Liam Neeson To Co-Star In Wonder Woman 3?
Liam Neeson might be starring in Wonder Woman 3 as this pivotal character.
This article is more than 2 years old
Liam Neeson is one of those actors that you hire to bring immediate gravitas to a role. His regal manner and chocolate voice can legitimize nearly any character in his repertoire. The lauded thespian has yet to pop up in either of the two major superhero cinematic universes, but a new scoop from We Got This Covered says that he could be joining the cast of Wonder Woman 3. Not only that but the role he is rumored to be playing would be one of the most pivotal in the entire series.
The rumor from We Got This Covered is claiming that Liam Neeson is up for the role of Zeus in Wonder Woman 3. In case you need a reminder, Zeus is the father of Diana in the DC universe. He is also the one who used his powers to hide the island of Themyscira away from the world of men so the Amazonians could live there in peace. Suffice to say, if Zeus is going to be a central character in Wonder Woman 3, there is a big likelihood that Warner Bros. is going to want to cast a very recognizable actor in the part.
Nabbing Liam Neeson would be something of a winking joke when it comes to this casting. Why? Because he has already played Zeus in another Warner Bros. franchise: Clash of the Titans. He showed up as the powerful god in both Clash of the Titans and its sequel Wrath of the Titans. These were spawned out of remaking the classic 1981 film that saw Laurence Olivier in the role of Zeus. If Neeson did end up as Zeus in Wonder Woman 3, it would be something of a fun in-joke for the actor.
However, this does raise a valid question: would Liam Neeson even be interested in playing Zeus again? It is assumed that there would be different dramatic challenges and motivations for the role than there were in Clash of the Titans and Wrath of the Titans, but if things feel too close to his original portrayal of the character, could that dissuade him from taking the part?
Even more important than the potential of Liam Neeson joining the cast of Wonder Woman 3 is the possibility of Zeus entering the fray. The character has been a non-entity as far as being a visible presence in the Wonder Woman series. Would we be seeing Zeus in a flashback capacity as we have speculated about in Wonder Woman 3? Or would Zeus be playing a role in the present with Diana? If so, will he be an ally or possibly a villain? Considering what we have seen in the past with gods like Ares, it is very possible that Zeus could be entering the fray as an antagonist. Or maybe he will appear friendly at first only to betray Diana?
If Liam Neeson does end up in the role of Zeus, it would be great to see him be a villain once again. While he has helped craft a specific persona over the years by doing a lot of revenge thrillers and action movies, it is always great to see him take things to an arch level. If he was able to bring that camp energy to Wonder Woman 3, it could match the kind of over-the-top energy we got to see from Pedro Pascal as Maxwell Lord in Wonder Woman 1984 (read our 5-star review). And the world of comic book movie villains could certainly use more of those kinds of performances.
Still, it is important to reiterate that this scoop about Liam Neeson and Zeus is nothing but a pure rumor at this point. While Patty Jenkins has been confirmed to return for Wonder Woman 3 and even has Wonder Woman 4 in the works, it is still in the earliest stages of development. Anything that is rumored for the story is up for change at any moment. It is possible that Zeus is a part of the story right now but he could be completely written out by the time the movie goes in front of cameras. We will simply have to wait and see how the sequel shakes out over the next couple of years.
