoya surface from time to time, their big-screen debuts still look like distant prospects. Overall, DC’s minority characters of either sex face some serious barriers in number and attention that preclude much Hollywood dreaming.

144 Comments

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ravisher

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Edited By ravisher

static would work well

and black panther

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Postacrat

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Edited By Postacrat

You know what I hate? I hate whenever some one yell's out the phrase "Black this" and "Black that" people of other particular cultures jump on the defensive and look at it as black people trying too hard to be relevant. I am black and I would love to see more representation of my race in comics period, let's not stand here and play the race card and act as if the superhero Genre has not been predominately white in and out of comic books for years. Blacks are a minority, why do we have to mention other races who are still placed in the same category as we are so others can feel like we're not only speaking in our own behalf? Blade is excellent but Spawn could have been better, both movies starred some of the best African American Martial Artists in the world, Wesley Snipes and Michael Jai White. However those are only two films and there are still not enough good black characters to choose from. I'm not here to start a Black Panther Party Movement, I just personally want to see more African American Influence in comics without it feeling like Affirmative action. Just do it, there is no need to draw attention to it. Good read

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OmegaAgent1

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Edited By OmegaAgent1

@Lion_Heart22:

This whole line up is laughable and one of the reasons Marvel movies are better than DC. Everybody on this list is a knockoff of a white character and can be compared to marvel movies.

the Bronze Tiger is a DC original that should be prominently featured in the Young Justice cartoon kicking asses and training the kids; then developed into a live action movie with the Suicide Squad as his supporting cast. Amanda Waller, Deadshot, Vixen and Flag already have fan bases and are connected to the Tigers story.

A relevant threat to America and the world is terrorism. Lord Naga and his Kobra legion covers that threat as well as being the Tigers arch villain. The Kobra cult adds ninja like fighting along with super spy heroics. Anybody that doesn't really know who the Bronze Tiger is go over to thebronzetigerblogspot.com then come back and lets continue this conversation.

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Leek0421

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Edited By Leek0421

@Kairan1979:

Yes there are few but not many. I like to see minority characters that have diverse personalities. I would also like to see more than 1 minority character on a team. Just a few suggestions. Also some decent minority villains would help.

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Kairan1979

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Edited By Kairan1979
@Leek0421:  

There are no black characters with a Batman or Wolverine type of attitude or demeanor

Nighthawk from Supreme Power / Squadron Supreme - black Batman analogue who concentrates on crimes against black people.
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Leek0421

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Edited By Leek0421

Being black and a comic book reader i would have to say the only DC character that i would like to see on the big screen is Static. Other then that the only other black comic character that would be good enough for the big screen would be Black Panther and Storm.

To be honest most black character's in comics are corny. Not to many of them will hold your interest. They are either to goody goody or just lame. There are no black characters with a Batman or Wolverine type of attitude or demeanor. There are none with a slick side like Gambit or hard head like Guy Gardner. While I think Blade and Spawn are the exception they are barely as popular as Luke Cage.

One character that i enjoyed was created by Ryan Benjamin named Serge. He was an awesome character for Wildstorm that went toe-to-toe with Backlash. I would like to see more minority characters in the comic world that wasn't all alike.

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redhood21

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Edited By redhood21

John stewart would do ok, i think static could be good. I feel like marvels black heroes like Black Panther and Luke Cage have a better shot. Marvel is cranking out movies while DC after GL 2 will prob be reluctant to do another GL of any kind unless its better (i liked the first, many i know did not..). I would really like to see a static movie, but i could just see it being aimed at like pre teens and totally fd up by some crap director. Steel doesnt have a chance cuz Shaq is too fat now

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Comicbookgal

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Edited By Comicbookgal

I would pay a ton of money to see a Static shock movie, he's one of my favorite heroes.

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jhazzroucher

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Edited By jhazzroucher
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Storm definitely. I wanna see her a brief story on how her parents met and fell in love, showing us ororo munroe being born, then they traveled to egypt, and the plane crash. then Storm became a thief, then worshipped as a goddess, then became an x-men and leads it, shows her mohawk look and shows how she cope up being depowered and at the end, joins the Avengers. : )

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Osiris1428

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Edited By Osiris1428

Static would be awesome.

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SeraPHIMM

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Edited By SeraPHIMM

I think John Stewart should've been the Green Lantern to play in the movie, not Hal (not that I have anything against him). A large portion of the teenagers I know, if not a portion, probably ALL of them are only familiar with the 'black Green Lantern' or 'the black dude with the green ring', because of (as already mentioned) the animated series aired on CN. I think Green Lantern the movie would've gained much more if it was played by the more commonly known african-american icon, rather than Ryan Reynolds (not that I'm complaing about that either) xD 
 
I enjoyed the animated series of Static as a youngster, I would honestly love to see him on the big screen.
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Kairan1979

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Edited By Kairan1979
@RocketOrange said:

I VANT RUSSIAN SUPERHERO!!!

Never gonna happen. The only exception is when he is fighting against the Russian government with the help of American superheroes.
@Osiris1428
I'll never say "keep the comics white". I liked Blade and I liked Spawn, they are muche better than a lot of movies about white heroes.
But I DON"T want to see black Heimdall or black Perry White.
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bballaag

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Edited By bballaag

The Blade trilogy was great IMO. I'm interested in seeing more.

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SpideyIvyDaredevilFan26

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I was thinking Spawn, but he already has a movie and it was good.

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Osiris1428

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Edited By Osiris1428

I see some folks like to use this "politicly correct" crap as an excuse to say, but not say "Keep comics white". It's about supply and demand. Some white people like black super heros. Some black people like white super heros. Not exclusively, mind you. No one doing this stuff out of forcing some agenda down some one else's throat. Certain demographics have more buying power now than they did back then when comics started. And so it would be stupid to not market to them. And of course, not every white person is going to take seeing black super heros on screen as an insult to them. Only a few nut cases...

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deactivated-578ee3f81c5e1

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@mikex20: ugh, god no. a black superhero who walked around as the pinnacle of uncle tim, dressin in white face and blue eyes, and a basketball player and is named coltrane?and is emotionless? hellll no, he should be wiped from the entire dc multiverse, thats just a racially ignorant fail. blacks arent a fictional alien race you can do what you will with, there are limits.

Other than steel shaq, I honestly think black superheroes intimidate the franchise I mean war machine would have stolen the show if he was given a bigger part in iron man 2, blade is even loved by skinhead members(seriously, i used to live in a very prejudice town,and they couldnt help but admit they arent fans of the black community but dug blade, go figure) for his badassedness. I think its apparent that DC in itself has a serious racial hump to get over, I mean geoff johns more than anything. I as just watching smallville and remembered how the only true minority was cut from the show so early i mean wtf dc.

but if I had to say the best choice for black super hero movie i'd have to say Luke Cage, his story is interesting and relatable. I know it sounds crazy if you read my post, bust I used to be in the bloods when I was around 15, and with all honesty i was a closet comic nerd since I was twelve,and Lukes story made me reevaluate myself and try and find a higher ground, now I've reinvented myself and nobody from those days even recognizes me personality wise.

Thanks for the article EG, somebody had to at least get the thought out there

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Manogeek

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Edited By Manogeek

Granted Characters such as Steel, Static, Mister Terrific and Green Lantern (John Stewart) all deserve some big screen love but DC also has other black superheroes that deserve it as well.

Batwing, Aqua Lad, Black Lightning, Firestorm (the ultimate bi-racial hero),The Spectre (Crispus Allen) and Vixen all would make for great movie solos. And although it is great to say that there needs to be a more visible presence of black superheroes up on the big screen I think that it is safe to say that there just needs to be a larger diversity of superheroes period. Comic books are fantasy with aliens, robots, angels and devils but it all takes place in a world that has some basis in reality and in reality there are many cultures that we interact with daily. It would be nice to see a larger representation of the people who spend their money to see movies and read about the unbelievable in those media forms. Isn't it about time it stopped being about percentages and more about just being the norm.

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00 Raiser

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Edited By 00 Raiser

I wouldnt mind seeing Batwing on the Big Screen. I think a lot of people of color would go to see it.

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Emperormeister734

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Luke Cage needs a movie, that needs to be the next marvel project and John Stewart should be in the next Green Lantern Sequel. Overall we had black superhero movies Storm (in X-MEN TRILOGY)Steel,Spawn,Blade(WHICH WAS BADASS) and I got to see my favorite black hero War Machine(seeing him brought a tear to my eye). We need to see more black hero like the Black Panther could be a great breakthrough

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daredevil21134

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Edited By daredevil21134

G.L.John Stewart ftw

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Static Shock

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Edited By Static Shock

All they need is exposure.

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feebadger

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Edited By feebadger

@scifi_superstar said:

@feebadger said:

@scifi_superstar: I don't think it's politically correct for those that buy and read comics to want to see themselves represented within them. Peter Parker was such a ground breaking character because, for hte first time, the hero reflected the very kids who were buying the comic. I think that it's only fair for massive corporations like DC and Marvel (owned by Warner and Disney let's not forget) to repay their fan base and mature enough to represent ALL walks of life in their books. After all, it's us who pay for them and it is us who keeps them in business. I'm glad you like what DC are doing with their comics. I'm also glad that you obviously feel represented. Not all of us have that privilege.

im sad for you because you feel left out. but maybe you should have thought of what the comic book industry was offering before you decided to purse it as a hobby. insead of coming in and trying to change what the creators ideas are for their product. and as for lobdell, i love his starfire! she looks great. keep up the great work :-)

:

You don't need to feel sad for me. No one needs to feel pitied or condescended to and i most certainly don't feel left out, misrepresented or under represented. I have been reading comics for nearly thirty years. I began when i was seven. Comics are not a hobby they are a large portion of my life. Anyone who thinks upon a medium offering them cultural diversity before enjoying it is obviously far more capable of forward thinking than i. At seven years of age, i did not have that kind of understanding. Of course, the issue of race in comics is a long and well argued one but, for me at least, it is only one small part of comics, if not an incredibly important one. Another issue is the portrayal of and focus on female characters in comics. Very important. Suggesting that someone should simply abandon a thing they love over a situation they are not happy with is ridiculous and small minded. Look into the civil rights movement someday and tell me if you think everyone should have just gotten over it and gone home to watch the tv instead. These issues that you and i are discussing are important. A lack of racial and sexual respect in comics is the same as turning on the television and only seeing whites, going to the movies and only seeing whites, looking at your government and only seeing white representation. It IS important. It is not politically correct to be conscious of such things, it is being politically aware. Comic creators are human beings. Sometimes, like all of us, maybe they need to be made aware of certain issues they otherwise might not have thought of and that is where columns like the above really make a difference. No one is trying to change the creators ideas here. Perhaps they are just trying to give them some new ones.

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Master_Of_Evil

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Edited By Master_Of_Evil

i would probably see none of these now if they make a black panther film i would see that

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RocketOrange

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Edited By RocketOrange

I VANT RUSSIAN SUPERHERO!!!

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mikex20

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Edited By mikex20

Xero is the obvious choice.

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jointron33

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Edited By jointron33

@Ultim8Roux: hes middle eastern. thats like saying ivan drago was asian just because russia is partially in Asian

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LuffyDUzumaki

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Edited By LuffyDUzumaki

YAY MY THREAD GETS JUSTICE!!!

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The_Kid_Lantern

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Edited By The_Kid_Lantern

Aside from them making Fury black and the old Blade movies [that were far and away from the other Marvel movies in tone and audience] what has Marvel done with ethnic characters? Luke Cage might be up for a movie and Cloak and Dagger might be on tv... but it's not like they're leaps and bounds ahead of DC/Warner and until it's getting filmed I wouldn't say it's in development. Marvel just managed to spread Jackson's role across the board and made a series off the awesomeness that is Snipes.

Bronze Tiger headlining a Suicide Squad movie would be good. Black Lightning could work if done justice to the source material. And I've always pictured Martian Manhunter's main civilian disguise as an African-American cop named John Jones when most of the time it's a white guy....

~KL~

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Cytorrak

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Edited By Cytorrak

I could see Static working, but they'd probably have to change so much to make it fit the typical super hero movie mold the fans might not be satisfied with the product.

Steel and Stewart are too derivative. Just alternate versions of a popular character. They wouldn't work for the same reason a Red Hulk or Power Girl movie wouldn't -as much as I'd love to see a Power Girl movie, provided Carrie Keegan got the part. The Shaq Steel movie was terrible, and omitted his entire relation to Superman, and gave him a really cheesy costume. I think it lead to the decline of Steel's popularity really.

I'd definitely watch a Mr. Terrific movie. Well, pre-52. To be honest I've really disliked his characterization in the relaunch.

That said, why does it matter? This whole discussion kind of feels like a slap in the face.

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Ultim8Roux

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Edited By Ultim8Roux

Black Adam should be in a DC movie and I have no problem with him being portrayed by a black man. He's african isnt he? Not saying all africans are black but it would be more acceptable than say.....kingpin. Tho MCD was a better kingpin than affleck was daredevil

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XLR87T3

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Edited By XLR87T3

@Duo_forbidden said:

I think Static has the most potential to hit the big screen. He's a young superhero teenager that can be a huge hit with the younger audienceif done right.

Exactly the point. If done right, both Static and John Steward movies would be epic.

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deactivated-578ee3f81c5e1

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Great article john stewart is my most possible on that list, I mean I'm 20 and I knew full wel GL was white both with hal and kyle, but I gravitated towards the stubborn marine with a power ring, because he didnt make cartoon characters and cry or have the imagination of a child like jordan. I reall hope common takes the rle but honestly I'd like to see micheal jai white also known for his role in spawn, command the role, watch that mvie and tell me he doesnt command the same presence.

static like I said Im 20 I grew up on him, it was turn of the century and even a 9ish ear old me was wondering where the hell is all the black flks at, are they statistically not able to get his with radioactivity or is black skin only localize to earth? so yeah static has a cult following that hasnt even been tapped yet.

mr.terrific is nimber 3 sorry, steel got assasinated by shaq. a genius with his own lab and cant be viewed on cam? I like it already.

sidenot:no black hero movies scheduled inmarvel...but theyre making an antman movie you read me right, antman

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cracktheskye

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Edited By cracktheskye

I could definitely see Static in a movie. No idea who would play him though... Hmm...

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Or35ti

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Edited By Or35ti

I would love to see John Stewart in Green Lantern 2. I think if DC made a Steel movie however people would just call him a black Iron Man. A Static movie would be damn interesting tho, but it'd require a large budget to handle well and I don't see DC tossing so much cash to one of their B-list characters any time soon. If Static were Marvel tho I would totally be able to see it

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SuperDoahBoy

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Edited By SuperDoahBoy

@Loki2u: Right! Those were good.@Shamelesslysupportinaznballers: I still haven't seen the Cap. America movie but I'm sure they don't mention none of that, or the fact that the very first Cap. was actually black.

IMO the reason why minorities don't work out as Superheroes is cause Hollywood isn't really interested in making the minority the hero. They'll give us the roles but they won't put as much effort into it the way they put effort into white heroes. The minority is usually the enemy, and even then white criminals get a better shake than the rest. Look how popular shows like Dexter, Sons of Anarchy, Sopranos and movies like The Town and Heat are. What do all these popular things have in common other than their leads are Criminals, they are all mostly white. Now look at Denzel Washington, possibly one the best black actors out there. I bring him up cause he has been one of the biggest victims of a racist Hollywood: His role as Malcolm X got him no love, but his role as Alonzo in Training Day won him an Oscar. Whats up with that BS?

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The Impersonator

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I would love to see a Terrific movie.

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Lion_Heart22

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The fact that some of these are in fact "replacements" to white heroes in one way or another is not something I like. In my opinion, self-made african american heroes who don't owe their origin to others should be more important, like Luke Cage, Mr. Terrific (special case), Black Panther, Cyborg, or Storm... characters who are awesome for their own and not because they're the black version of an identity. It's also funny that this only happens with minorities: I'm betting that if Black Panther died and his replacement were white, there would be a massive backlash against marvel.

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Shamelesslysupportinaznballers

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@Linked One said:

A Green Lantern movie with John Steward would be weird, it's like doing a Flash movie but instead of using Wally West, they use Bart Allen, most of the iconic superheros are from the Golden Age of Comics, where the vast majority of them were white, the new heroes are not as prolific and won't make as much money compared to the alternative as a result, I would actually like to see an Asian superhero movie, like Krishna from Supergod.

It would only be weird to, no offense, but to comic geeks. Who cares if the flash is Wally, Bart or Joe the plumber or if Iron Man is Rhodey and actually not stark. The general population only knows The Flash, they don't know who is behind the mask and quite frankly they don't care & the same with GL. Was Kingpin being black the thing that ruined the DD movie? If he was white would it have made it that much better?

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DickDastardly

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Edited By DickDastardly

@Loki2u: This is true. Two, in most peoples opinions, decent movies. (excludeing blade trinity) But i think the point was to showcase black heroes who havent had a chance to shine yet.

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KainScion

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STEEL II: THE RETURN OF SHAQ

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lady_toyano

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Edited By lady_toyano

Unfortunately I just can’t get past the notion of how cheesy a Steel movie would be and Static has some potential, but I still feel he doesn’t have the appeal of a box office movie at this point. John Stewart is the only one from this list I believe could stand a chance because this upcoming movie going generation is way more familiar with him then they were with Hal Jordan (I’m 24 and got all my info about Green Lanterns from Justice League). I’m not going to lie, I didn’t even know there were other Green Lanterns until a few years ago and didn’t find out till around the beginning of this year that John wasn’t the main Green Lantern. Now I’m not saying the movie should have complexly over looked the original GL Hal, but considering how movies tend to franchise and go with what’s familiar, I was surprised that John wasn’t even mentioned or had a cameo leading into a trailer for the next GL movie (which the only way I will even bother to watch is if it has John or Kyle... or both. I know he is an extremely fresh take on the character, and there have been others before him, but I think that Kuldur Awualad’s story as a focal point for an Aquaman movie has some great potential for the big screen. Even lower on the totem pole is women of another color with super status getting a mention in a comic, let alone a movie. They had something fierce with Amanda Waller and a Suicide Squad movie with her over the team would have been pretty cool to see to… before the reboot and that WT-Heck is this in Green Lantern anyways. I think Marvel has a good shoot of doing something decent, but instead of jumping straight to the main, I think focusing on some other characters would be revealing and broaden the fan base. You don’t have to know the comic characters to want to see the movie if the trailer for it is really swanky. Storm is awesome, but I would have liked to see Angela Basset or Jada Pinket in that role over Halle Berry, she just wasn’t working with enough presence for me. I would love to see a Heroes for Hire movie. Misty Knight is awesome and there is so much you could do with that theme. Like Smoking Aces accept with a bigger and nobler goal then taking out some old Don who needed a heart transplant.

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Misterwizz

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@perry_411:

Yes because have your book being cancelled after 18 issues, means that you were the main lantern for 20, and featured as a supporting character in the Justice League (really just the Batman and Superman and friends show) means that you're the most prominent. And no using Hal in the GL movie was not fail, and the character had nothing to do with the film's failures.

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Misterwizz

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Edited By Misterwizz

Black DC superheroes that can be actually seen on the big screen (realistically) none.

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ithinkitwasyou

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@TomHunter: if they take out the part where he joined a gang, I agree completely

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TomHunter

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Edited By TomHunter

BLACK LIGHTNING!!! And not the 'Year One' version from a couple of years ago.

The original Tony Isabella series would be a GREAT screen version.

Jefferson Pierce, new teacher, divorced, powers from the belt. It is the PERFECT base for a film.

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Dedpool

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Great article, now let's see one for Marvel. But seriously I'd love to see a Stitc Shock live action film. Stewart should definitely be in a GL sequel, and have him on Earth with Hal in space. And Steel should be written exatly as described, a gritty urban piece, with some milatry/corporate epsionage conspiracy. Make it so he worked for a company that was creating weapons secretly and using his designs, and when the weapons hit the streets for "testing" he's caught up in it and makes the armor to stop them. Mr. terrific would actually be pretty cool as an inner city Batman-esque type of film.

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Outside_85

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Will say the GL failure will keep Steward out of any solo projects for the time being, could still appear in a JL flick if DC ever gets that rolling, and Steward is the one of the three I'd like the most to see on the big screen. Holt comes in as a second...Steel I think will suffer from his first movie and how easy it is to compare him to Iron Man.

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LordRequiem

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Edited By LordRequiem

I shall rue the day Luke Cage ever gets into a movie, no doubt he will. Bishop in the next X-men film would be good. A well done Spawn film I'm sure is overdue and constantly rumoured. War Machine/James Rhodes has shared the limelight somewhat, if anything not enough.

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Dedpool

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@ Perry_411- are you serious? Black Panther (Djimon Honsou please), Storm, Luke Cage, Blade, Isaiah Bradley (Black Captain America), Elijah Bradley (Patriot), Falcon, Monica Rambeau (Formerly Captain marvel, Photon) to name a few. But the best suited are Panther, Blade (again), and Cage

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perry_411

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Edited By perry_411

@Daveyo520: Marvel has a black hero? Who, where?