Fascinating news, everyone! After consulting a collection of star charts, it's been announced that COMMUNITY and THE HAPPYTIME MURDERS alum Joel McHale has been cast as Sylvester Pemberton aka Starman for DC Universe's upcoming STARGIRL series.
Affectionately referred to by many as the "Golden Age Starman," Pemberton is a respected member of the Justice Society of America, a group of superheroes who fight the good fight throughout the DC Multiverse. Armed with an anti-gravity weapon known as the Cosmic Staff, Starman can often be found defending the Earth from evildoers alongside with his trusty sidekick, Stripesy, otherwise known as Courtney Whitmore’s stepfather, Pat Dugan.
In recent times, McHale launched The Joel McHale Show with Joel McHale on Netflix, a comedy web television series that shreds the internet's latest trends and most bizarre stories, in addition to highlighting the worst in reality television buffoonery. In addition to his sweet Netflix residency, McHale just wrapped his role as Judge Lepetri for Jillian Armenante's (BAD TEACHER, KITTENS IN CAGES) upcoming comedy STUCK, starring Felicia Day, Mindy Sterling, Heather Matarazzon and Paul Sheer, among others. In other Hale-related comic book entertainment news, McHale is rumored to be starring as Woody Henderson for Valiant Comics' QUANTUM AND WOODY TV series. While McHale's participation for the absurdist superhero comedy has yet to be confirmed, I can tell you as a fan of the series that he'd be a great choice for the part.
Here's the official synopsis for DC Universe's STARGIRL:
Courtney Whitmore (aka Stargirl) is smart, athletic and above all else kind. This high school teenager's seemingly perfect life hits a major speedbump when her mother gets married and her new family moves from Los Angeles, California to Blue Valley, Nebraska. Struggling to adapt to a new school, make new friends and deal with a new step-family, Courtney discovers her step-father has a secret; he used to be the sidekick to a superhero. "Borrowing" the long-lost hero's cosmic staff, Courtney becomes the unlikely inspiration for an entirely new generation of superheroes.
The series hails from executive producers Greg Berlanti, Geoff Johns and Sarah Schechter, and stars Brec Bassinger (THE GOLDBERGS, BELLA AND THE BULLDOGS) as Courtney Whitmore. Anjelika Washington (YOUNG SHELDON, SHAMELESS, Marvel's RUNAWAYS) is also confirmed to star.