Looks like one more we can cross off that list…according to SciFi Wire, actor Hugh Laurie has quietly confirmed that he’s going to be playing Perry White in the upcoming Superman movie. If you’re having a serious “who the…?” moment here, take a gander at his page on the IMDB. It seems like most of his work to date has been in television, but he was also in both Stuart Little movies, and on a slightly more respectable level, he also appeared in Sense and Sensibility. And actually, he’s even written a well-received novel.
Laurie seems like a fine, non-offensive casting choice, although naturally we’ll still have to wait and see if they decide to go in some kind of weird direction with the character, such as the weird Elvis obsession in the Perry White on Lois & Clark (“great shades of Elvis!” indeed).
Regardless, Laurie joins Brandon Routh as Clark/Superman, Kate Bosworth as Lois Lane, Shawn Ashmore as Jimmy Olsen and Kevin Spacey as Lex Luthor. Not a bad cast at all. Here’s a look at the Perry White-to-be (photo courtesy of the Hugh Laurie FAQ):
So who’s left to cast? Unless they decide to skip the origin entirely there’s still Jonathan and Martha Kent (even if they don’t skip it, these two will probably be in there somewhere), there’s still the possibility of an appearance by Kal-El and Lara (although let’s hope to god it’s not as excruciating as Marlon Brando’s zillion dollar atrocity in Superman: The Movie), and beyond that, it could be any character from the Superman stable. Lana Lang? Pete Ross? Emil Hamilton? Brainiac? Metallo? Lobo? Supergirl? Darkseid? (Just for the record, if Darkseid is ever in a live action movie and not played by Michael Ironside, I will start an organized revolt). Filming is supposedly starting soon, so any casting should be leaking out in the next month or so.