Black Adam director Jaume Collet-Serra explains why Pierce Brosnan was cast as Doctor Fate. The upcoming DCEU movie sees Dwayne Johnson tackle the role of the eponymous Man in Black. In the franchise, Johnson's Black Adam has iterated through various plans, but now the story will focus on his pursuit of vengeance as he resurfaces from his unjust incarceration after 5000 years. Adam and his family were wronged while they were in Kahndaq, and the tragedy caused him to become a completely different person, one who is unafraid to kill if that is what it takes to get his way.
With only a few months left until its premiere, anticipation for Black Adam is undoubtedly high. Johnson's terrifying antihero and his powerful thunderbolts already gave audiences the chills in the Black Adam trailer. But another thing that intrigued them was the well-meaning Justice Society of America (JSA) comprising some obscure heroes from the DC Comics. The JSA members include Aldis Hodge's Carter Hall/ Hawkman, who is sort of a moral counterpart to Adam, and Quintessa Swindell's Maxine Hunkel / Cyclone and Noah Centineo's Albert "Al" Rothstein / Atom Smasher, two junior members who are trying to come out of the shadows of their legacy superheroes. The most interesting of all JSA members, however, is Brosnan's Kent Nelson/ Doctor Fate, who is a powerful sorcerer bestowed with the Helmet of Fate.
In a new interview with Vanity Fair, Collet-Serra explained why he got an A-lister like Brosnan to play Doctor Fate. As the director explained, Doctor Fate is a legend and an incredibly powerful-yet-galant superhero. So they needed an actor with a similar cachet to match Doctor Fate's honorable characterization, and Brosnan's dominant-yet-dignified persona was best suited for the role. The filmmaker calls Brosnan "the coolest person in the world," and he praises his alluring personality and gravitas. Read what he said below.
“You need a special actor to play, basically, a legend. Dr Fate is a very powerful being, so you need someone like Pierce who can play powerful without it being overly done. He can do it in a very subtle way. I mean, he’s one of the coolest people in the world—he was James Bond! But as a person, he’s magnetic, so warm with such gravitas.”
There is no doubt that Pierce Brosnan is a top-tier addition to the Black Adam ensemble. As producer Hiram Garcia previously acknowledged, Brosnan's Doctor Fate was a dream casting who elevates Black Adam simply by his presence. Although the actor is very grounded, his command on the screen is undeniable, and this was manifested during the trailer as well. The actor possesses tangible star power, after all, he was the fifth actor to play James Bond and his memorable performance in The Matador is beloved by many. But as previous clips from the movie have shown, he has infused his stardom into the movie in such a subtle and balanced way, that it doesn't tremble the status quo or overwhelm the viewers. Rather, his presence on-screen is reassuring and solemn, telling audiences that the stakes are high without any overplay.
Brosnan's Doctor Fate can be seen as a sagacious elder statesman in Black Adam. The character is wise, and he can tactfully deal with Adam as his voice of his reason, influencing him to do the right thing without aggressive combat. This kind of balance could arguably not have been provided by any other actor; rather, it's just Brosnan's seasoned acting skills that enable him to embody the character with warmth and fine-drawn grandeur. Right now, information is not sufficient on what Doctor Fate's arc would look like independent of the JSA dynamic, but, hopefully, DC and WB would honor the actor beneath the golden helmet by tracking his backstory and personal ambitions in potential Black Adam spinoff projects in the future.
Source: Vanity Fair
