Now that the SAG-AFTRA strike is over, the floodgates are opening as actors are once again free to discuss the projects they’re involved in. David Harbour spoke with io9 about playing Eric Frankenstein in Creature Commandos, the upcoming animated series which will serve as the first official project in the new DC Universe.
David Harbour was full of praise for the character of Frankenstein, both in literature and the Creature Commandos series. “The most interesting thing to me about Frankenstein’s monster in general is that he was created to be this sort of erudite, intellectual, romantic, brilliant person, and he winds up being a monster,” Harbour said. “I mean, that complexity can make for some pretty ripe comedy and also pathos—that a guy who considers himself one thing, is viewed by others as something very different. That’s the broadest, most mysterious way I can put it, because all I know is the scripts are really good. What we recorded is really great. I’ve seen the art, James is a genius. I think it’s going to be really fun and really exciting, and it opens up a whole new door to the DC Universe of how these characters will occupy the world. I like the concept of a live action and cartoon back and forth.”
The new DC Universe will see the same actors playing their roles in every medium, which means that when Eric Frankenstein makes the leap to live-action, David Harbour will be the one playing him. If and when that happens, it remains to be seen if he will be a CG creation or brought to life with prosthetics, but Harbour is down for it no matter what. “I’m definitely down for it,” Harbour said. “I just love telling great stories that people love. I’m just happy to get back to work.“
In addition to David Harbour, the cast of Creatures Commandos, includes Frank Grillo as Rick Flag Sr., Indira Varma as The Bride, Maria Bakalova as Princess Ilana Rostovic, Alan Tudyk as Dr. Phosphorus, Zoe Chao as Nina Mazursky, and Steve Agee as John Economos, and Sean Gunn as Weasel.
The first chapter of the DCU is titled Gods and Monsters. On the slate, co-head of DC Studios Peter Safran noted, “As we craft the plan for DC Studios, we are thrilled to share with fans the first 10 stories they can expect from the unified DC Universe featuring some of our most well-known characters as well as the next generation of marquee characters.” He added: “Chapter 1 tells cohesive stories that highlight love, compassion, and the innate goodness of the human spirit, all designed to minimize audience confusion and maximize audience engagement across platforms.” Creature Commandos is expected to be released on Max next year.