Avatar: The Last Airbender and the Marvel Cinematic Universe are perhaps two of the most talked-about franchises at the moment; the former because the creators of the original show announced a movie being in the works and the latter because Deadpool and Wolverine is due for release soon.
The animated fantasy TV show, which aired for a total of three seasons, from 2005 to 2008, featured an ensemble cast of voice actors. One such actor is Dante Basco, who once opened up about the Marvel/X-Men character he would like to portray.
Avatar: The Last Airbender Star Dante Basco on the X-Men Character He Would Like to Portray
Avatar: The Last Airbender, created by Bryan Konietzko and Michael Dante DiMartino, is one of the most beloved animated series. Mostly inspired by East Asian culture, particularly Chinese culture, the TV show won the hearts of millions of viewers worldwide. The response was so great that it spawned an entire franchise; the most recent addition to which is the eponymous Netflix series.
Dante Basco voiced the short-tempered exiled prince of the Fire Nation, Prince Zuko. Although Zuko is the antagonist to the lead character of the show- Aang, he is undeniably one of the fan-favorite characters in the animated series.
Every actor has a dream role they would love to play if the opportunity presents itself. Basco is no exception to this. In an interview with ComicBookMovie.com, he got candid about the superhero characters he would like to portray, saying:
“Something in the X-Men world would be great. I was a big fan of Wolverine, of course, like everybody else. But I’m also a big fan of Nightcrawler.”
He further said that he loved the different iterations of the characters. This was around the same time as Disney’s acquisition of Fox and the rights to the X-Men IP so the Hook actor was excited to see what was in store for the franchise.
Dante Basco on Why He Longed to Portray an X-Men Character
Basco is well-known in the entertainment industry for his youthful voice. He began his acting career with minor roles and his breakthrough came in 1991 when he appeared as Rufio, the leader of the Lost Boys in Steven Spielberg’s Hook, which starred Robin Williams as Peter Pan and Dustin Hoffman as the titular character- Captain Hook.
Born and brought up in America, he has Filipino parents. This plays a role in his wish to portray an X-men character. In the interview, he reflected on this as he revealed the reason, saying:
“Being a person of color growing up, the stories always rang true to me that mutants aren’t outcasts but instead to focus on what makes them special.”
Basco would love to voice or act in an X-Men movie if he is offered one. So far, there has been no movement from Marvel regarding this. Only time will tell if the actor’s dreams will be fulfilled.
Avatar: The Last Airbender is available for streaming on Netflix.
