Word around the water cooler is that Marvel is “strongly considering” introducing Ghost Rider in the MCU. No word on which version of the character we will potentially see on screen, but it’s said to be “a different character” than the one seen on Agents of Shield.
So no Robbie Reyes.
Everything else I’ve seen and heard regarding this development is that it will more than likely be the O.G. Johnny Blaze version of the character. All I can say about that is: Thank the Lord!
After Nic Cage gave us a very…Nic Cage-ish(?) performance as the character in the previous two Ghost Rider films, I (and I’m sure a lot of fans) have been wanting Marvel to give the character another chance. To be fair, it wasn’t 100% Mr. Cage’s fault the previous two films were pretty terrible. Some of it was the horrendous writing, but Cage’s performance as Blaze left much to be desired.
The previous Ghost Rider films were both produced by Sony, which solves the question of why they were so terrible (cough…give Spider-Man back…cough). Now that Marvel has Ghost Rider’s rights back, the character can finally be done some justice. Assuming they’ll decide to give Blaze another shot, let’s take a look at some actors who could play the character.
Norman Reedus
I mean, can you really argue against Daryl Dixon becoming Ghost Rider? This may be the most obvious pick not only on this list, but out of a lot of the casting articles that I’ve done. Norman Reedus has proven time-and-time again he is nothing short of an absolute badass. With a no-nonsense, “zero f**ks to give” attitude, Reedus is great at playing a**hole characters but you still want to root for them anyways.
The only issue is his commitment to The Walking Dead. Juggling his fan-favorite role on that series with the extensive time requirements of being in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, would be challenging to say the least.
If he could pull it off, there may not be a better choice than Reedus for this role. He is a fantastic actor with a ton of range, seen on display in TWD. Daryl has experienced some of the best development on the series, and the man is already iconic on a motorcycle so it’s basically a win-win.
Garrett Hedlund
Garrett Hedlund is an incredibly underrated talent. Let’s just get that out of the way now. It’s truly surprising he hasn’t been in more big-budget studio films, not to mention never been in a superhero franchise. He undoubtedly has the talent and the looks to take the lead of his own franchise. Perhaps Ghost Rider will it?
Despite his absence from major blockbusters, he is no stranger to them. Hedlund starred in Disney’s (incredibly underrated) Tron: Legacy, which was supposed to spawn more sequels. For some reason, those sequels never materialized. Hedlund was phenomenal in Legacy and would’ve easily carried that franchise had it continued. Disney kind of owes Hedlund at this point, what better gift than to make him a superhero?
Taylor Kitsch
Another supremely underrated talent, Taylor Kitsch, has had some of the worst luck imaginable at the box office throughout his career. Unfortunately, those misfortunes had a negative impact on studio opinions related to him as a bankable lead. Whether that’s fair or not, it is what it is, but I would love to see Kitsch take on a role like Blaze in his own film franchise.
The man has the experience and his performances in failed franchise-starting films like John Carter and Battleship were very good. He’s extremely charismatic and has a magnetic presence on screen. He’s also showcased his ability to balance drama with humor. Up until his role in Lone Survivor, Kitsch’s acting prowess, especially his dramatic chops, were constantly questioned. Not anymore. He would absolutely crush the role of Blaze and prove that he’s capable of leading a successful franchise.
Travis Fimmel
Among the underrated actors on this list, Travis Fimmel fits firmly in that category. When he was cast in 2016’s Warcraft adaptation, it looked like Fimmel was going to not only have a franchise role to play for a while, but we would start seeing him cast more projects. As things stand, a sequel to Warcraft has not yet been greenlit and Fimmel hasn’t been cast in any other projects.
He really broke out with his performance as Ragnar Lothbrok in the hit History series, Vikings. His character quickly became iconic and a fan-favorite, solely because of Fimmel’s charming and ferocious performance. He carried every single episode and his presence will be sorely missed in the new seasons that do not include his character. But that means his schedule is wide open for Marvel to lock him down to long term contract, and Blaze would be a great fit.
Charlie Hunnam
Of course Charlie Hunnam was going to show up on this list eventually. Hunnam is an actor constantly being fancasted for superhero roles, although he’s yet to actually show any interest in joining a superhero franchise. He’s clearly wanted by the comic book/superhero community though.
And what the fandoms want, the fandoms usually get. (Well, that sounded creepy.)
Why is Hunnam an obvious choice? Aside from the supermodel good looks and his incredible talent, Hunnam starred as Jax Teller on FX’s hit show Sons of Anarchy for eight seasons. His performance as Teller put the character in a lot of discussions on best TV characters of all time. He was charismatic, intimidating, vulnerable, and honestly, downright scary at times.
Oh, and he’s no stranger to motorcycles. Hunnam would absolutely own the role of Blaze, Marvel just needs to convince him to join the superhero craze.
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