Ewan McGregor Cast As Black Mask In ‘Birds of Prey’

Warner Bros. and DC will now be one with the Force…sort of.

According to Deadline, Star Wars actor Ewan McGregor has joined the cast of Birds of Prey as the villainous Black Mask. The Golden Globe-winner will play Gotham City mob boss Roman Sionis, leader of the False Face Society, who dons a mask made from bits of his dead father’s casket and holds a tight grip on the criminal underworld of Batman’s stomping grounds. McGregor joins Margot Robbie (Suicide Squad), Jurnee Smollett-Bell (Underground), Rosie Perez (White Men Can’t Jump) and Mary Elizabeth Winstead (10 Cloverfield Lane) in the latest DC superhero crossover.

Robbie will reprise her Suicide Squad role as Harley Quinn who, after leaving the abusive Joker, teams up with Black Canary (Smollett-Bell), Huntress (Winstead) and Renee Montoya (Perez) to save a young girl from Black Mask. TV fans might already be familiar with Black Canary and Huntress as they’ve both appeared on DC’s hit show Arrow, with the former been played by both Katie Cassidy and Caity Lotz and the latter played by Jessica De Gouw. Video game fans might also be familiar with Black Mask as he was the main antagonist of 2013’s Batman: Arkham Origins.

Birds of Prey is based off of the comic book series of the same name, which first debuted in 1995 and was created by Chuck Dixon. The comic was first adapted into a short-lived TV series back in 2002 with Ashley Scott (Walking Tall) as Huntress, Rachel Skarsten (Fifty Shades of Grey) as Black Canary and Dina Meyer (Starship Troopers) as Barbara Gordon teaming up together. The new movie is set to be directed by Cathy Yan (Dead Pigs) from a script by Christina Hodson (Unforgettable).

McGregor’s addition is indeed a curious one considering he rarely plays a villain. He’s currently in WB’s good graces as he’s starring in the studio’s upcoming adaptation of Doctor Sleep, Stephen King’s 2013 sequel to his horror classic The Shining that will feature McGregor as a grown-up Danny Torrance. It will certainly be interesting to see how the lean and usually-charming McGregor shifts himself to portray a menacing mob boss, let alone how he’ll look with a pinstripe suit and skull mask. Putting him with Winstead is a wise move at least after the pair earned rave reviews for their roles in the third season of FX’s Fargo, for which McGregor earned his Golden Globe.

Birds of Prey flies into theaters on February 7, 2020. What do you think of this new casting news? Let us know in the comments below and be sure to stay with The Young Folks for the latest movie news.