Following his father Will Smith's footsteps, Jaden Smith is entering the DC world as the superhero Static Shock. For a while, rumours had suggested that Jaden will immortalise the African-American teen hero, also known as Virgil Ovid Hawkins, in the supcoming digital live-action adaptation. The news has now been confirmed by fellow actor Tyler James, who is rumoured to be playing Miles Morales in the "Spider-Man" reboot.
Tyler James, who plays Noah in "The Walking Dead", during an interview with Flicks And The City, was speaking about the colourblind casting in the superhero universe, namely "Black Panther" and "Luke Cage".
Tyler feels that there not many young, black comic book superheroes and that it is "great to see 'Static Shock' happening with Jaden".
When asked about the "Spider-Man" reboot and if he would play the superhero Miles Morales in it, he replied "I don't know... What you're taking about". On a serious note, he did say that he was open to the idea and that he trusts Marvel to do a great job in picking the right actor for the specific character.
Although Tyler's fate with Marvel is yet unknown, Jaden's with DC seems to be pretty mapped out. So, here is everything you need to know about Static Shock:
- Doused with an experimental chemical in a gang war he was caught up in, 15-year-old high school student Virgil Ovid Hawkins acquired a variety of electromagnetic powers and became vigilante.
- Static Shock has the power to manipulate both electrical and magnetic energy; his powers are best described as superconductor electromagnetism. He is not only part of Earth's electromagnetic field, but also capable of generating and storing his own electromagnetic energy.
- Static's primary weaknesses are insulators, as his powers have little or no effect on them. Of the insulators, wood seems to be the most-difficult one for him.
- A self-professed geek, Virgil is portrayed as an avid comic book and video game fan, who regularly visits the local comic store, in addition to creating fan comics with his friends. He is also an avid video gamer and collects Pokémon cards.
- Although Static first appeared in "Static #1" (June 1993), a title published by Milestone Comics, the character was incorporated into the DC Universe as a member of the Teen Titans after the closing of Milestone.
Watch out for Tyler revealing the Static Shock news one minute into the video:
Tyler James
