Hawkman has been a part of the DC comics universe for about 80 years and is only now making his debut on the big screen. After live-action appearances in TV shows like Legends of Tomorrow and Smallville, the superhero will first appear in his theatrical debut on Black Adam. Aldis Dodge from The Invisible Man is set to play the superhero and while this is obviously a big deal for most actors, Dodge is even more excited because of Hawkman’s connection to Africa.
Dodge spoke to THR recently and recounted his childhood where he hated learning history in school because he realised that what he was being taught about his culture was wrong. His mother was an educator and was sure to properly teach her children. As an adult playing Hawkman, he is eager to embark on the character’s journey and properly enlighten people about the time period the character hails from.
The actor said, “So I love the fact that this is Hawkman. It is Carter Hall or Katar Hol. And his original state, the first version of him, is Prince Khufu. He’s Egyptian. He’s African. I love that I get to play somebody who has lineage to the motherland. It’s fantastic”.
For those not in the know, Hawkman started out as Prince Khufu from ancient Egypt and found a crashed Thanagarian ship which contained Nth metal and which helped him to gain his flying abilities. While he and his lover Chay-Ara were murdered by a jealous priest their love was strong enough that they have been reincarnated over multiple lifetimes. Carter Hall is the latest reincarnation and his soulmate is Shiera Sanders or Hawkgirl.
Hawkgirl is not present in the film but otherwise, the adaptation is believed to be quite faithful to the character. And Aldis Dodge is already quite gushy about his character who is both “savage” and “well-intentioned”. He said he personally really identified with the character’s understanding and desire to get history right considering how Hawkman, in a way, is history.
Joining Dodge in the film are Dwayne Johnson as Black Adam and Noah Centineo as Atom Smasher. The rest of the cast has not been announced yet.
Previously, Black Adam was supposed to come out on 22 December 2021 but now it is undated.
