James Gunn has repeatedly said that the DCU will be built on a foundation of finding the right actors rather than casting the biggest names. On paper, it's a philosophy most fans can get behind. However, with a noticeable lack of A-list talent populating this franchise, it's hard not to raise an eyebrow at the news that YouTuber and Scream 7 star Jimmy Tatro will play Gorilla Grodd in DC Studios' DC Crime series.
This isn't a criticism of Tatro. He's a talented actor who has a massive following across his social media platforms. By today's standards, perhaps he is "A-list," but the chronically online Gunn may be overestimating Tatro's appeal to wider audiences.
The DCU isn't launching from a position of strength. The DCEU burned through almost all of the goodwill it had with moviegoers, and while Superman was an encouraging first step, Supergirl has made it clear that one successful movie only goes so far.
Audiences still need to be convinced that investing in this new shared world is worth their time, which is why it's so baffling to see Gunn seemingly doubling down on relatively obscure characters played by largely unknown actors.
With DC Crime, the prospect of Skyler Gisondo leading a series alongside a CGI Gorilla Grodd voiced by Jimmy Tatro might sound exciting to die-hard DC Comics readers, but what exactly is the appeal for everyone else?
Comic book fans know Grodd as one of The Flash's greatest villains. General audiences know that he's...a talking gorilla. There's a big difference.
Marvel Studios understood this from the start. Kevin Feige was never afraid to cast rising stars, but he also realised that unfamiliar superheroes needed familiar faces surrounding them.
Neither Chris Hemsworth nor Tom Hiddleston was a household name in 2011 (some media reports insultingly referred to them as nobodies), but Thor also featured Natalie Portman, Anthony Hopkins, Idris Elba, Stellan Skarsgård, and Rene Russo. They helped sell the movie before audiences had fallen in love with the characters, but DC Studios isn't following suit. Marvel built confidence in the MCU with established names who lent credibility to a brand that, like DC, wasn't exactly thriving after Marvel movies like Fantastic Four and Elektra.
Gunn appears convinced that the DC brand alone is enough to generate excitement. The problem is that it simply isn't, at least not anymore. The DCEU damaged the brand to a huge extent, and Supergirl should have been a wake-up call.
Milly Alcock has proven herself an amazing Kara Zor-El, but why wasn't she backed up by a stronger supporting cast? It's been reported that DC Studios struggled to secure a major star to play Krem of the Yellow Hills, with Gunn ultimately turning to Matthias Schoenaerts in the hope he'd help sell tickets overseas (spoiler alert: he didn't). History is even repeating itself with Man of Tomorrow, where the immensely talented Lars Eidinger will play Brainiac...the only problem is, like Tatro, the reaction to his casting was, "Who?"
None of this means the performances will be bad. In fact, they may end up being incredible, but that's not the point. When you're trying to rebuild one of Hollywood's biggest brands after years of critical and commercial disappointments, every project has to feel like an event. Every casting announcement should create headlines beyond entertainment websites and comic book social media.
As if that wasn't problematic enough, we're once again left asking whether that is really a show that deserved to jump the queue ahead of projects like Wonder Woman, The Brave and the Bold, Paradise Lost, and Booster Gold.
Fans have spent years asking for those characters, but how many of them do you know who were crying out for a Jimmy Olsen TV series after watching Superman? Still, Gunn is a fan of him and Grodd, so there's your answer.
Even if DC Crime exceeds all expectations (and it might with Tony Yacenda and Dan Perrault at the helm), it's hard to understand why Gunn believes this is the sort of project capable of winning over sceptical, fatigued audiences. The DCU should be stacking every cast with at least one or two internationally recognisable stars; actors who can attract curious moviegoers who might otherwise skip yet another superhero project.
Jimmy Tatro may be the greatest Gorilla Grodd we've ever seen. For some, Skyler Gisondo is also perfect for his role. As we mentioned above, this isn't about questioning either performer or their respective talents. It's about questioning whether asking them to carry one of the DCU's earliest television shows is another avoidable gamble from a studio that can no longer afford very many.