At this point in his career, Academy Award nominee Brendan Fraser could pretty much get any gig he wants. That doesn’t only apply to his nominated performance in The Whale, but also the entire Brenaissance that’s seen him land projects with talents like director Martin Scorsese. So it’s only natural for people to ask if he’d ever return to the DC Universe, which previously saw the actor on track to become part of the DC movies with Batgirl. His answer to that question is pretty true to form, and just as promising.
During the recent Oscar nominee luncheon, Variety was on hand to speak with the contenders for this year’s Academy Awards. The discussion with Fraser brought up the possibility of returning to Warner Bros’ comic universe, and The Mummy vet shared his feelings with a fondness for another role he’s played in that canon:
Maybe, it depends. Everything’s contingent on what it’s about. The role. The job’s not easy to do no matter who’s producing it. I just finished up with Doom Patrol, which is also a DC property, and you know that’s a unique cast and conceit and I loved that Riley Shanahan — an actor who wore all the gear — and I would just do the voice. I could do a job in my long johns and no one would know … so it was the best job ever. Apart from that, I’m open to it.
We almost got to see Brendan Fraser turning heel in the DCEU, thanks to his role as Firefly in Batgirl, which was shelved by Warner Bros last year, as a tax write-off. The move surprised everyone, Fraser himself included, and because of the shock, it makes sense why he wouldn't be 100% down. However, because of his fond memories of Doom Patrol, returning is not totally out of the question.
Part of that is due to Doom Patrol’s four-season gig being something Brendan Fraser fondly remembers. With that experience recently coming to an end for HBO Max subscription holders, there are a lot of good memories that people have connected to Fraser and his DC Comics career. While the Batgirl movie alone might have seemed like enough grounds for skipping any future opportunities, those four years as Cliff Steele/Robotman sound like enough of a counterbalance for Fraser, and make it so he's not completely opposed to returning.
The potential for Brendan Fraser’s return to the DC Films universe is still wide open, which could be good news in the future. Then again, the powers that be at Warner Bros should probably consider that potential Oscar win, and how Fraser could see his schedule become even more crowded as a result.
Should that be the case, maybe the studio should think about potentially releasing its currently shelved film to the public, finally revealing those seven huge Batgirl scenes we would have seen, while also cashing in on the Brenaissance that’s only getting started.
