The word “hero” gets tossed around a lot to describe various kinds of characters in all media, but there are some whose merit for being “heroic” is debatable, such as Michael C. Hall’s titular serial killer on Dexter. The Miami blood spatter analyst is a self-described monster with uncontrollable, homicidal tendencies that he channels into bringing even worse people to justice, making it easy to root for him, but harder to imagine him as a superhero.
Well, for that reason (and in honor of his upcoming return in Dexter: New Blood in November), I decided to put myself up to the challenge of figuring out what comic book characters Hall would be the right person to play in the Marvel movies, starting with one whom I believe has a couple things in common with the Emmy-winning actor’s flagship role.
Sentry
When considering what superhero I would choose for Michael C. Hall to play in the Marvel movies, I, honestly, could not help but think of Dexter Morgan as inspiration, because everyone’s favorite serial killer is the first person to come to mind when I think of the actor. Therefore, I wanted to find a character who is likable and very skilled at what he does, but also burdened by an addictive personality and a tendency to break the rules (with deadly consequences) every once in a while. I pretty much found exactly that in Sentry.
At first, Robert Reynolds was a nobody meth addict, until he broke into a science lab and ingested a special serum that imbued him with the power of a million exploding suns. Now harnessing just about every ability you could imagine, Sentry is one of the most powerful people to join the Avengers, which could be the reason why he has not yet been introduced into the Marvel Cinematic Universe - if not for how dangerous he can be. Well, I would hope that is not the case, because the character’s moral ambiguity is exactly what I believe makes him worthy of a big screen debut and, especially, with an actor like Michael C. Hall in the role.
Calvin Zabo
Speaking of moral ambiguity, an iconic story often cited in reference to internal conflict is Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. This very story, written by Robert Louis Stevenson in 1886, inspired a Marvel Comics character named Calvin Zabo to prove that the experiment which transforms the titular scientist into his darker self was possible. As it turns out, the man succeeded and transformed himself into a brutish monster whom he would appropriately dub “Mister Hyde.” He would use this “Hulk-like” alter ego to become a powerful professional criminal.
After eight (soon to be nine) seasons of playing a man living a double life to much acclaim on Dexter, Michael C. Hall has almost perfected the art of portraying dual personalities. Of course, the essential difference between Dexter and Calvin Zabo is that Zabo literally created his own “dark passenger” and, in part, as a way to become a purer physical representation of his own sinister personality, which would be something of a new challenge for Hall. Also, my earlier comparison to Hulk was no accident, because I think this character would work very well on the She-Hulk TV show coming to Disney+.
Doctor Doom
On the other hand, if we make Michael C. Hall a baddie (like he was in Gamer , for instance), it would make sense to cast him as someone more notorious and with an especially large body count. Few supervillains in the Marvel Comics universe more deserving of their title than the very powerful and even more power-hungry Victor von Doom - otherwise known as Doctor Doom. Luckily, the Latverian tyrant’s MCU induct is not so far away with Marvel Studios’ Fantastic Four reboot currently in the works.
That being said, while Doom is commonly thought of as the archenemy of the Fantastic Four, he has made enemies with pretty much everybody in the Marvel Universe (or even the Marvel Multiverse, I could say). In fact, even with great candidates like Galactus, I think that he should succeed Thanos as the franchise’s next “big bad,” which would certainly satisfy the most devoted comic book fans. Give the role to Michael C. Hall and we may have one of the most exciting Marvel movie villains yet.
Baron Blood
If and when Michael C. Hall joins the MCU, it will not actually be his superhero movies debut. In 2015, he starred in one of more interesting DC animated movies, Justice League: Gods and Monsters - an Elseworlds story in which Superman (Benjamin Bratt) is the son of Zod, Wonder Woman (Tamara Taylor) is the queen of the underworld, and Batman (Hall) is an actual vampire who, similar to Dexter Morgan, uses his abilities for good. Unless he ever had the chance to revisit this role in a live-action remake of the film, Marvel has a character that would allow him to play a vampire again.
The Marvel Universe is actually crawling with bloodsuckers, and one of the more fascinating is a Victorian-era nobleman named John Falsworth, who would begin to call himself Baron Blood after succumbing to a bite from Count Dracula himself. Unlike Michael C. Hall’s version of Batman, Blood would use his abilities for evil, eventually becoming an ally to the Germans during World War II. Well, if that does not sound like great motivation for Mahershala Ali’s Blade to hunt him down in the upcoming reboot, I do not know what does.
Banshee
You know what? Maybe we should dial back on suggesting so many villains for Michael C. Hall, who I imagine would be more than happy to play someone who is not so driven by darkness. I figured a good, more heroic match for the actor from would be Sean Cassidy, who is otherwise known as Banshee for his piercing sonic scream among other abilities.
Why would I choose Michael C. Hall to play this Irish-born mutant? Well, for one, l believe that Marvel Studios' forthcoming X-Men movies reboot should take the opportunity to improve on Banshee's ill-fated depiction in 2011's X-Men: First Class (with all due respect to Caleb Landry Jones). Secondly, he is one of a few Marvel heroes who, like Hall, is often noted for his red hair.
With how well the guy has shown that he can play darkness while leading the Dexter cast (and elsewhere), can you really blame me for choosing mostly dark Marvel characters for Michael C. Hall to play? Maybe, a role in the DC movies would be more his style.
