Josh Brolin delivered a scene-stealing performance in 2018’s Deadpool 2 as Cable, one of the most complex characters in Marvel history. The actor was asked if he ever expected to return as the time-traveling mutant and explained that he likely never would, but that doesn’t mean he isn’t open to playing another legendary character again. Rob Liefeld, the co-creator of both Deadpool and Cable, recently said that he’d like to see Cable return because, “there was so much more meat on those bones” to explore with the character.
With the Marvel Cinematic Universe expanding to include Fox’s films like the X-Men and Fantastic Four franchises, it opens the door for Nathan Summers to show up at some point, especially with Deadpool in the MCU these days. Brolin was asked by The Direct about coming back as Cable but said he was “glad [the character] was isolated unto that experience.” That said, he was much more open to playing his other iconic Marvel character from 2018.
In the same year that he starred as Cable, Josh Brolin took on his biggest Marvel role as Thanos in Avengers: Infinity War. That film paints Thanos as the protagonist despite being the villain, making it stand out from the rest of the franchise. That could be why Brolin is much more eager to play the Mad Titan again than he is to play Nathan Summers. Brolin appreciated a question about Cable rather than Thanos, but was gleeful when discussing the latter.
Brolin said, “Thanos to me is a very, very interesting role, and a role that I had a lot of fun doing. You know what I mean? A lot of fun doing. Joe Russo, Anthony Russo, those guys to me, they’re just unprecedented, unparalleled.” That high praise for the directors, who are helming Avengers: Doomsday, shows how willing he would be to play Thanos for them again. Doctor Doom is clearly the main antagonist there, though with so many characters back for it and Avengers: Secret Wars, a Thanos appearance is possible.
Thanos and Doom even share a memorable comic book exchange that could be brought to life in a short scene, though it’s unclear if Brolin would return for a small part. That said, the actor has expressed interest in playing Thanos again multiple times over the years. Brolin continued to praise the Russos and how they helped him portray Thanos by adding, “They would come up and they would reference Scarface or something like that, something that I understood, then it made it even better.” That level of partnership and understanding could lead to a Thanos return, especially since the character has popped back up in other MCU projects like What If…? and Marvel Zombies.
Interestingly, Josh Brolin had signed on for a multi-picture deal as Cable and was slated to play him again in Drew Goddard’s X-Force movie. However, the merger between Disney and Fox canceled the film, and Brolin seems to be done with the character. Brolin added that he was happy Deadpool 2 happened and that playing Cable was a good memory.
Would you like to see Josh Brolin return as Cable or Thanos in some capacity? Let us know in the comments!
