Marvel Studios confirmed Doc Ock's new actor for Spider-Man's upcoming Disney+ series.
The animated series, titled Spider-Man: Freshman Year, is a new take on the iconic web-head in the MCU, tackling the hero "on his way to becoming Spider-Man" in an alternate universe somewhere in the Marvel Studios Multiverse.
Because of this alternate reality take on the world of Tom Holland's wall-crawler, new actors are being brought on to play beloved names from across the Spider-Man mythos, including Aunt May, Harry Osborn, and even Peter Parker himself.
The animated epic is set to feature a whole swath of Spidey villains for the web-swinger to up against, with names like Doc Ock, Scorpion, and Rhino featuring prominently.
New Doc Ock Actor Revealed
A new copyright listing from Disney revealed who will be voicing Doctor Octopus in the upcoming Spider-Man: Freshman Year series.
The filing with the United States Copyright Office featured several tidbits of unknown information including that Hugh Dancy will play Doc Ock in the streaming show.
Dancy joins the super-powered universe following Alfred Molina's work as the iconic comic villain (a role in which he returned after nearly 20 years in Spider-Man: No Way Home).
Hugh Dancy has worked in Hollywood for just under 30 years, having appeared in major blockbusters like Ella Enchanted, Black Hawk Down, and Confessions of a Shopaholic.
Freshman Year marks the UK-born actor's second voice acting credit, after lending his voice to two episodes of Robot Chicken in the last decade where he spoofed the Marvel character Daredevil (funnily enough).
What's Different About Hugh Dancy's Doc Ock?
While it remains to be seen the full extent of how Hugh Dancy will make this version of Doctor Octopus different from past interactions of the character, a few hints revealed so far.
Audiences have gotten a good look at what this character is going to look like in Freshman Year.
This animated take looks to be a mix of the original comic book design with the version seen in the 1990s Spider-Man: The Animated Series.
Dancy's character sports the lab coat seen in classic Doc Ock designs, featuring the gaudy glasses and bowl-cut that, while present in the original comic look, was emphasized a bit in the 90s cartoon.
This is a departure from the last version of the character fans saw on-screen in Spider-Man: No Way Home. Alfred Molina's Otto Octavius/Doc Ock was much more grounded, wearing traditional eyeglasses and brandishing metallic arms that looked like they could exist in the real world.
While fans have not yet seen Dancy's Doctor Octopus equipped with his iconic metal arms, fans should expect the character to go full mollusk-themed villain at least once in the animated series to keep up with the other big bads at play.
Spider-Man: Freshman Year is projected to come to Disney+ sometime in 2024.
