James Gunn, DC Studios Co-CEO and head architect of the DC Universe, confirmed the voice cast for the upcoming Creature Commandos animated series.
Announced just prior to the Warner Bros. Discovery presentation to re-brand HBO Max to Max, Frank Grillo (Captain America: The Winter Soldier) has been confirmed to be playing Rick Flag Sr. But aside from Grillo, James Gunn also confirmed the remainder of the voice cast and which roles they will be playing in the upcoming DCU project.
Responding through Twitter regarding the news item that Frank Grillo was cast for the role of Rick Flag Sr., DC Co-CEO James Gunn added the rest of the voice cast:
And in addition to Grillo welcome David Harbour as Frankenstein, Indira Varma as the Bride, @AlanTudyk as Dr. Phosphorous, @MariaBakalova96 as Ilana Rostovic, @seangunn as GI Robot & Weasel, Zoe Chao as Nina Mazursky and @steveagee returning as John Economos. #CreatureCommandos https://t.co/Xcg4oTv45j
— James Gunn (@JamesGunn) April 12, 2023
Grillo will be joined by fellow Marvel Cinematic Universe alum David Harbour as Frankenstein. Harbour played Alexei Shostakov/Red Guardian in the MCU Phase Four film Black Widow and will be reprising the role for Thunderbolts. It seems Harbour is becoming a staple for roles of big, hulking strong guys (as he also previously played Hellboy in the 2019 box office bomb).
Alan Tudyk is no stranger to voicing DC characters in animated projects. The veteran actor has voiced the Flash (Batman: Brave and the Bold), Green Arrow (Young Justice), Superman (Justice League: War), and Clayface (Harley Quinn). Tudyk has also appeared in live action DC projects such as Mr. Nobody on Doom Patrol and as Van Wayne, Bruce Wayne’s cousin, in the short-lived TV sitcom Powerless. As Doctor Phosphorous, Tudyk will be returning to a morally ambiguous role as the former Batman villain.
Zoe Chao (The Afterparty) will play the aquatic Nina Mazursky, while Indira Varma will be Frankenstein’s companion, the Bride. Rounding out the cast is James Gunn’s brother, Sean Gunn, playing both G.I. Robot and Weasel (who was last seen in 2021’s The Suicide Squad) and Steve Agee who is reprising his role as A.R.G.U.S. agent John Economos.
The final confirmed cast member is Maria Bakalova who is playing Princess Ilana Rostovic. This character is not from the comic books and appears to be created specifically for the Creature Commandos story. Given she is a princess, Ilana Rostovic will likely be a personality that the Creature Commandos will have to protect or rescue, similar to the key plot of Resident Evil 4 where the goal was to rescue the President’s daughter.
The Creature Commandos was created in 1971 by writer J.M. DeMatteis and artist Pat Broderick for the comic issue Weird War Tales #93. The original premise was to bring together previous characters from Weird War Tales, an anthology of World War 2 stories with either a supernatural or science fiction theme. While the stories were set in WW2 era, the inclusion of present day A.R.G.U.S. in the story might mean the DC Universe version will be set in modern times.
Some of them yes are already a part of live action plans.
— James Gunn (@JamesGunn) April 12, 2023
On a related note, James Gunn also confirmed some of the voice actors will be reprising their roles for the live action Creature Commandos version. This is all part of the 10-year plan of Gunn and his DC Studios co-CEO Peter Safran to replace the DC Extended Universe and overhaul the DC film, television, and video game connections.
Produced and developed under DC Studios, Creature Commandos will be a seven-episode animated series with a tentative release in 2024 for the re-christened Max streaming service.
In the meantime, Frank Grillo can be seen in Lionsgate’s One Day As a Lion with Scott Caan and J.K. Simmons, out on Digital and On Demand, with a DVD release on May 16, 2023.
