It was only last week that we learned that longtime Transformers cartoon producer Jeff Kline would be replacing Marvel Cinematic Universe architects Joe and Anthony Russo as the showrunner for Netflix’s animated series based on the venerable Magic: The Gathering card game. Apparently, Kline’s determined to hit the ground running, as it’s just been announced Legends of Tomorrow’s own Brandon Routh will headline the show’s cast.
According to the Hollywood Reporter, Routh will be voicing Gideon Jura, a heroic white mage and one of the game’s best-known and best-loved characters. Very little is known about the series, other than it will star a group of Planeswalkers (of which Gideon is one), incredibly powerful people who represent the players when they’re playing the game. The characters’ ability to move through dimensions is the in-game explanation/justification for the many, many unique game worlds and accompanying card decks that Wizards of the Coast has introduced over the past 28 years.
Given that Gideon is a capital-H hero determined to vanquish evil and protect the entirety of the Magic multiverse, casting the former Superman Returns star is kind of a no-brainer. As for the timing of the announcement, Netflix has made it clear that the scripts for the show had been completed prior to the Russo brothers’ departure, so once Kline was given control and could bring on his creative team — which includes Star Wars: The Clone Wars’ Steve Melching as co-executive producer and story editor — there was presumably no reason to dilly-dally and get casting. (For his part, as THR notes, Routh has been a fan of Magic since he was a teenager.)
It’s a good thing, too, given that the Magic: The Gathering animated series was announced and greenlit all the way back in 2019. No other cast members have been revealed, but I’d guess they’ll be announced sooner rather than later. Although to be fair, there’s still plenty of time, as the Netflix show isn’t due until late 2022 at the very earliest.
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