Rogue One’s Ben Mendelsohn Wants to Play Doctor Doom

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story villain Ben Mendelsohn wants to play Doctor Doom, calling the famed Fantastic Four and Marvel Comics nemesis “the greatest comic character of all time.” Mendelsohn’s star has risen considerably in Hollywood in the last few years, thanks to his acclaimed turns in the indie thriller Animal Kingdom, the Netflix dramatic series Bloodline, the indie drama Mississippi Grind opposite Ryan Reynolds and last year, in the pivotal role of the Empire’s Director of Advanced Weapons Research Orson Krennic in Rogue One.

At current, Mendelsohn is attracting notices for playing King George VI opposite Gary Oldman’s Prime Minister Winston Churchill in the WWII historical drama Darkest Hour, and he’s reportedly in the running to star opposite Brie Larson in an unspecified role – but rumored to be the villainous leader of the Skrulls – in Marvel Studio’s upcoming MCU adventure Captain Marvel. However, it sounds like if Mendelsohn had his way, he would be playing another classic Marvel villain.

In an interview with MTV‘s Happy Sad Confused Podcast, Mendelsohn didn’t mess around in naming which comic book character he would like to play, which he believes is the best of all of them:

“Doctor Doom is the greatest comic character of all time. That’s a great role. The thing that’s appealing about Victor is the damage and trauma, the loss of the family, the wrong done to him and then the takeover, the revenge, and then the protectiveness of Latveria wrapped in that Cold War vibe. There’s something about the combination of that. What actually makes him great is his caring bit.”

It’s exciting to hear that Mendelsohn’s so interested in Doctor Doom, which will undoubtedly give hope to Fantastic Four fans waiting for a definitive version of the character; following Roger Corman’s unreleased unreleased film about the First Family of Superheroes in 1994; Tim Story’s two Fantastic Four films in 2005 and 2007; and Josh Trank’s critically- and fan-maligned reboot attempt in 2015.

Anytime a name actor expresses interest in a project, it should at the very least merit the powers-that-be’s attention. After all, Mendelsohn earned a bit of comic book movie street credibility in supporting role as Daggett, the money tycoon that Bane (Tom Hardy) turned the tables on in Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight Rises; and a plum role in Captain Marvel would go a long way in Mendelsohn realizing his dream of playing Doctor Doom.

Clearly Mendelsohn is vested in the history of the character and even has a narrative already planned out, so combining that valuable knowledge with his passion for the role may be the winning combination that fans are looking for. Unfortunately, with the rights to the character locked up at 20th Century Fox (at least, for now), the studio may not be considering a move to give the snake-bit franchise another try anytime soon, taking to consideration the dreadful reception of the 2015 reboot. That, of course, could change if the studio considers the wishes of their X-Men: First Class and Kingsman director Matthew Vaughn to reboot the franchise himself.