DC fans can expect to see an entirely different Maxwell Lord in the DC Universe compared to the one Pedro Pascal played in Wonder Woman 1984.
Sean Gunn, who was cast as Maxwell Lord in December 2023, recently opened up about succeeding Pascal in the role. Although the DCU is a soft reboot of the DC Extended Universe, which Wonder Woman 1984 was part of, only certain storylines will remain canon in the new shared universe, allowing for DC Studios co-CEO James Gunn and other creatives to pave a new path for the franchise.
Speaking on The Kristian Harloff Show (via X), Gunn shared that he is not expecting any fans (or casual viewers) to confuse his Maxwell Lord with Pascal’s or consider them to be the same version of the character. “I can tell you that the one obvious thing is it’s me playing the role. It doesn’t just mean I’m going to give a different interpretation,” the actor explained. “Your own body is the vessel for what you’re doing, so obviously…no one is gonna confuse me and Pedro Pascal’s performance. So we’re obviously going to do something different.”
Gunn also hinted that the DCU’s Maxwell Lord will be more comic book accurate than Pascal’s was, sharing that DC Studios has already directed him “towards the relevant source material.” The actor concluded by doubling down on how Maxwell Lord will be nothing like Pascal’s version, saying, “So, I think, the whole concept of the character takes a different type of tack. I saw the movie and Pedro is obviously a great actor, but what he does in that movie is not really relevant to anything that I’m doing.”
Check out an excerpt from Harloff’s conversation with Gunn below:
Maxwell Lord is one of three roles Sean Gunn has in the DCU
James Gunn has stated that no actor will play more than one major role in live-action, although actors may voice multiple minor/supporting characters in animation. Maxwell Lord is expected to be Sean Gunn’s main role in the DCU. Unlike his other two roles in the universe, Weasel and G.I. Robot, which will be or are brought to life via motion capture animation, Gunn will be physically portraying Maxwell Lord, meaning that the character will have his face. This allows Gunn to continue playing Weasel and G.I. Robot in potential future live-action appearances, as only his voice will be heard in the finished product.
Gunn can currently be heard as Weasel and G.I. Robot in Creature Commandos, which is streaming on Max.
