Veep star, Sam Richardson, has an interest in playing one of the X-Men. Ever since the acquisition of 20th Century Fox by the Walt Disney corporation, the X-Men are finally able to join the Marvel Cinematic Universe. With no word set for a new X-Men film other than producer Kevin Feige hinting that mutants would be arriving soon, there is plenty of anticipation for who will pop up first.
Richardson is a comedic actor who is most widely known for his role on Veep playing Richard Splett, the kind but not always competent campaign aid. Richardson has appeared in multiple films including Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates, Good Boys, and the Academy Award-winning film, Promising Young Woman. Richardson is set to have a big summer where he stars in two films opening a week apart, the first is the horror/comedy, Werewolves Within, set to open on June 25, and the second is the sci-fi action film, The Tomorrow War, alongside Marvel star Chris Pratt, set for release on Amazon Prime on July 2.
Richardson is now throwing his hat in the ring to play a superhero. In a piece published by Variety, Richardson commented on how he would like to play Beast from the X-Men series. He likened the role to his character on Veep. Richardson said, “I think Beast is like a big blue-haired Richard Splett.”
Beast was introduced in X-Men #1 back in September 1963 as one of the original members of the X-Men. His signature fur look wasn’t introduced until the 1970s, and since then, Beast has been a member of the X-Men, the Avengers, and The Defenders. The character’s popularity has made him a signature member of the X-Men across various media, including a lead role in the 1990s animated series, X-Men. Kelsey Grammer played the role in X-Men: The Last Stand and Nicholas Hoult played a young version of the character in X-Men: First Class and the subsequent sequels.
While no word yet has been given on when and where the X-Men will first appear in the MCU, there is good reason to believe Beast will be among the first group of mutant characters introduced. Given the character’s comic book history as both an X-Men and Avenger, he is a good fit to link the two teams together. Beast also has a romantic relationship with Abigail Brand, the director of S.W.O.R.D., plus given the organization was introduced in WandaVision and rumors that Abigail will show up in the MCU soon, there is potential for Beast as well. With his Veep co-star Julia Louis-Dreyfus already a part of the MCU, maybe she can put in a good word for him, and Sam Richardson can be the next Beast.
