That Hashtag Show has unearthed an alleged casting shortlist for Deadpool 2 claiming that Scandal‘s Kerry Washington is currently testing for the role of Domino.
It’s worth noting that THS’ report goes on to stress that negotiations are still ongoing, but it would seem Washington has come into contention after Sienna Miller (The Lost City of Z) and Gugu Mbatha-Raw (Beauty and the Beast) both passed on the role. What’s interesting here is that this purported shortlist emerged alongside a description of Domino as she’ll appear in the David Leitch-directed sequel. If nothing else, it gives us some indication of the criteria Fox is adhering to during Deadpool 2‘s ongoing casting process, and providing today’s report holds true, fans of Marvel Comics can look forward to a faithful rendition of the hardened mercenary.
The purported character breakdown reads as so:
“Female, All ethnicities; Late 20s – early 30s. Sexy, lithe and athletic. She has a witty personality. Neena is a no-nonsense badass who rarely shows her feeling. Highly capable, supremely confident and armored in . . . well ARMOR . . . and bullet-proof sarcasm. But beneath her shell she’s still and vulnerable and some soft, beating remnant of her humanity remains intact. In this scene we need to see both sides. When she can’t get what she needs with insults, bluster and threats we need to see some of that vulnerability. It’s hard for her to let down her guard, and in the mercenary community she grew up in showing compassion is almost embarrassing. We should feel like she’d be more comfortable killing Silberman than saying “Please”.”
Domino is one of two major roles yet to be cast in Fox’s upcoming sequel, with Cable being the second. Last we reported, former James Bond star Pierce Brosnan had apparently opened talks with the studio about potentially climbing on board, which would mean that early photo of Hugh Jackman, Ryan Reynolds and Brosnan indulging in a game of ‘see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil’ wasn’t a red herring after all. One way or another, Deadpool creator Rob Liefeld believes the casting of Cable and Domino will blow people away, regardless of whether Pierce Brosnan and/or Kerry Washington finalize deals or not.
Deadpool 2 is still without a release date at the time of writing, but co-writers Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick feel confident that shooting will commence before the year’s end.