A future Metal Gear Solid movie is in the works, and they’ve chosen Star Wars actor Oscar Isaac as its lead. While production seems to be a long way off, for now, the fact that they’ve chosen their leading man who himself is a fan of the franchise is a huge leap forward.
It’s unclear whether or not the movie will try and follow the plot of Metal Gear Solid on the PS1, original Metal Gear games on the SNES, or a combination of several entries in the series, but it does have fans speculating on who can play their favorite characters on the big screen. We’ve put together our list of potential actors and actresses that could fill some vital roles in the upcoming Metal Gear Solid movie.
10 Geno Segers – Vulcan Raven
Geno Segers is an American actor best known for his roles in Disney’s Pair of Kings, NBC’s Perfect Harmony, Cinemax’s Banshee alongside The Boys actor Antony Starr. It’s a role as the incredibly intimidating Chayton Littlestone in Banshee that proves that he would be the perfect choice to play Vulcan Raven.
At 6’3 and carrying a large muscular frame Segers already looks the part but his voice is also very distinctive and deep and a perfect match for a character like Vulcan Raven. Furthermore, he’s a very charismatic actor with great screen presence and always puts in a great performance.
9 James Cosmo – The End
James Cosmo is a Scottish born actor well known for his roles in Braveheart, The Chronicles of Narnia, Game of Thrones, Wonder Woman, and His Dark Materials. He’s often cast as a warrior or a soldier on TV and in movies with his considerable size, he’s a perfect match for The End.
The End is an interesting character that appeared in Metal Gear Solid 3 and left a lasting impression across the series and with fans. He would benefit from extra screen time as one of the main villains in a Metal Gear movie and Cosmos has the perfect look and presence to play the role.
8 Karen Gillan - Meryl Silverburgh
Karen Gillan is a Scottish actress that is best known for her roles in Dr. Who, the Jumanji series, and of course as Nebula in Guardians of the Galaxy in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Gillan has proved she’s got a lot of range in comedic and dramatic roles but she’s also very convincing in action movies too.
Furthermore, with Gillan’s natural red hair and looks she more than resembles the character Meryl Silverburgh so fitting into the character shouldn’t be a problem for her.
7 MacKenzie Crook – Psycho Mantis
Mackenzie Crook is an English that has had prominent roles in The Pirates of the Caribbean, The Office UK, Game of Thrones, and Britannia. He’s a gifted actor with a variety of comedic and dramatic performances but his roles as the Druid brother Veran and Harka in the historical drama series Britannia prove that he’s perfect for the role as Psycho Mantis.
Crook has a distinctive wiry frame that’s a perfect fit for the Mantis character and his performance and physical appearance in Britannia almost feels like an audition for Metal Gear’s psychic expert.
6 Alexandra Daddario – Naomi Hunter
American actress Alexandra Daddario is proving herself to be a performer that is more than capable in comedy and dramatic roles. She’s put in great performances in the likes of True Detective, White Collar, and American Horror Story: Hotel.
Furthermore, Daddario is no stranger to videogame roles after providing the voice and motion capture for Dune Alpert in Battlefield Hardline and The Wasp in Marvel Avengers Academy. She has a great look that seems a natural fit for Naomi Hunter.
5 Michael Shanks – Otacon
Best known for his role as Daniel Jackson in the science fiction series Stargate SG-1 Michael Shanks would easily fit the role of the scientist Otacon. Shanks’ performance as Daniel Jackson began as an impression of James Spader’s performance in the Stargate movie but he quickly made the character his own putting in some fantastic performances.
Even though Shanks has bulked up a bit in recent years and is probably a little older than the Otacon character, he’s still able to tap into the roles of intelligent characters as seen in Saving Hope, Altered Carbon, and 24.
4 Scott Adkins – Gray Fox
Also known as Frank Jaeger, Gray Fox is the Cyborg Ninja that becomes an ally of Solid Snake after the first initial confrontations in the game’s story. Gamers will remember that he was an incredibly fast and skilled martial artist which is why it makes sense to cast an actor like Scott Adkins.
Adkins is a British actor that has proved himself to be one of the best on-screen martial artists in recent times. He has a huge resume of martial arts and action movies to his credit like The Expendables 2, Universal Soldier: Day of Reckoning, Dr. Strange, Ip Man 4, and several cult-hit films in the action genre.
3 Nikolaj Coster-Waldau — Liquid Snake
Nikolaj Coster-Waldau is best known for his role as Jamie Lannister in the Game of Thrones. Even though he became something of a redeemed character as the story progressed but his season one iteration of the arrogant expert swordsman seems to be the perfect fit for Liquid Snake.
Not only does Coster-Waldau possess the right kind of charisma and appearance but he has proven that he’s a natural with more physically demanding action scenes as seen in Game of Thrones, Gods of Egypt, and the underrated prison movie Shot Caller. In addition, fans of Game of Thrones know full well that Coster-Waldau is great at playing siblings with a twisted sense of morality.
2 Sam Elliot – Revolver Ocelot
Sam Elliot is an American actor well known for his roles in western movies like Butch Cassidy and Sundance Kid, The Quick and the Dead, and Tombstone alongside Kurt Russell. Elliot is well known for playing ultra-cool cowboys and cops.
Elliot’s looks, signature mustache, and distinctively deep voice make him the perfect for a character like Revolver Ocelot, especially in his later years. Furthermore, his acting experience of already working with my next choice for Big Boss in the western classic Tombstone.
1 Kurt Russell – Big Boss
Fans of Metal Gear Solid already know that Kurt Russell’s iconic Snake Plisskin from the movie Escape from New York is a clear inspiration for Metal Gear’s own Solid Snake. Despite the game’s creator Hideo Kojima denying the inspiration, Snake uses the name Pliskin in Metal Gear Solid 2.
In addition, Escape from New York’s director John Carpenter claimed in an interview with CVG that Kojima wrote to him asking for his permission to continue using the Snake character. As a result, Kojima avoided being sued by Carpenter because he thinks that Kojima is a nice guy as stated in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter. With his role in the Escape franchise Snake, Russell would be the perfect choice to play Big Boss in a movie based on the videogame.