Timothy Dalton (Penny Dreadful) has been cast to star as Dr. Niles “The Chief” Caulder in the upcoming DC Universe series, Doom Patrol.
Doom Patrol is a reimagining of the beloved superhero DC characters originally written and drawn by Arnold Drake, Bob Haney, and Bruno Premiani. It revolves around Robotman, Negative Man, Elasti-Woman (April Bowlby) and Crazy Jane. Led by modern-day mad scientist Dr. Niles Caulder, they’re called into action by the ultimate hero for the digital age, Cyborg (Wade). Banding together these rejects find themselves on a mission that will take them to the weirdest and most unexpected corners of the DC universe.
Genius. Visionary. Accomplished. Eccentric. Maybe a little insane. Dr. Niles Caulder, known more informally as “the Chief,” is the wheelchair-bound scientist who traditionally leads the quirky band of heroes called the Doom Patrol. Caulder is, in a word, brilliant.
Dr. Caulder is a pioneer in medical science, searching the world over for those on the edge of death in need of a miracle. Brilliant, but controversial, Dr. Caulder will stop at nothing to help those he believes are in need, including his collection of strange heroes known as The Doom Patrol.
Dr. Caulder is a pioneer in medical science, searching the world over for those on the edge of death in need of a miracle. Brilliant, but controversial, Dr. Caulder will stop at nothing to help those he believes are in need, including his collection of strange heroes known as The Doom Patrol.
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The drama is written by Jeremy Carver (Supernatural) who will also executives produces the live-action series alongside Geoff Johns, Greg Berlanti, and Sarah Schechter.
That “controversial” note may prove to be key. In Grant Morrison’s infamous run on the comic series, the Chief was revealed to be plotting to destroy much of the world in an attempt to restart human society. He was stopped by the Doom Patrol (getting decapitated in the process, which led to him living life as nothing more than a conscious, cryogenically preserved head for a while), and eventually seemed to recant his beliefs and once again become a force for good. However, as seen in Gerard Way and Nick Derington’s recent run on Doom Patrol, his ideas are still misguided and as a result, the team is pretty wary of him.
It’s unknown whether the show will follow a similar path with the character, or keep him as a largely heroic figure.
It’s unknown whether the show will follow a similar path with the character, or keep him as a largely heroic figure.
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Diane Guerrero and April Bowlby were previously cast as Crazy Jane and Elasti-Woman in the live-action streaming series along with Joivan Wade as Cyborg, Brendan Fraser & Riley Shanahan as Robotman/Cliff Steele and Alan Tudyk as Mr. Nobody.
The #DCUDOOMPATROL has found its Chief! Welcome to the #DCUniverse, Timothy Dalton! https://t.co/B2P9zJMsRr pic.twitter.com/hVK5rqqnCp
— DC Universe (@TheDCUniverse) September 5, 2018
