Superman: Legacy has officially entered the preproduction stage as the DC franchise begins to move towards its new era. The script for Superman: Legacy has already been written by James Gunn, who will also be directing the project as well as being the head of the newly formed DC Studios. Not much is known about the story of this project overall other than it will seemingly return to the roots of the Man of Steel more than the Zack Snyder version of the character, which was a notably dark and grim take on the hero.
A younger actor will be playing Superman, something that made waves as Henry Cavill appeared to be back as the hero full time after showing up in the post credits scene for Dwayne Johnson’s Black Adam. In this new version, Clark Kent will reportedly feature more prominently, as will his career as a writer for the Daily Planet. This also means that Jimmy Olsen, a colleague and friend of Clark Kent at the newspaper, will surely play a bigger role in this iteration of this iconic DC story.
Cameron Monaghan
Cameron Monaghan is perhaps best known to DC fans for his role as the Joker in the Gotham TV series, but the actor clearly has the range to play more than just a haunting villain. Monaghan is the lead in Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order as well as its sequel, Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, playing a Jedi that survived after the events of Order 66. Monaghan clearly has the talent and range to play a good guy, and he’s also the perfect age to play Jimmy Olsen in the upcoming film, especially as these characters like Olsen and Clark Kent are set to be younger than before.
Monaghan also shares some visual similarities with some versions of Jimmy Olsen from the comics. Monaghan sports noticeably ginger hair, something that Olsen has also had in some comic stories. Given that he’s already played a classic DC villain, Monaghan making the jump to play a hero in this story would be an out-of-the-box choice, but one that could work out well.
Jack Alcott
Jack Alcott is perhaps best known for his role as Harrison Morgan in Dexter: New Blood, where he played the title character’s son. Alcott has since gone on to appear in shows like Poker Face, the hit series from Rian Johnson on Peacock. Overall, Alcott is a talented young actor that has the right age, profile, and talent to play Jimmy Olsen. Alcott is also very versatile as an actor, as demonstrated by his character’s conflicted nature in Dexter, where he sometimes appeared as a content student but also went on to show his darker side later on in the series. That kind of versatility could be useful if James Gunn is planning on tapping into some of the silver age comic versions of Olsen, where he was often transformed or disguised (such as gaining speed powers like The Flash or temporarily becoming a gorilla).
Daniel Zovatto
Daniel Zovatto is a choice that would bring some much-needed diversity to this iteration of the Superman story. Zovatto has appeared in a number of relatively high-profile projects, such as It Follows, Don’t Breathe, Agents of SHIELD, Fear the Walking Dead, the Penny Dreadful spin-off show, and most recently The Pope’s Exorcist alongside Russell Crowe. Zovatto is a talented young actor of color that could bring a fresh and new perspective on the role of Jimmy Olsen, perhaps in the same vain as Mehcad Brooks, who played the character in the Supergirl series on CBS and the CW.
Kelly Marie Tran
Jimmy Olsen is a male in his comic appearances, but gender swapping of some characters is becoming more and more common in comic book movies and shows. If James Gunn were to go down that route, one performer that he could consider is Kelly Marie Tran, who played Rose in the Star Wars sequels. Tran would do well in capturing much of the nervous, awkward energy that Olsen can sometimes have underneath his usual confidence. She has also never been in a superhero film before, which is a growing rarity these days and that could make her an even more attractive choice for the role, much as how Matt Reeves wanted to choose actors who had never been in a comic book story before for The Batman.
Lamar Johnson
Lamar Johnson is best known for his role in HBO’s The Last of Us adaption series that released earlier this year. Johnson played Henry Burrell in the show, a character who was looking after his deaf younger brother but met a tragic end after his sibling became infected. As fans of the game and show will remember, Henry became overwhelmed with guilt and ended his own life after these events. It’s a tragic moment in the show, but one that also shows just how good of an actor Lamar Johnson is. The layers and complexity that he adds to Henry in the HBO series is extraordinary, which could make him an ideal candidate to play Jimmy Olsen in the new DCU.