6 Degrees Of Superheroes And Villains

The briefest of glances at the box office achievements of any movie featuring superheroes clearly indicates the popularity of such projects. With such huge fan followings comes instant recognition for the performers involved, and entry into the amusing game of spotting superheroes assembling elsewhere. Sometimes, these are notable movies sprinkled in between super gigs. Other, more amusing times, these are examples of superheroes assembling before they ever became the legendary alter-ego that would inevitably define them for years to come. There are some titles that feature just a couple of superhero combinations, or superheroes with supporting characters from superhero movies. For example, Batman And Hawkeye in The Town; Ant-Man and Catwoman in I Could Never Be Your Woman; Batman, Commissioner Gordon and Nick Fury in the 2014 Robocop remake; Groot and Batman in Boiler Room; Black Widow and Captain America in The Perfect Score; and Scarecrow, Carmine Falcone and Black Widow in Girl With A Pearl Earring. Then there is the master of all mind-benders: Hollywoodland. Starring Ben Affleck as Superman actor George Reeves, who becomes romantically involved with the married Toni Mannix, played by Diane Lane who, as we know, is Superman’s earth-mother in both Man Of Steel and Batman V Superman: Dawn Of Justice - which will introduce Affleck’s Batman. In this game of ‘Six Degrees Of Superheroes and Villains’, the combinations are surprising, and the rabbit hole is deep. If you thought Batman V Superman would be impressive, how about a movie featuring Wolverine, The Incredible Hulk, Black Widow and Spider-Man? Which movie provides such spectacle? Read on to find out. The Iceman (2012) Featuring: General Zod, Captain America, Harry Osborn, Deacon Frost. Directed and co-written by Ariel Vromen, The Iceman tells the tale of real-life contract killer Richard Kuklinski – played by Michael Shannon (General Zod in Man Of Steel). Famously, Kuklinski managed to successfully hide his true profession from his wife and children, keeping them entirely in the dark until his arrest in 1986. Among the ‘jobs’ he claimed before his death, Kuklinski listed the assassination of Jimmy Hoffa – though this has never been substantiated. Michael Shannon is joined in the cast by Chris Evans – who places himself as far away from the clean-cut image of Captain America as possible by playing fellow hitman Mr Freezy. Additionally, one James Franco (Harry Osborn in Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man movies) appears as Marty Freeman, and Stephen Dorff (Deacon Frost in Blade) features as Joey Kuklinski. Blood Creek (2009) Featuring: Superman, Mick Rory/Heatwave, Magneto, Roger Dooley. After the twin-travesties of Batman Forever/Batman And Robin, you would be forgiven for thinking that Joel Schumacher would have trouble finding superheroes to associate his projects with. The trick, apparently, is to cast just before they don their capes – ensuring the movie has a long and curious life beyond initial release. Such is the case for Blood Creek – a strange horror-thriller movie involving the Third Reich, the occult and some very bizarre goings-on in rural West Virginia. Blood Creek brings together Superman – in the form of a young Henry Cavill – and Mick Rory/ Heatwave (Dominic Purcell), from the TV show The Flash. The pair star as brothers – the older of which (Purcell) has been imprisoned for two years on a rural farm outside his community, and the younger of which (Cavill) has been mourning his brother’s unexplained disappearance. When the older brother suddenly returns, he and his sibling seek revenge on the farm owners – but uncover far more than they bargained for in the process. In addition to the soon-to-be super siblings, Blood Creek stars Michael Fassbender – who would go on to play a young Magneto in the X-Men franchise – and Shea Whigham, who plays Roger Dooley on the TV show Agent Carter. State Of Play (2009) Featuring: Jor-El, Batman, General Swanwick, Amanda Waller Before there was Batman V Superman, Batman clashed with Superman’s Dad – Jor-El – in Kevin Macdonald’s big-screen adaptation of the 2003 British television drama of the same name. Starring Ben Affleck (who played Daredevil in 2003, before taking up the cowl for director Zack Snyder) and Russell Crowe (Jor-El in Man Of Steel), the film charts the fraught friendship between a congressman (Affleck) and a Washington D.C journalist (Crowe), as the politician becomes increasingly embroiled in a sex and murder scandal. In addition to Jor-El and Batman/Daredevil, the film features the mighty Harry Lennix as Detective Bell – although he is probably better known to superhero fans as General Swanwick in Man Of Steel. Academy Award nominee Viola Davis also stars as Dr. Judith Franklin, although she is currently in the spotlight for being cast as Amanda Waller in the upcoming Suicide Squad movie. Pearl Harbour (2001) Featuring: Batman/Daredevil, Elektra, General Zod, The Shadow, Dr Francis Dulmacher/Donald Menken/King Laufey, General Jacobs/Colonel Hendry, Wesley Owen Welch. While Ben Affleck is now a one-man superhero combo package – with both Daredevil and Batman on his resume, Pearl Harbour includes quite the superhero movie roll-call. With an impressively large cast, the film portrays a sweeping story of intimate romance against the backdrop of World War II and, eventually, the infamous and deadly attack on the U.S military at Pearl Harbour, on December 7th 1941. In addition to Affleck, Jennifer Garner also features in a supporting role long before she appeared as Elektra in Daredevil, and then in 2005’s Elektra. Pearl Harbour also boasts a small turn from Alec Baldwin, who previously starred as The Shadow in the 1994 film of the same name, while Leland Orser appears, before later joining the cast of the Daredevil movie as Wesley Owen Welch. Glenn Morshower has pulled double superhero project duty since appearing in Pearl Harbour, as both General Jacobs in Agents Of SHIELD, and Colonel Hendry in X-Men: First Class. However, the versatile Colm Feore wins the round with his roles as King Laufey in Thor, Donald Menken in The Amazing Spider-Man 2, and Dr Francis Dulmacher in Gotham. Star Trek Into Darkness (2013) Featuring: Gamora, Doctor Strange, Judge Dredd, Thor, and Chris Pine. The second of J.J. Abrams’ Star Trek movies racks up some high level combinations. With Zoe Saldana as Lieutenant Uhura, and Karl Urban as Bones (as in the first movie), we have Gamora from Guardians Of The Galaxy sharing screen time with Judge Dredd. Add to the mix Benedict Cumberbatch as Khan and Chris Hemsworth as Kirk Senior, and you have a movie featuring Doctor Strange and Thor long before Strange’s first solo movie makes an appearance. Star Trek Into Darkness gets an additional super-boost now that Chris Pine (Captain Kirk) is reportedly in talks to appear in a DC movie – perhaps as Steve Trevor in Wonder Woman, or in a Green Lantern reboot. Birdman (2014) Featuring: Batman, Gwen Stacy, The Incredible Hulk. Notable for being a film about an actor struggling to crawl out from underneath the crushing weight of a long-past superhero role, it is quite fitting that Birdman should assemble three actors with superhero movie roles behind them. First and foremost, there is the legendary Michael Keaton – one of the greatest Batmen ever to have donned the cape and cowl – here playing Riggan, the actor in question. Then, there is Emma Stone as Sam – although she previously completed a two-film stint as Gwen Stacy in The Amazing Spider-Man and The Amazing Spider-Man 2. Last, but by no means least, there is Edward Norton as Mike. Norton filled the torn trunks of The Incredible Hulk for a Louis Leterrier film version in 2008, although in the final analysis, his incarnation was by no means the most popular. Out Of Sight (1998) Featuring: Batman (Clooney), James Rhodes/War Machine, Batman (Keaton), Amanda Waller, Nick Fury. As the number of superhero projects multiplies year after year, it is inevitable that ensemble casts will feature more and more combinations of superhero movie performers – even from way back in 1998. Such is the case with Steven Soderbergh’s Out Of Sight which, in hindsight, features a glorious mash-up of DC and Marvel actors. Not one, but two Batmen feature onscreen – the one that kicked off the franchise that spanned the late 80s and early 90s (Keaton), and the one that essentially killed it off (Clooney). Bringing up the rear is Don Cheadle – now beloved for his role as James Rhodes/War Machine in the Iron Man franchise and Avengers: Age Of Ultron. Viola Davis features in a supporting role and, as we know, she is currently a part of Suicide Squad as Amanda Waller. Finally, right at the very end of Out Of Sight, there is Samuel L. Jackson – also known as Nick Fury – who pops up with some sage advice for Clooney (or, Batman). The Prestige (2006) Featuring: Wolverine, Batman, Alfred, Black Widow, Maya Hansen, Ulysses Klaue. If there were ever two superheroes with anger issues – other than The Incredible Hulk, of course – it would be Wolverine and Batman. In particular, Christian Bale’s Batman, who is arguably the angriest version to date. That anger turns to simmering rage in Christopher Nolan’s The Prestige, when Bale and Hugh Jackman go head-to-head as competitive magicians. The combinations do not end there, however, for Batman’s own Alfred (Michael Caine) is present for a similar wisdom-filled purpose, along with Marvel’s Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) as Olivia Wenscombe, Maya Hansen from Iron Man 3 (Rebecca Hall) as Sarah Borden, and Ulysses Klaue (Andy Serkis) as Alley. The Other Boleyn Girl (2008) Featuring: The Incredible Hulk, Black Widow, Doctor Strange, Spider-Man. Mark Ruffalo is by no means the first Incredible Hulk to catch the eye of Black Widow, for in The Other Boleyn Girl, Scarlett Johansson stars as Mary Boleyn – sister of Anne Boleyn, with whom she finds herself competing for the attentions of one Henry Tudor, played by Hulk star Eric Bana. The movie also features Benedict Cumberbatch as William Carey – who has since been cast as Doctor Strange, of course. Lastly, the film also features an appearance by Andrew Garfield, whose version of Spider-Man filled the most recent web-slinger films. Stardust (2007) Featuring: Magneto, Daredevil, Superman, Matai Shang/Sinestro/Frank D’Amico, Catwoman. Based on Neil Gaiman’s novel of the same name, this ambitious adaptation draws together an ensemble cast that features performers of world renown – some of whom were already super, and some of whom would become super in later years. Narrated by Ian McKellen – who is also Magneto – the story follows Tristan as he travels to a magical realm to retrieve a fallen star for his beloved. Tristan is played by a young Charlie Cox, who grew up to be the 2015 Netflix version of Daredevil. He is hampered and pursued along the way by the evil Witch Queen, Lamia - played by Michelle Pfeiffer, who famously portrayed Catwoman in Tim Burton’s Batman Returns. In addition, he scuffles with Humphrey, played by a young Henry Cavill – who would later become Superman – and finds himself at odds with Septimus, played by Mark Strong. Strong beats his co-stars with roles in no less than three superhero movies – appearing as Matai Shang in John Carter, Sinestro in Green Lantern, and Frank D’Amico in Kick-Ass.