James Gunn's DC Studios cast its first character with major ties to the Flash in the new DC Universe. The Flash has had a complicated run in media over the last few decades, with Grant Gustin's The Flash on The CW becoming a big hit in the Arrowverse before Ezra Miller's The Flash turned out to be one of the most maligned movies in DCEU history.
Deadline reported that Jimmy Tatro has officially signed with DC Studios to portray Gorilla Grodd in DC Crime, the upcoming Jimmy Olsen-led Superman spin-off series on HBO Max. This comes after David Sobolov voiced the villain across multiple episodes of The CW's The Flash, the Arrowverse's longest-running show.
Tatro was reported to be in talks for the role a week ago as of writing, though it has seemingly become official in the days since the news first broke. This will give Tatro his first comic book role, and it will mark Gorilla Grodd's second live-action appearance since his run on The CW.
In DC Comics, Gorilla Grodd is one of the Flash's most prominent antagonists, a super-intelligent, telepathic gorilla who can talk. He was blessed with a genius-level intellect and psychic powers from a mysterious meteorite. While he rules over a hidden, technologically advanced land called Gorilla City, he regularly sets out to conquer the human world on Earth.
Gorilla Grodd is expected to be one of the biggest villains, if not the main villain, of Skyler Gisondo's upcoming DC Crime series centered on Jimmy Olsen. The show is created by Tony Yacenda and Dan Perrault, and there is no release date for HBO Max yet.
Gorilla Grodd's DCU debut could be a way to pave a new path forward for The Flash to run back onto screens, undoing some of the damage done to the character in recent years. With the DCU's project slate quickly filling up, there are several avenues where some of The Flash's supporting characters (or the Scarlet Speedster himself) could pop up.
Where Will More Flash Characters Show Up in the DCU?
While the Flash had a small cameo in a vision from Creature Commandos in 2024, there are no signs pointing to when the character will make his live-action debut as a fully fleshed-out character. Many expect to see the Barry Allen version of the hero, but as The CW's solo series showed, many other speedsters exist in the greater multiverse, including Jay Garrick, Bart Allen, and Wally West.
The latter could be a fresh option for Gunn to pursue, considering that his Justice League roster appears to be very in line with the 2001 animated series of the same name. Wally West was notably a part of that team, in addition to Hawkgirl and John Stewart's Green Lantern. With Man of Tomorrow shaping up to be a proto-Justice League film, perhaps The Flash is not too far behind.
For now, after Superman and Supergirl, Batman is the only core member of the Justice League with an officially titled movie in development (The Brave and the Bold). Additionally, Gunn and co. plan to give Diana Prince/Wonder Woman her own movie, although casting for the character seems far from a done deal.
On the streaming side, HBO Max's Lanterns will debut the first story featuring Kyle Chandler's Hal Jordan and Aaron Pierre's John Stewart, offering a first look at the DCU's Green Lantern Corps. After that, the Flash seems to be one of the heroes fans are most looking forward to seeing, especially after 2023's The Flash became such a critical disaster.
As for Flash's rogue's gallery, the animated side of the DCU could be a road for some more of his villains to appear. Creature Commandos may be the perfect opportunity to introduce characters like Captain Cold or Mirror Master. Perhaps a Flash villain could even take the central antagonist role; Reverse Flash could pose a devious threat for the team and bring the DCU one step closer to building out its Legion of Doom.
While the DCU itself is still without a Flash, DC Studios is producing a show with one in it. A female incarnation of the speedster, Jesse Quick, is confirmed to appear in the animated DC Super Powers. A first look at the hero's costume was recently shown, in addition to Plastic Man and Black Lightning.
Richard Nebens joined The Direct in March 2020, now serving as the site's Senior Writer. He started his journalism career as a hobby in 2019 and is passionate about sharing news and stories from the entertainment industry, especially comic book movies, comedy, and sci-fi. Richard looks to expand his knowledge about movies and TV every day, and he is eager to stay locked into the latest releases and breaking news at every opportunity.
