Ryan Gosling apparently wants to be a superhero, and while the gossip points to Ghost Rider, there are other roles suited just for him.
It’s no secret that Marvel Studios chats with all the A-list actors. Being the behemoth of the box office, Hollywood’s elite is more than happy to listen to offers. At this point, Marvel’s cast is a ‘who’s who’ of the silver screen, and it seems almost everyone wants a piece of the action. Some stars are more choosy than others. Gosling, who reportedly contacted the Russo Brothers about joining the MCU, indicated he has been offered a number of Marvel roles, though he is holding out for something special. “I’d love to do it,” he told MTV News’ Josh Horowitz. But who’s the one? Here at We Got This Covered, we have a few suggestions.
Ghost Rider
“I always thought that Ghost Rider was the coolest.” With that statement, Gosling ignited a fire of interest for a new live-action Spirit of Vengeance.
Before those comments, the gossip sites linked the star to the cosmic superhero, Nova. Speaking with MTV News, he seemingly debunked those rumors of playing Marvel’s version of Green Lantern. What really got the ball rolling was an interview with Jake’s Takes, in which Gosling said he would prefer to bring a new Ghost Rider into the MCU. Unless Kevin Feige has someone else in mind for the part, it’s easy to assume an actor of Gosling’s stature would get whatever role he wants. Whether that would be Johnny Blaze or Danny Ketch is a question mark, though fans would be thrilled with either choice.
Nova
Sure, Gosling himself said in the aforementioned interviews that he would not be playing Nova in the character’s feature film. That may sound like it’s a no-go for that particular role, but we have learned to be skeptical where Marvel Studios is involved.
When Horowitz pressed The Notebook star about the rumored part, Gosling abruptly replied, “I don’t know anything about Nova if that’s what you were going to ask me about. […] I don’t know anything about the character.” That’s the end, right? Not so fast. After Spider-Man: No Way Home and Andrew Garfield blatantly lying (for good reason, since he was trying not to spoil any surprises) about his Amazing Spider-Man reprisal, we have a right to be mistrustful.
Johnny Storm
As mentioned in “Who could play the MCU’s Fantastic Four?,” this could be the best fit for Gosling. The only hindrance may be the actor’s age. At 41, Marvel may want to put a younger actor into the role. In the comics, the Human Torch and Spider-Man were practically a bromance from the 1960s into the early ‘90s. If Marvel intends to establish the two as BFFs, the studio may want someone closer to Tom Holland’s age. Still, Gosling as Johnny Storm would be a great casting choice.
Nightmare
At first, Mephisto stole this spot, but practically anyone could play Marvel’s Devil in human form. In the comics, he disguises himself as all manner of people, sometimes appearing as a man and other times as a woman. However, there’s a similar devilish character from the Doctor Strange mythos that may be better suited for Gosling’s talents: Nightmare.
One of Strange’s first comic villains, Nightmare has been teased with an Easter egg in Loki, so the indication is that he is somewhere in the Multiverse. Gosling could wear the proverbial black hat and make a convincing Nightmare.
Multiple Man
The first of three X-Men characters on today’s list, Multiple Man is one of the more obscure mutants, at least to moviegoers. Comic fans know that Jamie Madrox is a supremely interesting and complex character who straddles the line between comedy and drama. His power is that he involuntarily creates clones of himself, dubbed “duplicates” or simply “dupes,” whenever he receives a blow to the head. These dupes live independently of Jamie until he reabsorbs them along with their memories and experiences. Sometimes, those dupes don’t want to be reabsorbed, and they go on the lam. Jamie is forced to track them down, creating moral dilemmas since the dupes will often have entire lives and families of their own. Once, he accidentally absorbed his duplicate’s newborn baby. That’s the type of role that a Hollywood heavyweight like Gosling could turn into a masterful performance.
Sentry
Speaking of nuanced roles for complex superheroes, Gosling would make an excellent Sentry. In the comics, Bob Reynolds was an addict who ingested an experimental drug that basically made him a god. Specifically, he has the power of a million exploding suns, whatever that translates to. Despite all his abilities, Bob suffers from dissociative identity disorder, and he wages an internal war with the dark side of his personality, the Void. Granted, Sentry is a long shot for the current PG-friendly MCU, but seeing Gosling bring a complicated character like Bob Reynolds to life would be magic.
Cyclops
Who knows which X-Men we will see in the MCU? It would appear that Kamala Khan will join the team along with Wolverine, since Taron Egerton reportedly spoke with Marvel Studios about playing Logan. Past that, it’s all guessing games, and Gosling could fit nicely as one classic X-Man.
One of the original X-Men and a stalwart member ever since, Cyclops is Professor X’s hand-picked team leader. He’s often at odds with Wolverine, and they compete for the affections of Jean Grey. Having Egerton and Gosling in those roles would breathe new life into the infamous “Hey, girl” memes.
Gambit
If Gosling can do a Cajun accent, he’s already a surefire choice for Gambit right out the starting gate.
Under the Fox banner, the X-Men movies were getting progressively worse. To test the limits of how badly a superhero movie could be, they were in talks with Channing Tatum about a Gambit solo adventure. It might be a stretch, but imagine Tatum’s Cajun dialect falling somewhere between Con Air Nicolas Cage and Hard Target Jean-Claude Van Damme. Gosling already has the heartthrob part down pat, and his accent would surely be more believable than Tatum’s.
The Beyonder
With so much talk and speculation surrounding a possible Secret Wars movie, it’s only natural to put The Beyonder into the conversation. A cosmic being with godlike abilities (there are several of those in the Marvel Universe), Beyonder is often cited as the single most powerful character in all of Marvel Comics. Fans of the 1990s Spider-Man: the Animated Series will recall an older version of Beyonder with space age armor and a goatee, but the Secret Wars II comics portrayed him as the height of 1985 fashion. At any rate, this could be a good fit for Gosling.
Knull
Here is a role that would be well outside Gosling’s usual parts, but he has the range to pull it off. Knull is the insatiable God of the Symbiotes, imprisoned on the planet Klyntar. The comics depict him as an ancient god who existed before there was light in the universe.
This is a character who may be on his way to the MCU. We saw his chosen weapon, All-Black the Necrosword, wielded by Gorr in Thor: Love and Thunder. Forged from the first symbiote, Knull used the magical blade to behead a Celestial, thus creating Knowhere as seen in Guardians of the Galaxy.
Between the Necrosword, Knowhere, and the piece of symbiote left behind in the No Way Home post-credits scene, Knull could indeed be coming to the MCU. For those of us wanting a scary take on Knull, Gosling could provide just that.