I have been arguing with some people lately that the news that Dick Grayson appearing in the Batman vs. Superman casting calls is a very good thing. I understand that Dick was not in the Christopher Nolan movies, but that shouldn’t matter. Nolan’s Batman films were great but they weren’t the comic book Batman most fans love to read about.
If the Batman in Batman vs. Superman is in his 40s and tired from years of crime fighting, he needs to have had a Dick Grayson. Chris Nolan’s Batman is similar in my eyes to Frank Miller’s Batman – an Elseworlds Batman. I love them, but it is time to bring the real Batman back to the big screen. That Batman – the one from the comics – had a Dick Grayson in his life.
Of course, that means this Dick Grayson is not Robin, so you can get that weak sauce Batman & Robin movie out of your mind right now. This Dick is either (a) a cop or (b) Nightwing. I want, personally, him to be the cop in Batman vs. Superman and then they can hint that he is also Nightwing for a later spinoff movie (please).
The first name that popped up as Dick Grayson in the Batman vs. Superman casting rumors was Adam Driver, who you can see in the amazing Frances Ha, which just hit Criterion Collection this week. He is good, but in my mind, he is not Dick Grayson. However, there are now two more names on the list and I love one of them. They are Pen Badgley and Ezra Miller.
I think Penn Badgley could be the perfect Dick Grayson. Forget about the fact he was part of Gossip Girl and just go watch his performance in Easy E. He has the look of an older, more matured, Dick Grayson once he put the Robin tights behind him. Ezra Miller (The Perks of Being a Wallflower) is too young and has too much of a babyface, which kills the “young John Hawkes” look they hinted at.
What kind of actor do you think they should get for Dick Grayson if it were up to you? Let me know below.
