Alan Ritchson is being eyed for a role in James Gunn’s DC Universe. After having played Aquaman on Smallville and Hawk on Titans, the DCU’s Chapter 1: “Gods and Monsters” may become the third outing for Ritchson in the superhero genre.
In an interview with ScreenRant’s Liam Crowley for his upcoming movie Playdate, Ritchson was asked if there may be a chance for him to join the DCU franchise, and if there is, if his ambition would be to land another hero role or if he would want to explore a villain. The Reacher star confirmed that he is actually in talks for a “messier” role in Gunn’s franchise, as he shared the following:
Alan Ritchson: Yeah. Yes. That’s the conversation that I’ve been having with them is like, ‘I want to play somebody a little messier.’ And I told them, I said, if I’m going to do this, I described to them the kind of personality that I’d want to play and what that would mean to their world, and I think it’s something everybody wants to see right now over there. So yes, I want to play somebody a little dirtier than your typical clean-cut protagonist.
Ritchson has, for the longest time, been a major fan-favorite for the role of Batman in the DCU, as he has expressed numerous times wanting to take on the iconic role. However, in a Variety interview in August 2025, the action star opened up on how he and Gunn had talked about The Dark Knight, but that he wasn’t expecting to be playing Bruce Wayne in the franchise:
Well, it’s not rumor that James Gunn is a fan. He said it himself. And am I a fan of James Gunn? Absolutely. I don’t want to mislead people. Words have been exchanged about Batman. But I strongly don’t think that Batman is in my future. I do think there is something in my future with DC. And I would like that to remain true.
With the many characters that Ritchson could play in the DCU, it remains to be seen which character he could be discussing with DC Studios about. Given the way the franchise operates, Ritchson could always debut in a TV show first before being featured in the movies.
Ritchson was the first actor to bring Arthur Curry to life in live-action during Smallville season 5, where he portrayed the iconic Justice League hero for several seasons. The star also portrayed Hank Hall, a.k.a. Hall, through the live-action Titans TV show, before the character was killed off in season 3.
Gunn has previously stated that he is a huge fan of Ritchson, as he opened up in an interview with Josh Horowitz on the Happy, Sad, Confused podcast in July 2024. The DC Studios co-CEO stated, “I am a big Alan Ritchson fan, both as an actor and as a guy. Let’s just wait to see what happens.”
The DCU is set to continue in 2026 with HBO’s Lanterns TV show, which is eying an early premiere, with Supergirl and Clayface slated to open on June 26 and September 11, respectively.
Playdate is set to debut on Prime Video as of November 12.
-
- Created by
-
Malcolm Wheeler-Nicholson
- First Film
-
Man of Steel
- First TV Show
-
Peacemaker
- Cast
-
Henry Cavill, Ben Affleck, Gal Gadot, Ezra Miller, Ray Fisher, Jason Momoa, Amy Adams, Jesse Eisenberg, Laurence Fishburne, Jeremy Irons, Will Smith, Jared Leto, Margot Robbie, Joel Kinnaman, Viola Davis, Jai Courtney, Jay Hernandez, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Cara Delevingne, Chris Pine, Robin Wright, Zachary Levi, Dwayne Johnson, Amber Heard, Patrick Wilson, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Mark Strong, Asher Angel, Jack Dylan Grazer, Djimon Hounsou, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Jurnee Smollett, Rosie Perez, Ella Jay Basco, Ali Wong, Ewan McGregor, Idris Elba, John Cena, Michael Keaton, George Clooney, Xolo Mariduena
- Movie(s)
-
Man of Steel, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Suicide Squad, Wonder Woman, Justice League, Aquaman, Shazam!, Birds of Prey, Wonder Woman 1984, Zack Snyder’s Justice League, The Suicide Squad, Black Adam, Shazam! The Fury of the Gods, The Flash, Blue Beetle, Superman, The Brave and the Bold
- Character(s)
-
Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, The Flash, Cyborg, Harley Quinn, The Joker, Shazam, Darkseid, Amanda Waller, Lex Luthor, Doomsday, Deadshot, Deathstroke, Black Canary, Black Adam
The DC Universe is one of the biggest comic book franchises and often competes with Marvel. DC Comics started as National Allied Publications, founded by Malcolm Wheeler-Nicholson in 1935. Since then, the franchise has exploded with thousands of comic books, movies, TV shows, and video games. 2013 marked the beginning of the most recent iteration of the superheroes, with Zack Snyder introducing Henry Cavill as Superman. After several movies with mixed reviews, DC underwent a soft reboot under the helm of James Gunn and Peter Safran.
-
- Birthdate
-
November 28, 1982
- Birthplace
-
Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States
- Height
-
6 feet 2 inches
- Notable Projects
-
Reacher, Titans, Fast X
