Karen Gillan Wants To Play Poison Ivy
Karen Gillan is open to playing Poison Ivy in James Gunn's DCU.
Karen Gillan may or may not be wrapping up her tenure in the Marvel Cinematic Universe soon, so you would think that she might take a break from comic-book movies. However, her stance is the opposite, and she might be ready to join the DCU with her long-time director James Gunn. When asked who she might play in Gunn’s DCU, Gillan said, “I always thought that Poison Ivy was really fun,” adding, “So maybe something like that would be cool.” (via GamesRadar)
Not only would Karen Gillan be willing to be in more comic-book movies, but she’s also apparently willing to play another character that requires her to wear extensive makeup. Gillan has been playing Nebula since 2014’s Guardians of the Galaxy, which requires her to sit in a makeup chair for hours to turn her skin blue and attach prosthetics. Fortunately, Poison Ivy wouldn’t have any prosthetics, but Gillan would still presumably have to sit through the process to turn her skin green.
However, it’s hard to disagree with Karen Gillan’s self-casting choice here, as she would definitely be the perfect Poison Ivy. She wouldn’t even have to change her natural hair color to do it! Plus, she has an extensive history working with James Gunn, so Gunn would already know that Gillan has what it takes to play a villain for as many years as needed.
Karen Gillan is perhaps best known for playing Nebula in Gunn’s Guardians of the Galaxy films. While Nebula is now a full-fledged Guardian, she used to play a much more antagonistic role in the franchise, which makes sense since she was Thanos’ daughter (and not even his favorite one). Her experience playing a villain, who can also be an anti-hero of sorts, would translate perfectly to a live-action Poison Ivy.
If James Gunn does indeed decide to cast Karen Gillan as Poison Ivy, it would be interesting to try and guess where and when she might show up in the DCU. As a classic member of Batman‘s Rogues gallery, you would naturally assume she might appear in the DCU film The Brave and the Bold, which will introduce a new Batman actor and the Damien Wayne version of Robin. However, having Ivy as the very first villain of the DCU’s Batman seems unlikely but not necessarily impossible.
Another good place for Karen Gillan to be introduced as Poison Ivy might be the horror film Swamp Thing which will close out the DCU’s first chapter. Ivy and Swamp Thing have crossed paths quite a few times, and their dedication to protecting plants would certainly make it a natural pairing. But it also might make the movie a bit crowded with big character introductions.
In any case, having Karen Gillan as Poison Ivy in the DCU certainly wouldn’t be a bad thing, so James Gunn should try and find a way to make this happen at some point. In the meantime, we’ll get to see Gillan and Gunn’s latest collaboration with Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, which comes out in theaters on May 5. Nebula’s MCU future is uncertain at the moment, so make sure to check it out in case Gillan won’t be returning to the MCU again.
