4) Julian McMahon
Forget about his performance as Dr. Doom in the Fantastic Four films for a second; Julian McMahon is a damn fine actor who doesn’t get the credit that he deserves. At the age of 48, he’s older than most of the other picks on the list (and Affleck as well), but hey, Robert Downey Jr. is 51 and still playing Iron Man. So, age is but a number, right?
What might count against McMahon, though, is that he’s primarily known as a TV actor. As such, it’s unlikely that Warner Bros. will entrust him to lead such a blockbuster and franchise with an unproven track record on the big screen.
3) Michael Fassbender
With the X-Men film franchise currently up in the air, Michael Fassbender might be ripe for the picking here. Imagine him as the Dark Knight in a storyline such as “A Death in the Family” or “Under the Red Hood” – it’d be fantastic. Fassbender has an uncanny (ha!) ability to bring emotional intensity to every role he’s in, and he’d be able to draw the audience into the lonely and dark aspect of Batman with ease.
That said, the actor’s been burned badly by the critical reception of X-Men: Apocalypse and Assassin’s Creed, so he’s probably on the lookout for more Oscar-worthy roles rather than another blockbuster vehicle. If he does show interest in the part, though, we wouldn’t hesitate to give him our stamp of approval.