Jason Isaacs Can't Acknowledge The Existence Of Lucasfilm, Politely Threatened To Cut My Tongue Out
Jason Isaacs has been lucky enough to dabble in some huge franchises. Not only did he play Lucius Malfoy in the "Harry Potter" film series, but he played Captain Gabriel Lorca in "Star Trek: Discovery" (seen above) and voiced the villain known as The Inquisitor in the animated "Star Wars Rebels" series. However, his time in the "Harry Potter" franchise is over (at least for now), and the same goes for "Star Trek: Discovery" (at least for now). But the same might not be true for "Star Wars."
While speaking with Jason Isaacs about his astounding performance in the Sundance selected drama "Mass," Isaacs didn't even try to tapdance around the prospect of making a comeback in animation or bringing his character into the live-action "Star Wars" universe. Instead, Isaacs said he couldn't even knowledge the existence of Lucasfilm, and the consequence for asking would be me losing my tongue.
Jason Isaacs Can't Say Anything About Star Wars
When asked about the possibility of bringing The Inquisitor into the live-action "Star Wars" arena, Jason Isaacs was quick to shut any discussion about that topic down immediately. The actor playfully said:
"I can't even acknowledge the existence of Lucasfilm as a real entity. I've signed so many NDAs. Even having this conversation with you now I have to come round and cut your tongue out while you're sleeping. I apologize."
Even when I tried to be sneaky by asking him what he might hypothetically do with a live-action performance of that character, Isaacs stood strong by saying, "There are no hypotheticals. This conversation is to be entirely avoided."
You can't blame a guy for trying. The same way we can't blame Jason Isaacs for being so cautious. Not only is "Star Wars" notoriously secretive, but surely he doesn't want to put any potential opportunities that might be in the cards in jeopardy. I think the same snipers hired by Marvel Studios to keep their scopes on Tom Holland and Mark Ruffalo have also been hired by Lucasfilm. So Isaacs probably saw that red laser sight and knew what he needed to do.
Since I clearly wasn't getting anywhere with "Star Wars," I decided to ask about the various comic book roles that Jason Isaacs has played over the years.
Jason Isaacs Has Voiced Both Superman and Lex Luthor
In case you hadn't realized it, Isaacs has lent his voice to a variety of animated DC Comics projects over the years. In fact, Isaacs has a rare distinction that he shares with only one other actor. Isaacs has voiced both Lex Luthor and Superman in "Justice League: Gods and Monsters" and "Superman: Red Son" respectively. The only other person to do that is voice actor Travis Willingham in the LEGO DC Comics video games franchise. Isaacs wasn't aware of this rare honor. The actor said:
"I did not know that. I love that. I mean, I love the whole DC Universe. So I've been Ra's al Ghul. I've been the Green Lantern. I think I've been, jeez, who else have I been? A whole bunch of stuff. I've loved all the things I've done in the DC Universe."
Since he's already dabbled with a variety of characters in the DC Comics universe, does he have any hopes of crossing over into Marvel territory at all, whether it's on the big screen or the small screen? Isaacs doesn't seem to be planning on it, but he actually has a love for superheroes that goes all the way back to his childhood, and he loves the Marvel movies of today too. Isaacs explained:
"You know what I don't have is a plan for anything. I know where I'm going tomorrow. I'm going back to England to promote 'Mass' for a couple of days, then I'm going to Toronto to make 'Good Sam' for six months. Then I have no idea what's happening. Of course, I love and I grew up on Marvel. I had Marvel and DC Comics lining my bedroom, and the more obscure the better. In fact, I got them on Sundays. We would go and get fish and chips, obviously, the English national dish, and next goal was a candy store that sold secondhand Marvel and DC comics, so they weren't in order. My dad let me go and buy a bunch every week for like 10p, but they were never sequential. So I pieced together, jigsaw-like, the stories of all the different characters with huge gaps and the wrong chronology. And I tell you now, in my adult life, I realized how badly wrong I got the stories."
But just because he mixed up the stories of superheroes in his younger years doesn't mean he can't keep up with them on the big screen. Isaacs continued:
"I absolutely love that world, and I love watching the films as well. I'm thrilled that there is room for films, the opposite kind of films, small, powerful, emotional adult dramas to be made as well, because it would be a shame for the world if there were only giant special effects, superhero movies, but I absolutely lap them up. I adore them. And I think Marvel, particularly with Kevin Feige at the helm, have done a fantastic job of making them continually entertaining and relevant and watchable."
That's probably the right thing to say if Isaacs ever wants to jump into the Marvel Cinematic Universe. But for now, we'll just have to patiently wait to see if it'll happen.
"Mass" is playing in New York and Los Angeles now and will expand to more screens across the country in the coming weeks.