With Guardians of the Galaxy and The Walking Dead on his resume, Michael Rooker has been a part of some pretty prominent franchises. Now, he's on his way to adding another to the list as he's officially a part of yet another high-profile franchise. Rooker has joined the pilot for Amazon's The Dark Tower, in a role that, at this time, hasn't been revealed.
We do know who he won't be playing, as Sam Strike has been tapped to play gunslinger Roland Deschain, and Jasper Pääkkönen will portray Randall Flagg, a.k.a. The Man in Black. Rooker's announcement (which came from his official website) doesn't give any clues about what his role may be, but it did reveal the pilot is currently shooting the pilot on location in Croatia. Game of Thrones' Jerome Flynn is also involved, and his role is a mystery like Rooker's.
Amazon's The Dark Tower is set to tell the tale of the first encounter between Roland and The Man in Black, so it may be possible Michael Rooker and Flynn are playing entirely new characters. Rumors have circulated that the series will take place years before the events of the movie, which was heavily panned upon release by critics and audiences alike.
Which may be why The Dark Tower is said to be a series that seeks to be a more accurate adaptation of the books, which is always an easy way to gain author Stephen King's approval. Of course, this series shouldn't have that much trouble winning his acclaim, considering he's listed as a developer alongside The Walking Dead's Glen Mazzara and Star Trek: Discoery's Akiva Goldsman.
Michael Rooker appearing on television isn't exactly a rare thing, but he's certainly less of a presence on shows since his days as Merle Dixon on The Walking Dead. With that being said he did have a fleeting appearance in Season 3 of True Detective, which has been his sole appearance on television in 2019. He's had a couple more roles in film this year with parts in Bolden and Brightburn.
While it's unknown how major Michael Rooker's role in The Dark Tower will be, the maximum numbers he could appear in at the moment stands at 13. That's if he's appearing in every episode, and one would think that if he is, he's playing someone who is a pretty big deal.
Right now, popular internet speculation has some thinking Michael Rooker will play the role of Cort. Cort was one of Roland's instructors in his formative years training to be a gunslinger, and was particularly brutal. He's definitely the rough and tumble type similar to the types of characters Rooker is known for playing. Is this who we can expect to see him play, or is there another option?
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We can only sit and wait for more answers. CinemaBlend will keep an eye out for more on the series in the meantime, and continue to report on the latest and greatest television and movie news.
