The upcoming Hellboy reboot will move away from the previous installments in the franchise based on the Dark Horse comics character, with Stranger Things‘ David Harbour taking over as the anti-hero demon from Ron Perlman and director Neil Marshall spearheading the movie instead of Guillermo del Toro. It turns out one of the stars from the original films could have had a role in the reboot though, but had to pull out due to scheduling conflicts.
Doug Jones is a fan favorite thanks to his status as what you might call Hollywood’s go-to “monster actor,” having hidden under a mask or prosthetics in a range of films, including the Oscar-winning The Shape of Water. Superhero fans know him best as Abe Sapien, Hellboy’s amphibious pal and one of the best parts of the first two movies.
Marshall’s apparently also an admirer of Jones’ work, as the actor revealed to The Hollywood Reporter that he was set to cameo in 2019’s Hellboy but couldn’t make it work due to his commitments to Star Trek: Discovery, on which he plays Saru.
“There was a chance that a cameo might have happened, but not as things progressed. Reboot means recasting, and I’m told this first reboot does not have anybody in it from the original film. I received an offer to do a cameo, but I was deeply immersed in Star Trek: Discovery when that offer came in, so I couldn’t do it.”
Jones didn’t specify what his cameo might’ve been, so we’re left to speculate as to whether he would’ve showed up as a human character, some kind of creature or perhaps even as Abe. That last one’s plausible, too, as Abe isn’t set to appear in the movie. Given that he’s such an important part of the Right Hand of Doom’s world, though, a brief cameo would make sense.
Even without Jones, the Hellboy reboot has a terrific cast, including Ian McShane as Professor Broom, Thomas Haden Church as Lobster Johnson and Milla Jovovich as the villainous Nimue, the Blood Queen. You can catch it in cinemas from April 12th.