Stephen Lang Avatar and Cable X Force Deadpool 2: Stephen Lang Campaigns For Role as Cable
[WARNING: This article contains spoilers for Deadpool.]
Fans can file Deadpool 2 into the boy-that-was-fast category. Based on the strength of advance buzzand word of mouth, Twentieth Century Fox announced that a sequel was in the offing before Deadpool even dropped this weekend. And, since the film version of the Merc with a Mouth seems to be coming up aces, it seems that Fox’s announcement was anything but premature.
The second major hat-tip towards the sequel is the super-secret secondary post-credit clip following Deadpool. After all the talk from the writers and director Miller, the short scene makes it quite clear that Cable will be gracing Deadpool 2 with his presence. So far no one has been cast in the role of the time-traveling mutant, but one man is clearly angling for it.
Recently, Stephen Lang (Into the Badlands) dropped some major hints as to his interest in the role. The buff actor, best known for his role as Col. Quaritch in Avatar, announced cheekily, “Let’s lay some CABLE,” while also tweeting a selfie showing himself working out in preparation for the role. This isn’t the first time Lang has made his interest in the role public. Screen Rant coaxed out his desire to play the fourth-dimension-rending X-Man at New York Comic-Con in 2010. He stated “Yes, I’m there,” when asked about the part, adding “if it’s a cool character, if it’s a theme you want to explore…sure.”
Cable is Nathan Summers, the son of Cyclops (Scott Summers) and Jean Grey’s clone Madelyn Pryor. Apocalypse, who is also his primary antagonist, swiped the infant Cable and infected him with a techno-organic virus, which is slowly turning him into a machine. Cable has done stints with X-Mensuccessors the New Mutants and X-Force. With his arch-nemesis in the upcoming X-Men: Apocalypse, as well as a New Mutants film in development and rumors of an X-Force flick in the works, his entrance into the series makes a lot of sense.
Cable and Deadpool Long History Deadpool 2: Stephen Lang Campaigns For Role as Cable
Of course, now, as in 2010, Lang’s interest and Twitter “groundswell” are merely speculation and the hopes of well-wishing friends and fans. However, the silver-haired and well-defined actor definitely fits the bill for Cable. At one point in time, Lang was Rob Liefeld’s primary choice for the part. He even asked Twentieth Century Fox to sign the actor for the role back in 2009. However, the X-Force creator now seems to favor Jon Hamm (Mad Men) for Cable.
Hamm certainly has the superhero jaw and look of a younger Cable. But more often than not, the X-Force leader was portrayed as an older mutant, making Lang an excellent choice for the role as well. Overall, whichever actor Fox casts as Cable will depend upon the character’s age and look in the upcoming films.
Which actor would you prefer as Cable? And how old should he be in Deadpool 2 and New Mutants?
Deadpool is now in theaters, followed by X-Men: Apocalypse on May 27, 2016; Gambit sometime in 2017; Wolverine 3 on March 3, 2017; and an unannounced X-Men film on July 13, 2018. The New Mutants is also in development.