The Rise of Comedy Stars in the Comic Book Movie World
With certain exceptions, and for better or worse, comic book movies have become a lot funnier in more recent years. So, it is no surprise that more and more actors better known for comedy, including on the small screen, have taken the genre by storm. Of course, not every comedic TV actor has gone on to strictly play a humorous comic book character. Still, being a sitcom star certainly comes in handy when a superhero role calls for something a bit sillier.
Ryan Reynolds: From Sitcom Star to Marvel Icon
One of Ryan Reynolds’ earliest leading roles was on Two Guys, a Girl and a Pizza Place, which was later shortened to Two Guys and a Girl. The Canadian actor was, indeed, one of the two guys on the ABC sitcom about a twenty-something trio sharing an apartment, which saw his friend Nathan Fillion join the cast at one point. Reynolds and Fillion would later reunite when the Firefly star cameoed in Deadpool & Wolverine, which is the third film led by Reynolds as Marvel’s Merc with a Mouth.
Before that, Reynolds made his theatrically released comic book debut in Blade: Trinity as vampire hunter Hannibal King before trying his hand at DC movies with Green Lantern—both of which he, and the rest of the world, would likely rather forget.
Will Arnett: A Voice of Batman
Will Arnett has starred in so many hit sitcoms, most notably Arrested Development and the animated Bojack Horseman, that his name has practically become synonymous with the genre. Yet, he is also widely recognized as one of the best Batman voice actors not named Kevin Conroy.
Arnett’s portrayal of the Dark Knight in 2014’s The LEGO Movie, while meant to poke fun at the hero, was so revered that he earned a spin-off, 2017’s The LEGO Batman Movie, which was not only hilarious but surprisingly comic book-accurate. The only other sitcom stars who can claim to have voiced such a celebrated, animated take on the iconic DC character are The Drew Carey Show‘s Diedrich Bader and… actually, Kevin Conroy, who starred in a short-lived ’90s comedy called The Office (no relation to the British series or its U.S. remake) with Valerie Harper.
Neil Patrick Harris: Voicing Multiple Superheroes
After becoming a renowned child star for playing the title role of Doogie Howser, M.D., Neil Patrick Harris experienced a remarkable comeback with his Emmy-nominated performance as Banny Stinson on How I Met Your Mother. Playing the over-the-top serial womanizer even earned the actor a few serious roles, such as his underrated portrayal of Nightwing.
Granted, grown-up Dick Grayson’s appearance in 2010’s Batman: Under the Red Hood, is relatively brief, appearing before Bruce Wayne’s (Bruce Greenwood) conflict with the titular villain, whom he discovers is a resurrected Jason Todd (Jensen Ackles), takes center stage. However, even before HIMYM, Harris was cast in the lead role of Peter Parker in MTV’s Spider-Man: The New Animated Series.
Alec Baldwin: From 30 Rock to The Shadow
Before Alec Baldwin was Jack Donaghy, he was the Shadow. Academy Award nominee Alec Baldwin is a bit of a Jack of all trades, which is honestly not meant to be a cheeky reference to his Emmy-winning role on 30 Rock as executive Jack Donaghy. That being said, even with his record-breaking number of Saturday Night Live hosting gigs, seeing the actor cast in a TV comedy came as a slight shock, considering his more earnest past credits, like the underrated The Shadow.
The actor made his comic book movie debut in the 1994 film based on a spooky radio show and the highly influential pulp era comic it inspired. Baldwin gives one of his most criminally overlooked performances as Lamont Cranston, a man whose desperate plea for redemption fuels his crusade for justice as his mysterious, titular alter ego with the power to turn almost completely invisible, save his own shadow.
Kelsey Grammer: Beast in X-Men: The Last Stand
When it comes to the least acclaimed X-Men movies, 2006’s X-Men: The Last Stand is certainly near the bottom for various reasons. However, the threequel is not completely devoid of any redeeming qualities, such as its depiction of Beast.
The furry, blue and brilliant mutant otherwise known as Hank McCoy was played to perfection by Kelsey Grammer, fresh off his multi-Emmy-winning lead performance as the title character of the NBC sitcom, Frasier, which was spun off from the network’s earlier hit, Cheers. Fans are excited to see Grammer reprise Beast in the Avengers: Doomsday cast.
Chris Pratt: From Parks and Rec to Guardians of the Galaxy
Few audiences may recall that Chris Pratt actually made his comic book movie debut with a supporting role in Wanted, based on Mark Millar’s series about highly skilled assassins, in 2008. He really started to make a name for himself in Hollywood just a year later when he was cast as the lovably dim-witted Andy Dwyer on Parks and Recreation.
However, what skyrocketed him to the top of the A-list was his charming performance as Peter “Star-Lord” Quill in the first of James Gunn’s three Guardians of the Galaxy movies from 2014. Now, he is one of the top action stars of his generation, having additionally appeared in the likes of the Jurassic World films and Amazon’s The Tomorrow War, while still occasionally returning to comedy, like in the animated The Super Mario Bros. Movie.
Ariel Winter: Bringing Carrie Kelley to Life
There is a case to be made for why Carrie Kelley is the best Robin to ever fight alongside Batman. The unique character still has yet to be introduced in a live-action setting, but was brought to life beautifully in a two-part animated adaptation of Frank Miller’s Batman: The Dark Knight Returns.
Providing the voice of the dissatisfied teen-turned-vigilante, opposite Peter Weller as Batman, is Ariel Winter, who knows a thing or two about playing a dissatisfied teen. For eleven years, she starred in ABC’s hit mockumentary comedy, Modern Family, as the middle Dunphy child, Alex.
Zachary Levi: From Chuck to Shazam!
Leading Chuck practically prepared Zachary Levi for Shazam! Zachary Levi’s star-making role was the unlikely title hero of NBC’s hit dramedy series, Chuck. He plays an average, geeky adult whose life forever changes when a series of important and highly classified documents is accidentally downloaded into his brain.
Chuck’s origin bears some similarity to that of his character in the 2019 DC movie Shazam!, in which an average teen’s life is forever changed when he is imbued with a series of extraordinary abilities and a grown-up body to fight crime with. Not to mention, Levi also briefly appeared in Thor: The Dark World and Thor: Ragnarok as Fandral.
John Krasinski: A Fan-Favorite Mr. Fantastic
Before Pedro Pascal became the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s official depiction of Reed Richards, better known as the flexible Mr. Fantastic, in 2025’s The Fantastic Four: First Steps, fans expressed hope that Kevin Feige and co. would choose John Krasinski for the role, alongside his real-life spouse, Emily Blunt, as Susan “Invisible Woman” Richards. Well, half of that dream would come true… for a moment, at least.
In a memorable scene from 2022’s Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, Benedict Cumberbatch’s titular sorcerer finds himself in an alternate reality where he is put on trial by a group of superheroes, including Reed Richards, as played by the actor who first came to prominence as Jim Halpert on NBC’s The Office. However, this amusing act of fan service was over almost as soon as it began because Krasinski’s Mr. Fantastic would be literally ripped to shreds by a hellbent Wanda Maximoff (Elizabeth Olsen).
Michael Keaton: From Comedies to Batman
Before he became celebrated as one of the best Batman actors to ever wear the cape and cowl, Michael Keaton was seen as a poor choice for the role when his casting in Tim Burton’s 1989 adaptation was first announced. To be fair, most audiences only knew the future Academy Award nominee from his work in comedies like Night Shift, Mr. Mom and Beetlejuice.
Just imagine how those same critics might have reacted had they seen his television work, which included two sitcoms that never made it beyond a handful of episodes each. In 1979, Keaton led Working Stiffs alongside Jim Belushi as a pair of custodians for 4 episodes and, three years later, played the title role of Report to Murphy, which lasted six episodes.
