While he’s been known as Marvel’s Winter Soldier for almost a decade and has a new spin-off show with that same character debuting at some point next year, some folks are really hung up on the idea of actor Sebastian Stan playing The Riddler in Matt Reeves’ new Batman movie.
And whenever a particularly inspired piece of casting crops up on the internet, you can count on corresponding fan art to help everyone get a picture of what that variation of a famous character could look like. With that in mind, please enjoy the following fan rendering of what Stan could look like as Edward “The Riddler” Nygma:
Looking at this particular visual representation of The Riddler, it does maintain a dorky element of the character’s psyche. But there’s also a seedy, alpha male sort of style at work as well, seeing Sebastian Stan perfectly occupy a crossroads between someone threatening and someone you could kind of laugh at on the streets of The Batman’s Gotham City. Knowing the character’s history of outbursts when his superiority is challenged, it might be best if you just nod respectfully and walk along, before he really does something to your mind you can’t come back from.
Naturally, this wasn’t unprompted, as recently Sebastian Stan has gone on record as stating that he’d love to play the purveyor of perplexing and pernicious puzzles in the universe that feels like it’s on the cusp of confirming Robert Pattinson as the man playing the latest version of the Dark Knight himself. But now, with the right art suggesting what this possibility would look like, it’s easier to approve of such a move.
While Matt Reeves’ The Batman has been reported to have its first two villains already sewn up, with both The Penguin and Catwoman taking those initial slots, there’s always room for more villains to be set up and deployed for future films. It certainly wouldn’t hurt to have a baddie as iconic as The Riddler in the franchise’s back pocket, especially when The Joker would be an option that’s too familiar to bring into the fold just yet.
So leave it to an eager fan on Instagram to make the best case for Sebastian Stan to be the latest Marvel star to defect over to the side of DC, in the name of creative re-casting. It’d certainly be an awesome draw to this new potential series of Batman films, especially with Stan’s fans from his days as Bucky Barnes being part of the contingent that made Avengers: Endgame such a huge box office hit.
As such, this isn’t exactly a confirmed casting, but it’d be a surprise if this item hasn’t already been circulated through Warner Bros’ internal email servers. So if Stan finds himself suiting up in the infamous green question mark suit we know and love, this could be the very moment that made it all happen.
Sebastian Stan can currently be seen in Avengers: Endgame, as well as the Shirley Jackson adaptation We Have Always Lived In The Castle. But if you’re looking for something else at the movies, take a look at our 2019 release schedule to see what else is in your realm of interest.
