Marlon Wayans Wants To Play Plastic Man For DC

Plastic Man in the comics

Marlon Wayans in Naked

It's no secret that superhero movies are everywhere. After serialized storytelling was introduced to audiences through the Marvel Cinematic Universe, plenty of studios have gotten in on the action. Warner Bros. kickstarted the DC live-action universe with Man of Steel, but it's hard a rocky road with plenty of missteps. Things seem to be moving forward well at the DCEU, and Marlon Wayans has his eye on the role of Plastic Man.

Plastic Man is a quirky DC hero and Justice League member, with the power of super flexibility. He's the DC version of Mr. Fantastic, except he's a constant comedic relief. There's been rumors of a possible movie, and Marlon Wayans wants to be the actor to bring Plastic Man to life in live-action. As he recently put it:

I would love to play Plastic Man. I think he works with the comedic skill set that I have, in terms of how I'm physical, I'm bendy. And I think it'd be cool to just do it without... You know, what's great about Black Panther is he's a black superhero, right? But sometimes [it's fun] to just do something. Like, you wouldn't think Plastic Man was a black guy, but it's not black - it's just, he's plastic. I think it'd be fun for me, because I know I got to add my humor to it. The only two superheroes I ever really wanted to play was Plastic Man and The Mask. Those are the two superhero films I would love to play.

Marlon Wayans has had a long career in movies, and knows how to cater to his strengths. Most of his movies have been comedies, which is why the 47 year-old actor has his eye on one of the sillier superheroes in DC comics history.

Marlon Wayans' comments to Screen Rant are sure to excite the hardcore DC fans out there, who have been waiting to see Plastic Man finally get his live-action debut. While Wayans hasn't gotten the role, he's making his feelings known about the ultra-flexible comic book character. And he's not coming out of left field, as the Plastic Man movie has been rumored for a while now.

Plastic Man in the comics

News about a possible Plastic Man movie came nearly a year ago. The report indicated that screenwriter Amanda Idoko was hired to write the project, based off of the comic book character of the same name. But no updates have been offered, as Warner Bros. generally keeps its cards close to the chest. Rather than full release schedules like the MCU, each new DC blockbuster is influenced by the previous one.

Marlon Wayans might not be the only actor vying for the role of the DCEU's Plastic Man. Parks & Recreation favorite Ben Schwartz seems interested, believing Plastic Man could be the DC answer to the Deadpool franchise. Although whether or not the movie will come to fruition is a mystery at this point.

The next installment in the DCEU is Birds of Prey (And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) on February 7th 2020. In the meantime, check out our 2019 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.

Corey Chichizola
Movies Editor

Corey was born and raised in New Jersey. Graduated with degrees theater and literature from Ramapo College of New Jersey. After working in administrative theater for a year in New York, he started as the Weekend Editor at CinemaBlend. He's since been able to work himself up to reviews, phoners, and press junkets-- and is now able to appear on camera with some of his favorite actors... just not as he would have predicted as a kid. He's particularly proud of covering horror franchises like Scream and Halloween, as well as movie musicals like West Side Story. Favorite interviews include Steven Spielberg, Spike Lee, Jamie Lee Curtis, and more. 

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