One of the best, and occasionally worst, things about the internet is the speed with which people can respond to anything. In this case, however, it's all good, because now, following a comment by Metal Gear Solid creator Hideo Kojima, we now know exactly what it would look like if The Old Guard's Luca Marinelli were to play the role of Solid Snake, and yeah, Kojima was right, he would look pretty awesome.
Recently Hideo Kojima mentioned that he was a fan of Luca Marinelli after seeing him in both The Old Guard and some of his other recent films. Kojima also thought that Marinelli would look just like his Metal Gear Solid protagonist Solid Snake if you threw a bandana around his head. And so, graphic artist BossLogic has done exactly that, whipping together a quick movie poster for a Metal Gear Solid film with Marinelli front and center. And it looks perfect, check it out.
It has to be said, Luca Marinelli looks younger than Solid Snake ever really does in the games in this picture, which may be the only real strike against him. Snake is usually pretty grizzled. Of course, the graphics of the earlier games in the franchise weren't as good, so Snake probably was this young in Metal Gear Solid, it just wasn't that clear.
As a fan of the franchise who is looking forward to a movie if Jordan Vogt-Roberts project ever gets off the ground, I think Luca Marinelli should certainly be considered for the lead role. Of course, he'll likely have some competition. Oscar Isaac has expressed interest in playing Solid Snake as well, and that's an idea that is going to have a lot of fans.
Of course, The Old Guard is about as good an argument for Luca Marinelli to play Solid Snake as he could hope for, assuming of course he would be interested in the role. He can certainly handle the action required.
The Metal Gear Solid video game series sees players take on the role of the character of Solid Snake, or a functionally identical predecessor from whom Solid Snake was cloned (don't ask, it gets very complicated) in games that are described as "tactical espionage action." They usually involve infiltrating one or more secure locations through a combination of stealth mechanics and outright combat. While the stories of the games can get so complex that they become difficult to follow, the fact that there are stories at all makes them attractive as films. And with a host of unusual and equally bizarre villains that Solid Snake comes up against, there are plenty of interesting characters that could fill out an entire film franchise.
While a Metal Gear Solid film project has been in development for some time, there's no indication it's close to the casting phase yet. By the time we get there, we could have several more contenders for the lead role, but at the very least it turns out we have one very solid option.
