Here he dreamcasts an adaptation of his new book, Heroes in the Night: Inside the Real Life Superhero Movement:Heroes in the Night is non-fiction, one of those stories that proves truth is sometimes stranger than fiction. The book chronicles average, everyday people that belong to a secretive sub-culture, a movement of people calling themselves Real Life Superheroes (or RLSH.) They invent their own superhero identities and do charity events, activism, even patrol the streets looking for crime.Visit the Heroes in the Night blog and Facebook page.
The two RLSH I spent the most time with were my own hometown Milwaukee heroes, the Watchman and Blackbird. I think we should have Val Kilmer and Edward Norton, respectively, for their roles. Seasoned actors, both with superhero experience (Batman Forever and The Incredible Hulk.)
Minnesota RLSH also were met several times. Geist (of Rochester, MN), the “Emerald Cowboy” could easily be played by comic book aficionado Nicolas Cage. Mr. Cage not only played Ghost Rider and Big Daddy (in Kick-Ass) but his name is derived from comic hero Luke Cage. He named his son, Kal-El, after Superman’s birth name. Razorhawk (of Minneapolis) is a RLSH and former wrestler with a signature wedge shaped mohawk. I say give the role to Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson.
While in Vancouver, BC, I met a RLSH elder (in his mid 60s) named Thanatos and wrote a chapter about him titled “The Man in the Green Skull Mask.” I think we could get quite a striking performance from Keith Carradine.
Phoenix Jones is a controversial superhero from Seattle that finds himself in the media spotlight often. In fact, he’s been criticized as being a one man media circus, drawing them in with his personality. As such, I think it would be best for Phoenix Jones to play himself.
Female RLSH appear throughout the book. One mentioned is Terrifica, who used to appear at Manhattan bars to help inebriated women get home safely. I think Kristen Wiig would be perfect for the role. Former Batgirl Alicia Silverstone would be great as Rock N Roll, who helps lead a team called the California initiative. The Initiative is actually a franchise and has teams in several states. I met the New York Initiative and I feel the three I wrote the most about -- Zero, Zimmer, and Dark Guardian -- would be well cast as Henry Rollins, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and Karl Urban.
Knight Owl lives in Oregon and I met him four different times in four different cities. Patrick Wilson portrayed a similarly named Nite Owl in Watchmen, and why not add another owl to the resume here?
I found out that Real Life Supervillains also exist, although they are Internet based critic personalities. There is a field day of casting here, but I’ll mention that I think Paul Giamatti could bring a certain gravitas as Lord Malignance.
I really tried to not make the book be about me, but as the narrator, I do show up in the story a few times. And the person who should play me on the big screen is without a doubt Bruce Campbell.
--Marshal Zeringue
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