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V For Vendetta (2005, James McTeague, Warner Bros.)
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It's been a good few days for fans of Alan Moore and David Lloyd's legendary graphic novel
V For Vendetta recently. First, it was announced that the film adaptation starring Hugo Weaving would be returned to cinemas next November 5th in a celebration of the film's 20th Birthday. Then, the news came that HBO is working with James Gunn to develop a series adaptation of the graphic novel. While the film, penned by the Wachowskis, clearly has its fans, it's been criticised by many (including the book's writer, Alan Moore) as being a drastic simplification of what is a very deep and complex story. While a series adaptation will probably still not be good enough for Mr. Moore, it will certainly give fans of the book a much more in depth live action version of this beloved story.
One thing that nobody can disagree on, however, is Hugo Weaving's legendary performance as the titular and mysterious hero, V. His dulcet tones and iconic costume created one of the most original and memorable protagonists of all time and, while he's a slight departure from the comic, he's nevertheless the best part of the original V For Vendetta adaptation. The big question then is, who can replace him? It's difficult to find an actor willing to go completely masked for an entire film, let alone a whole series (just look at Pedro Pascal in The Mandalorian and Pablo Schreiber in Halo), but this would surely be made up for with what will become a massive revitalisation of an iconic character. Here at Deight Night, we've complied a list of some possible actors who could take Weaving's heavy mantle, have a look and see if you agree.
Ross Marquand
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| The Walking Dead (2010-2022, AMC) |
This choice will not come as a surprise to any who know Marquand. For a while now, Marquand has made a bit of a name for himself as an impressionist and one of his best voices is that of Hugo Weaving, who he most famously replaces as Red Skull in Avengers: Infinity War - so V seems like an obvious fit for him. Not only that though, Marquand has proved himself a great voice actor in shows like Invincible and X-Men '97 and V's entire character comes from his voice. On the other hand, Marquand's career outside of The Walking Dead has been mostly taking over for bigger named actors in smaller voice roles so another part where he's filling in the shoes for someone else may not be what he's looking for as a career move.
Robert Pattinson
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Mickey 17 (2025, Bong Joon-Ho, Warner Bros)
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British, versatile and used to less than sane characters, Robert Pattinson is everything we need in a future V. Fans of the original comic will know that V's sanity and moral compass isn't quite as clear cut as it is in the 2005 film. Pattinson revels in complex and unstable characters (see
The Lighthouse,
The Rover and
High Life as but a few examples) and what's more, he isn't afraid to wear a mask for extended periods (see
The Batman). Pattinson's V would be dark, intimidating and scarier than Hugo Weaving's and would undoubtedly be legendary, however, with the actor's schedule filling up with film after film, it's unlikely he'd commit to a series.
Andrew Lincoln
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| The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live (2024-2024, AMC) |
It's rare to find an actor so synonymous with a character as Andrew Lincoln is with Rick Grimes. As he's been playing the gruff post apocalyptic sheriff for the better part of two decades, it's hard to believe that the actor's real voice is quite posh and English, and very much perfect for V. Though Lincoln hasn't spent lots of time under a mask, he's well versed with action thanks to his experience fighting the undead and is obviously very comfortable with TV's gruelling schedules. Rick Grimes is one of the most underrated TV performances in recent memory and shows Lincoln's versatility along with his ability to play a character who's not always in the right head space. Maybe V is the next comic character that Lincoln will completely embody?
David Oyelowo
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Silo (2023-Present, Apple TV+)
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Oyelowo always shines in whatever project he plays a part in but hasn't quite found a role that defines him yet, other than possibly as Martin Luther King in Selma. V could very much be that for the actor, who some fans may recognise as the voice of Agent Kallus from Star Wars: Rebels, a performance with a sinister but somewhat comforting tone, therefore making for a perfect jumping off point for V. With his resume of great performances, comfort with TV scheduling and a suitable voice, V could be the next logical step for Oyelowo's ever-burgeoning career.
Rahul Kohli
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The Haunting Of Bly Manor (2020-2020, Netflix)
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Rahul Kohli has been thrown around for a lot of dream castings, namely Mr. Fantastic for
Fantastic Four: The First Steps, which earned him an audition for the role (possibly coincidental, possibly not). While Pedro Pascal took away his chances at working for Marvel, maybe his future lies with DC as their V. With an excellent career almost exclusively dedicated to television, he'd be more than happy with the schedule and has also provided many a voice to an animated project and a video game (including one for DC as Scarecrow in
Harley Quinn), meaning he's happy not being seen. Kohli's V would definitely be one of the friendlier versions of this list with his voice being quite light and energetic, but he's no stranger to a figure of authority (see
Midnight Mass). As with Oyelowo, Kohli hasn't quite found his defining role yet, though he may not be interested in playing V if Mike Flanagan isn't somewhat involved in the project.
HBO's V For Vendetta is in pre-production and does not yet have a release date
