When Vin Diesel landed the part of fan-favorite character Groot in James Gunn’s Guardians of the Galaxy, many fans thought that the sentient, lovable tree was just one of the roles that the actor would be playing in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. This speculation was fueled by Diesel himself, who often took to Facebook and dropped cryptic clues about playing characters like The Vision and The Inhumans‘ Black Bolt.
We now know that Paul Bettany is playing The Vision in Avengers: Age of Ultron, which leaves the role of Black Bolt wide open. Of course, Marvel hasn’t officially announced an Inhumans movie, but it’s been talked about for quite some time, and the wild success of Guardians could give the studio the confidence it needs to give the film the green light.
Diesel re-sparked the Black Bolt rumors this weekend, when he took to Facebook to thank fans for the support they gave Groot, and took the opportunity to hint at something larger:
In the comics, Black Bolt is the alter ego of Blackagar Boltagon, the ruler of the Inhumans, a race of superhumans from the Blue Area of the Moon. Black Bolt has several abilities, including flight, superhuman physical attributes, molecular manipulation, and the power of electron-harnessing, which he triggers by speaking. Because of the destructive nature of the ability (which has the power to level an entire city), Black Bolt refrains from speaking until he needs to.
If Diesel eventually does land the role of Black Bolt in an Inhumans film, it will mark the third time he’s played a character that hardly speaks. He famously voiced The Iron Giant in Brad Bird’s eponymous 1999 animated film, and repeated the same three words over and over again as Groot.
Personally, I would love to see Diesel as Black Bolt, and have no problem with him playing multiple characters in the MCU. He was great as Groot, but is unrecognizable enough to headline an Inhumans film without any complications.
Tell us, what do you think of Diesel’s Inhumans tease? Would you like to see him as Black Bolt? Sound off in the comments below.