Frank Grillo to play Rick Flag Sr. in DC Universe's ‘Creature Commandos’
The Marvel actor exclusively tells Moviefone that he is working on a DC project. "I'm excited to go play with James Gunn in the DC Universe,” Grillo said.
Frank Grillo in DirecTV's 'Kingdom.'
While it seems that director and co-chairman of DC Studios James Gunn makes news almost every day when answering questions on Twitter about his upcoming plans for the DC Universe, he has yet to announce any cast members for ‘Superman: Legacy,’ which he will also write and direct. But that doesn’t mean that Gunn hasn’t already cast some actors in a few roles.
Now, in an exclusive interview with Moviefone for his new movie ‘One Day as a Lion,’ which was released in select theaters on April 4th and will be available On Digital and On Demand April 7th, ‘Captain America: The Winter Soldier’ and ‘The Purge: Anarchy’ actor Frank Grillo has hinted that he will soon be working with James Gunn on an upcoming DC Universe project.
Superman
Superman, a cub reporter in Metropolis, embarks on a journey to reconcile his Kryptonian heritage with his human upbringing as Clark Kent. Read the Plot
What did Frank Grillo say about Working with DC?
While speaking with Grillo for ‘One Day as a Lion,’ we asked the actor what project he was excited to work on next and the actor dropped this bomb:
“I'm excited to go play with James Gunn in the DC Universe, believe it or not. He's got some great ideas and we're going to go and have some fun there. That's about as much as I can say without getting fired, I think. James Gunn and Peter Safran they got some great things happening over there, and James called me and said, "It's ready for you. We're ready for you to come work at DC and we have a great project." It is a really cool thing and some amazing people are attached to it. I think James and Peter are going to rock the world with DC.”
We followed up by asking the actor if the project he is talking about will start shooting soon, and if we can expect official casting announcements shortly:
“I think so, as we gear up to do it, which is in the next month, they'll probably release more. And those guys are the opposite of Marvel. They're like, "Let's talk about it. Let's get it out there. Let's have fun." It's far less constricting. I almost got fired from 'Captain America' at least a dozen times because I didn't know the routine. But these guys are much cooler.”
Frank Grillo in 'A Day to Die.'
Related Article: James Gunn Directing ‘Superman: Legacy’
Will Frank Grillo be in ‘Superman: Legacy?’
While the actor was vague about what DC project he would be working on, simple deduction says it's probably ‘Superman: Legacy,’ since he mentioned the project should start shooting next month, and that is the first film planned for the new DC Universe. It’s also easy to think Grillo is referring to ‘Superman’ because he specifically said, “I'm excited to go play with James Gunn,” who is writing and directing ‘Legacy.’
However, since Gunn is also the co-chairman of DC Studios, and in theory would be involved in any project they are planning, Grillo could be referring to another DC Universe project. Maybe the upcoming TV series ‘Waller’ with Viola Davis or even the movie ‘The Brave and the Bold,’ which will center on Batman and Robin, and Grillo would make a fantastic Dark Knight.
There is also a strong possibility that Grillo has been cast in the HBO Max animated series 'Creature Commandos,' which could be starting production shortly as well. If that is the case, then it will only be a voice role at first, but Gunn's plan is for the same voice actors to also play their characters in live-action eventually.
Fuel was added to this theory when Grillo recently posted to Instagram that he and 'Hellboy' actor Ron Perlman "did a little film together a while back," over an image of a DC casting rumor article continuing to say, "Could this be two," indicating that he and Perlman have another project coming soon that may be DC related. Rumor is that Grillo would voice Rick Flag Sr., father of Joel Kinnaman's Rick Flag Jr. from 'Suicide Squad' and Gunn's own 'The Suicide Squad,' with Perlman voicing Eric Frankenstein.
However, Grillo's post specifically indicates that his DC project with Perlman is there second "film" together, which would rule out the series 'Creature Commandos,' so its entirely possible both actors are attached to a DC Universe movie, and again, 'Superman: Legacy' is the obvious choice.
In one last effort to get Grillo to spill the beans, we asked the actor if the project he was talking about involved a character that was from another planet and sent to Earth as a baby (clearly referring to Superman). Grillo replied:
“You might be on the right track ... or you might not.”
Frank Grillo as Pauly Russo in the action/thriller, 'One Day as a Lion,' a Lionsgate release. Photo courtesy of Lionsgate.
Who is Frank Grillo?
Frank Grillo has been a fixture on television and in films for over two decades. You’d recognize him from such popular TV programs as ‘The Shield,’ ‘Prison Break,’ ‘Kingdom,’ and ‘Billions.’
The actor has also appeared in countless movies including ‘The Mambo Kings,’ ‘Minority Report,’ ‘Edge of Darkness,’ Warrior,’ ‘The Grey,’ ‘End of Watch,’ 'Zero Dark Thirty,’ ‘Gangster Squad,’ ‘Homefront,’ ‘Copshop,’ ‘A Day to Die,’ and ‘Paradise Highway.’
But Grillo is probably best known for his work in two extremely popular franchises, ‘The Purge’ and Marvel Studios. He played Sgt. Leo Barnes in ‘The Purge: Anarchy’ and ‘The Purge: Election Year,’ and in the MCU portrayed Brock Rumlow/Crossbones in ‘Captain America: The Winter Soldier,’ ‘Captain America: Civil War,’ and ‘Avengers: Endgame.’
Whether or not Frank Grillo will really be in ‘Superman: Legacy’ is truly yet to be known, but it will be interesting to see if the actor makes the move from Marvel to DC.
UPDATE:
The mystery has been solved! We now know, via The Wrap, that Grillo will in fact be voicing Rick Flag Sr. in the ‘Creature Commandos’ animated series that James Gunn has planned as part of his “Chapter One: Gods and Monsters” initial phase of the new DC movie and TV universe.
‘Creature Commandos’, which features a motley crew of beasts and others who go on missions, a little like an even weirder 'Suicide Squad.'
And talking of, Rick Flag Sr served in the original Suicide Squad, a World War II unit, and later joined Task Force X after the war. He is a highly skilled soldier and strategist, with a strong sense of duty and loyalty to his country. Flag is often portrayed as a no-nonsense, by-the-book type of character, who is willing to make tough decisions in order to achieve his objectives.
Not too much is known about the series so far, save that Gunn has written all the episodes and it’s in production now. His brother Sean Gunn will be voicing –– if the guttural sounds he makes can be said to be a “voice” –– Weasel from the ‘The Suicide Squad’ and we can expect more casting news in the coming weeks and months.
And Gunn is looking to have actors play the roles across animation and live-action, so chances are Grillo will be showing up elsewhere in the DC universe in future.
DC's 'Creature Commandos' Photo: DC.com.
Other Movies Similar to ‘Creature Commandos:’
- 'Suicide Squad' (2016)
- 'The Suicide Squad' (2021)
- 'Peacemaker' (2022)
- 'Black Adam' (2022)
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'One Day as a Lion' is now available in select theaters and will be available On Digital and On Demand on April 7, 2023.
To watch our video interviews with Frank Grillo, director John Swab, and screenwriter and actor Scott Caan about their new film 'One Day as a Lion,' please click on the video player below.
