Hamm Eyes Marvel Cinematic Universe Role

One famous actor is closer than ever to appearing in the MCU for the first time. Jon Hamm (of Mad Men fame) is in talks with Marvel over adapting a new comic book storyline that he’s been interested in. The actor confessed he’s pitched himself for more than one role in the MCU.

It’s no secret that Jon Hamm was once fated to debut in a live-action Marvel Comics adaptation before things fell through. An actor who has been long fancasted in numerous superhero roles and has circled them himself, Hamm was finally set to play a fan-favorite Marvel villain, Mister Sinister, in the X-Men movies, back when the X-Men IP was still owned by Fox. His first appearance was to be marked in The New Mutants, but the role only got as far as shooting some scenes that were ultimately scrapped. The New Mutants suffered from an infamously troubled production, and Hamm’s scenes as Mister Sinister were shot early on, before the film was delayed and underwent reshoots numerous times. It seemed as if Jon Hamm appearing in a superhero movie was simply not to be.

However, in a detailed profile with The Hollywood Reporter, Jon Hamm discussed the possibility of him joining the MCU is higher than many would think. “But I’ve pitched myself for a couple parts of the Marvel universe... I don’t want to say what exactly, but it was part of a comic book that I really liked.” Hamm spoke with Marvel executives, asking if there was any interest in adapting the comic book. When they agreed that they were interested in adapting it as well, Hamm told them, “Good. I should be the guy.”

While exactly what comic book run or storyline interested Hamm and Marvel is unknown as yet, but fans delight in fancasting him even more until it is revealed. One popular casting is of Hamm as the iconic Fantastic Four villain, Doctor Doom. Hamm himself previously expressed interest in the role last year, in the same interview in which he declared himself a longtime Marvel Comics enthusiast. After his role as Mister Sinister was cut, Hamm mentioned the Fantastic Four and Doctor Doom as particularly great characters to play.

Hamm has had a distinguished career, his most well-known role being Don Draper in the hit AMC series Mad Men. Rather than get typecast, Hamm shied away from leading man parts, instead choosing the roles he was most interested in. Between his recent starring role in the fifth season of Fargo and a popular guest role on Apple TV’s The Morning Show, the actor is back in the zeitgeist, and often tops lists of famous actors that still haven’t been in the MCU.

Despite passing on Green Lantern, Hamm is still excited for a proper comic book character to play. In fact, his denial of that role falls in line with his anti-leading man tendencies, and a villain of the caliber of Doctor Doom seems even more likely, though Doom is not confirmed for the upcoming Fantastic Four reboot, as Galactus seems to be the main villain. There's also no saying whether Hamm could not simply play the role of Mister Sinister again, but executed by Disney this time. Time will tell if whatever comic book storyline Marvel and Hamm are interested in collaborating on will make it to the big screen.