It's still early days for Warner Bros' new DC universe headed James Gunn and Peter Safran, but we just got one exciting update on one of the upcoming DC movies on the way. Dynamic Duo will officially star Mason Thames as Dick Grayson/Robin. It's perfect casting, especially since the actor once told us himself how much the character means to him.
In a new interview with Collider, Safran confirmed Thames casting, which has been rumored for awhile. Here's what he said about the 19-year-old from How To Train Your Dragon and The Black Phone movies earning the role.
We always talk about wanting volunteers and not recruits to be part of the DCU, to be part of DC Studios, and Mason always wanted to be Dick Grayson. He just did. And he came in, and auditioned the shit out of it, and was awesome. He's a wonderful young actor, but boy, did he want this. He was just obsessed. When he came over to the DC offices, he came over with his dad at the time, and we’ve got tons of great archives and stuff in there, and wanted to take a picture of everything and with everything. He's a fan.
When Mason Thames stopped by San Diego Comic-Con's suite back in July, he gushed with us about his deep love for the character. As he shared with us at the time:
I'm a big comic book nerd... Spider-Man's always been No. 1, but I love Robin, specifically Dick Grayson's Robin. I've loved his comic books. I have about a million of them. It's just fun to see his journey from him being first Robin to becoming Nightwing, to becoming kind of the symbol of what Batman wishes Batman was. And, he's always kind of been the best of him.
This new role for Mason Thames is absolutely deserved because he truly knows his stuff. In between chatting with him, I could see how genuinely stoked he was to be at his first San Diego Comic Con. He was asking me about all the tips to best enjoy the experience, and was hyped to walk the floor and get the full SDCC experience. He really and truly is one of us. Here's the video:
DC's Dynamic Duo movie is set to have Thames' Dick Grayson working together with another Robin iteration, Jason Todd. Grayson grew up in a family of circus performers, but had to watch his parents fall to their deaths while trying to be complete one trick (after the act was sabotaged). He becomes Batman's first sidekick. Jason Todd, on the other hand, is a character who grew up on the streets of Gotham to a petty thief and a drug addict for parents before being taken in by Batman.
When the movie was announced it on X in October 2024, Gunn revealed it'd be "a mix of animation, puppetry, and CGI," making it a rather unique take on the characters. While Thames is presumably just taking on the voice role for Robin in this movie, Gunn has previously said this in 2023, per IGN:
And what we're doing with the DCU is we are having animation tied directly into live-action television and movies and games all intertwined within the same universe. We're going to cast actors that are going to be able to play the characters in this as well as in other things.
While we should keep in mind these comments are on the older side, Mason Thames looks absolutely ready to play Robin as is in live-action. And, I hope Dynamic Duo is the start of a long journey of the actor playing the role across a variety of mediums.
It's also worth nothing the movie is also produced by Matt Reeves, who's been the filmmaker behind The Batman films with Robert Pattinson. I wonder if we could see a version of his Dick Grayson in his universe? Dynamic Duo is set to hit theaters on September 22, 2028 following the release of Man of Tomorrow and The Batman: Part II next year. Congrats to Mason Thames on manifesting a dream role of his!
