Emma Mackey Replaces Barbie Co-Star Margot Robbie As Harley Quinn In Fan's DCU Design
With James Gunn and Peter Safran's DC Universe primed to take off in 2024 with "Creature Commandos" before fully taking flight with "Superman: Legacy," DC fans are beginning to chomp at the bit to find out which actors will land roles playing their favorite characters. While we know a few of the most important characters in the Superman corner of the universe with David Corenswet ("Hollywood," "Pearl") as the Man of Steel and Rachel Brosnahan ("House of Cards," "The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel") as Lois Lane, the Batman corner is relatively far off. However, that doesn't mean that fans are waiting to get the fan-cast mill started.
Back in the early days of 2020, Instagram digital designer Diego Oliveira gave us his pick for who could play the iconic role of Harley Quinn with Emma Mackey ("Sex Education," "Death on the Nile"). The account is full of reimagined fan designs from Oliveira, including Emilia Clarke ("Game of Thrones," "Terminator: Genisys") as Mera, Jodie Comer ("Free Guy," "Star Wars: Episode IX — The Rise of Skywalker") as Sue Storm, and Dacre Montgomery ("Stranger Things," "Elvis") as Johnny Storm.
The image of Mackey shows the actor in white make-up with bright red lips and the character's trademark heart tattoo on her right cheekbone. She also wears the same outfit made famous by Margot Robbie in "Suicide Squad," which includes the "Daddy's Little Monster" T-shirt and a leather coat with one blue side and one red side. The image is surrounded by a picture frame and an eye-catching background.
There may not be any word on who will play Joker's other half, but James Gunn may have a good lead on the right actor.
Could she make it in the Gunniverse?
The Batman corner of the DC Universe is full of some of the richest character arcs in all of comics. Nearly all of them would be insanely difficult to play (just ask George Clooney). However, out of all the characters, Harley Quinn may be one of the most difficult. Not only does she have to nail the iconic and extremely recognizable accent, but she also needs to pull off the villainous insanity of the Joker with the heroic complication of Batman. The question surrounding Emma Mackey is, could she pull it off?
Mackey isn't new to the spotlight. She made a name for herself as Maeve Wiley on "Sex Education." She is intelligent and an outcast. A bit of a bad girl. If that sounds familiar, it is because all of those things could be said about Quinn as well. She also played the shy and reclusive Emily Bronte in "Emily." The two parts show her ability to carry a range of roles. She is also no stranger to a big-budget movie set. She appeared in star and director Kenneth Branagh's "Murder in the Orient Express" follow-up, "Death on the Nile."
She also spent some time with the DCEU's Harley Quinn when she starred alongside Margot Robbie in Greta Gerwig's "Barbie." While she has a fairly young career, she is already making waves in the industry and getting noticed on some fairly big stages. And spending time with Robbie would do nothing but help her nail the role.
The future of Harley Quinn in the Gunniverse
Harley Quinn is an extremely important character in the DC Universe, mostly due to her relationship with Joker and her on-again-off-again anti-hero persona. But in the Gunniverse, we may have a clue about how she may be written. When James Gunn laid out his plan for his DC reboot, he listed Batman as an older version of the character, deep enough into his career as the Dark Knight that he already has his son, Damian Wayne. That may tell us all we need to know to assume Emma Mackey wouldn't be able to land the role.
If Bruce Wayne is old enough to have a son able to take on the mantle of Robin, then he has faced most of his rogues' gallery. Joker is traditionally one of the earliest villains in Batman's arc, and he meets Quinn during his time in Arkham Asylum. If she is already an established psychiatrist-turned-villain by the time we get to see her on the screen, then Mackey, who is 27 years old at the time of writing, may not be old enough to pull off the role.
Mackey may be a dead ringer for the character when she is made up to look like Robbie's version of Quinn, but the chances of her taking over the role could be remote. Gunn has already stated on an Instagram thread that a few characters from the DCEU will remain in their roles, including John Cena as Peacemaker and Viola Davis as Amanda Waller. It isn't too farfetched to imagine Robbie holding on to the coveted role since she is a part of the very same movie as the others.