Swamp Thing actor Derek Mears reveals he would've loved to have seen the rumored Justice League Dark spinoff, or merely a partnership with John Constantine. Swamp Thing debuted on DC Universe on May 31. Unlike Titans and its spinoff, Doom Patrol, the horror-themed series existed within its own standalone world. It remains equally unconnected to the Arrowverse shows, though the character was given a direct shoutout on a recent Legends of Tomorrow episode. Despite premiering to acclaim from both fans and critics, however, Swamp Thing was officially canceled soon after its first episode.
Recent reports suggested that had the show continued, it would've followed an already prepared three-year plan that would've led to the formation of Justice League Dark. Though the reports don't indicate which characters would have been a part of the team, or which of them, if any, would have spun off into their own shows, many have speculated that John Constantine may have been a part. Constantine, after all, made his comic book debut in Swamp Thing, and frequently partners up with the elemental creature. Constantine has most recently been played by Matt Ryan. After debuting on his own, similarly short-lived series on NBC, Constantine, the actor later reprised the role on the aforementioned Arrowverse shows. While the odds would favor the character being played by a different actor, Ryan previously expressed interest in jumping to the DC Universe.
Speaking with Screen Rant, Mears was asked whether he'd heard about the rumored potential to spinoff into a Justice League Dark adaptation, or whether he had any knowledge on which directions the character would go after season 1. In response, the actor revealed that while he didn't hear of anything officially, his imagination was often sparked by what was unfurling via the scripts and on set. As such, he often found himself envisioning where the various threads would lead.
"No, just my`own speculation when we were on set being that I'm a fan going "oh cool, what could we possibly do" and you start to fantasize about where it could possibly go, but then when I read online the rumors they were talking about a 3 season arc and a Justice League Dark show or movie I was like "oh, are you kidding me? That would have been the best!" Just to explore more the magic realm of the DC universe and bring obscure characters into light. That would of just... ugh! And then the possible chance to have, you know... nevermind, I'll backpedal on that before I start repeating myself, I'm just a giant nerd."
Regarding the exploration of the more magical realm within the world of DC, Mears was asked whether he would be open to the idea of specifically reviving both Swamp Thing and the similarly canceled Constantine as something of a double act. Like many fans, Mears was understandably positive about the concept. Here's what he had to say:
Look, if it's the same showrunners and people involved in the show we did, I will go to hell with this character because I had so much fun. As a fan, seeing, if they ever had Swamp Thing and Constantine together, that would be just dynamite.
There are little fun little Easter eggs and little things where you're, as a fan in our series, things that are very subtle at certain points as a fan I would go to Mark [Verheiden], our showrunner and go "wait a second, is this a reference to..." and he's like [mysteriously] "hmmm." So in that realm of magic in the DC universe there are some fun little fan service things happening in our show, which I can't talk about yet, but you'll see coming up.
On whether or not this means fans can expect a John Constantine cameo on the show, however, Mears was a little more tight-lipped. "I did not say any of that, that is not what I said! But there is some fun stuff." Whatever the future holds for Swamp Thing, as a character, and as a show, fans will no doubt as disappointed as the actor is that it looks unlikely to come to fruition. As such, the #SaveSwampThing campaign is sure to only gather even more steam over the coming weeks.
Swamp Thing is currently available for streaming on DC Universe.