Back in May,we learnedthat the villain ofJustice Leaguewould be Steppenwolf, who was glimpsed in a deleted scene fromBatman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. The character, who is the uncle of Darkseid (the DC Universe’s equivalent of Thanos) in the comics, decided to invade in Earth in the New 52 series. He’s an extraterrestrial threat who would certainly warrant the formation of a team of superheroes. However, we’ve been in the dark on who’s playing the role. Even after Warner Bros. invited a bunch of a journalists to the set, directorZack Snyderwouldn’t reveal who was playing the film’s baddie.
But it now looks like we have an answer. According toThe Wrap, talented actorCiaran Hindswill be playing Steppenwolf with a mo-capped performance. Additionally, The Wrap reports that Steppenwolf will look different than he did in theBatman v Supermandeleted scene.
InJustice League, Steppenwolf will be after three mother boxes, the DCEU’s equivalent of Infinity Stones that give the wielder immense power.
On the one hand, I’m glad that Hinds got the part. He’s an excellent actor whose profile has slowly risen over the years. While most people will probably know him as Mance Rayder inGame of Thrones, he’s turned in a slew of great performances over the course of his career with memorable turns inMunich,Road to Perdition,Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, andThere Will Be Bloodjust to name a few.
The downside is that most villains in superhero movies are garbage. These movies pick up talented actors for their villain roles, and then they get wasted in nothing parts.Michael Shannonis better than Zod.Jesse Eisenbergis better than Lex Luthor.Mads Mikkelsenis better than Kaecilius.James Spaderis better than Ultron. More often than not, studios are relying on talented actors to elevate poorly-drawn characters into serviceable antagonists rather than giving them a meaty role that’s worthy of their time and effort. Maybe Steppenwolf will break the trend, but right now he seems like a stepping-stone to Darkseid, so I don’t know how much effort Snyder is really going to invest in the character.
Justice Leagueopens June 30, 2025. For more on the film, click on the links below.
