We’re still awaiting the announcement of who’s going to take over from Ben Affleck as the new Dark Knight in Matt Reeves’ upcoming film The Batman (or whatever it’ll end up being called). But that’s not the only role that fans are curious to see cast. We know that the main villain of the movie will be the Penguin, with names such as Josh Gad, Jack Black and Jason Segal being thrown around, but it’s also been reported that the Riddler will act as the secondary antagonist.
Who could play Edward Nygma opposite Oswald Cobblepot, though? Well, he might not be an obvious choice, but this new piece of fan art imagines Simon Pegg in the classic green suit and question-marked bowler hat. The British actor’s most known for his comedic roles, but he’s also played the odd villain in his career – think the brutish Unkar Plutt in Star Wars: The Force Awakens – so he could be an interesting left-field pick for the part. He could also play it with his natural accent or even resurrect the American one he used for his role in Steven Spielberg’s Ready Player One.
In any case, here’s how Pegg could look as the iconic villain.
The actor hasn’t talked much about joining the DC universe in the past, but he has discussed signing up for the Marvel machine before. The Star Trek star’s spoken of his love for Captain Britain on previous occasions, saying that he’d be willing to be part of a movie based on the English superhero if Marvel were ever to do that. Though he’s been careful to make clear that there’s no such project in the works.
As for the Riddler, he’s currently played by Corey Michael Smith on TV’s Gotham, who better fits the traditional version of the supervillain, as played in different forms before by the likes of Frank Gorshin and Jim Carrey. It’s up to Reeves whether he wants to break the mold with the Prince of Puzzles or deliver a close comic book translation of the character, but either way, we’re hopeful he finds a way to include Mr. Nygma when The Batman swoops into theaters on June 25th, 2021.
