Every once in a while, a fan-casting of a character turns out so unexpectedly perfectly that it makes people wonder why the fantasy hasn't become a reality. It happened with Ryan Reynolds as Deadpool (minus the "unexpected" part, since he was already basically about as close to a real-life Deadpool as anyone could get) and it will hopefully continue inspiring real-world decisions. But for now, there's one piece of X-Men fan art of Rihanna as Storm that definitely deserves some attention.
Fan art is just one way to convey such inspired ideas, and one particular artist has decided to show everybody what the X-Men franchise has been missing all these years. Well, at the very least, it's 1 of many things the franchise has been missing. A Deadpool and Wolverine team-up is probably right at the top of that list, but asking for everything at once is greedy. So this artist started at a slightly more attainable goal. Still less attainable than James McAvoy coming back as Professor X, but they've got to start somewhere.
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Artist and comic book fan Carlos Gzz apparently tapped into the public's unconscious desires when creating this piece, which depicts singer and actress Rihanna as the weather-controlling mutant herself, Storm. It takes only a single glance at the piece to feel the imposing power behind it, and the Barbadian singer's own natural presence goes a long way in achieving that effect. Not bad, considering her face is the only real part of her that appears in the image.
Rihanna may not be many people's first choice to take the role of Storm, but it's undeniable how at home she looks in this piece of fan art. Sporting a confident, unfazed look that wouldn't be out of place in any royal court, she adds a surprising amount of depth to the already formidable superhero. Aside from all the cool weather-controlling abilities, Storm (real name Ororo Munroe) is known for her leadership qualities that make her an invaluable asset to the X-Men, and some iterations of the character even place her as Wakandan royalty. So this is clearly someone who knows how to get things done, and Rihanna's got the presence one would expect of someone like that.
The X-Men is a prime spot for speculation on who might join the Marvel Cinematic Universe next. Even iZombie's Rahul Kohli is interested, even if his tongue-in-cheek ideas are a bit eccentric. But that just means that it would be that much cooler to see Rihanna enter the fray, since the unconventional approach would both shock and impress audiences in one fell swoop.
Besides, shocking and impressing at once is kind of a sweet spot that the Hollywood folks strive for. So why not start here and figure everything else out later? Sure, that's absolutely not how casting works. But throwing caution to the wind and just jumping in cannonball-style would certainly turn a few heads.
The X-Men films are available to stream on Disney Plus Canada.
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Source: Carlos Gzz/Instagram