Controversial Superhero Casting That Paid Off

When it comes to movie adaptations of popular comic books, many fans are likely going to have strong opinions about, well, everything. From thoughts about costumes to critiques of special effects, devotees of the genre often aren’t shy to voice how they feel about a filmmaker’s interpretation of Marvel or DC source material. This also includes major casting decisions.

Sometimes, a studio’s choice to cast a certain actor creates a ripple of controversy throughout the franchise’s fanbase. People may be disgruntled that an actor doesn’t resemble the comic book version of a character closely enough — or, in some cases, an actor may be too recognizable from another project to convincingly play an iconic role. There are so many reasons fans may disagree with a casting decision, but more often than not, those decisions end up being the right ones in the long run.

READ MORE: 10 Actors Who Hated Their Superhero Costumes

While casting these actors in well-known superhero and villain roles was once considered risky, time has proven that the heads in charge ended up making the right choice. In fact, it’s pretty much impossible to think of anyone else in these roles now. It just goes to show that having a bit of faith in the creative forces behind a project usually pays off — and initial impressions can often be deceiving. An actor doesn’t get cast in a high-profile superhero movie by mistake, although it may take an audience actually watching their performance to win them over. Here are ten examples of superhero movie casting that were initially controversial — but paid off big time.