Guardians of the Galaxy Movie: Joseph Gordon-Levitt Frontrunner to Play Star-Lord

Culture

Is it possible for the same actor to exist in both the Marvel and DC universe? Joseph Gordon-Levitt might make it happen.

According to a recent report, The Dark Knight Rises star is now in contention for the role of Star-Lord, the leading crew member of Marvel’s upcoming Guardians of the Galaxy. Referenced at the end of last summer’s The Avengers, the Marvel property is not as famous as some of their other franchises but has been repeatedly in the news, possibly due to the influence and enthusiasm of modern legend Joss Whedon.

Or it could just have to do with the reemergence of a homophobic, misogynistic blog by current director, James Gunn.

Either way, this could possibly mean that Marvel has finally found its candidate because, as of right now, Gordon-Levitt is easily the most recognizable actor on the list, something they will need to cash in when adapting an obscure franchise.

The other stars in contention include Joel Egerton (Zero Dark Thirty), Jack Huston (Boardwalk Empire), Jim Sturgess (Cloud Atlas), Lee Pace (Lincoln, The Hobbit), Zachary Levi (Thor: The Dark World, Chuck) and Eddie Redmayne (Les Miserables).

This seems to contradict previous reports, where the casting had reportedly been whittled down to either Levi or Sturgess. However, Sturgess isn't that well known, and Levi is already playing Fandral in Marvel’s Thor: The Dark World.

And while it would not be unprecedented for someone to play more than one role in the Marvel universe, seeing as how Chris Evans played both Johnny Storm and Captain America, those franchises were under separate studios. Guardians of the Galaxy, on the other hand, is being produced in-house at Marvel, just as the Thor sequel is.

The issue here is that Gordon-Levitt is a part of DC’s roster. And although Christopher Nolan’s Batman trilogy is now finished, Levitt is still supposedly a part of the oft-rumored Justice League project, DC’s response to The Avengers. Of course, that project is still far off, probably at least until the new Man of Steel comes out.

Either way, it’s an interesting development and Levitt is certainly a fan-favorite nowadays. It is common practice in Marvel and DC to constantly juggle writers between one another for their comic books; whether they are willing to do that for someone as visual as an actor is a different story.