Mugshot Photos: DC Actors That Were On The Wrong Side Of The Law
Several actors with roles in the DC Extended Universe have recently found themselves involved in high-profile legal matters, prompting a flurry of speculation about the franchise's future. With an impressive slate of potential blockbusters on its horizon, DC executives now face multiple casting problems that may prompt replacements, rescheduling, or even total cancellation. But this isn't the first time stars involved in DC projects have run afoul of the law, with a few surprising stars over the years finding themselves photographed for all the world to see.
Though even more actors with DC roles have had their turn (or turns) in legal hot water than we'll list here, such as Jor-El portrayer Russel Crowe, it's those arrests that resulted in public mugshots that deliver the juiciest of gossip. There's something especially fascinating about seeing a star who is normally the very picture of beauty and composure forced to pose for a photo at one of their most vulnerable moments -– especially if they're a superhero. Here are five DC actors whose trip to the wrong side of the law earned them a mugshot and how it happened.
Ezra Miller
One of the DC Universe's latest and most public scandals involves the recent arrests of Ezra Miller, the actor who played The Flash in a number of DCEU movies, most notably 2017's "Justice League." Miller's performance has been praised by critics and fans alike, most notably for the humor and wit he brought to the character, which is why his pair of back-to-back arrests prompted a flurry of speculation about his future within the DCEU. Though recent reports from Variety have suggested Miller is likely to keep his role –- if only because Warner Bros. is "too deep" into the production of his solo movie -– the actor's repeat offenses have made his future anything but guaranteed.
Miller's first arrest was for disorderly conduct and harassment and came on March 28, 2022, at a Karaoke bar in Hawaii. Apparently, the actor became agitated about his fellow karaoke performers and, according to the Hawai'i County Police Department, "grabbed the microphone from a 23-year-old woman singing karaoke and later lunged at a 32-year-old man playing darts." Miller's second arrest, this time for second-degree assault, came less than a month later on April 19, after the actor — per a news release CNN received from the police — "reportedly threw a chair, striking a 26-year-old female on the forehead, resulting in an approximate half-inch cut." Both arrests produced mugshots, neither of them capturing Miller's good side.
Will Smith
The 2016 "Suicide Squad" may have been a bit of a critical bomb, but it did manage to develop the DCEU by adding Margot Robbie's stellar Harley Quinn and opening the world up to heroes and villains, big and small. One of the bigger additions -– who we can't quite label either hero or villain -– was Will Smith's Deadshot. Smith has always been a huge star (as of this writing remaining The Numbers' fourth most bankable actor of all time) and his inclusion in "Suicide Squad," a project without any DC icons like Superman or Wonder Woman, was a tremendous get for Warner Bros. and the film. But despite the money, the fame, and that infectious positivity, Smith has had his turn swimming in legal hot water.
In Smith's case, the arrest and mugshot came all the way back in 1989, when the Philadelphia native was 20 years old. Allegedly, Smith was arrested for "aggravated assault, criminal conspiracy, simple assault, and recklessly endangering another person," after he instructed bodyguard Charles Alston to attack record promoter William Hendricks. An unnamed source told the National Enquirer (via the Daily Mail) that Smith was forced to spend a night in a jail cell at the West Philadelphia police station, who then described it as "the worst night of his life. He wants to forget it ever happened."
Josh Brolin
Though many viewers tend to think of DC movies as solely those based in the core DCEU universe, the intertwining adventures of the Justice League and their closest allies and enemies, the DC brand is actually much, much larger. DC also maintains perhaps the best Animated Universe out there, as well as a number of lesser-known properties from their vast repertoire of comic book characters. One such character that casual viewers may not realize was even a DC hero is Jonah Hex, the Wild West sharpshooter who starred in the 2010 film of the same name, played by Josh Brolin.
In a moment of mirroring the Hex character, Brolin –- alongside costar Jeffrey Wright and others -– was arrested following a bar brawl in 2008. Brolin was charged after he resisted police attempts to remove one of his crew members from the bar. Brolin quickly posted bail and was released, but not before posing for a rather rosacea-laden mugshot. In 2013, Brolin would earn himself another mugshot –- in which he stares as if he were death itself -– for "public intoxication" during a particularly raucous New Year's Eve party.-
Keanu Reeves
It's a widely-held belief these days that beloved actor and notorious sad-boy Keanu Reeves can do no wrong. For the most part, the belief is true, as the actor is famously kind to fans and coworkers, charitable, and seemingly controversy-repellant. But surprisingly, even Reeves (how weird does it feel to address him by his last name?) has had his brushes with the law. He is also a DC actor, at least for our purposes, as his 2005 film "Constantine" and the titular character of John Constantine is a DC property.
Reeves has actually been stopped by police for multiple driving offenses over the years, but it was his 1993 drunk driving stop that earned him an arrest and mugshot. Allegedly, the actor confessed immediately and so avoided charges. As far as public perception of Reeves goes, that type of humility and cooperation is pretty on-brand — as is his relatively handsome, non-threatening mugshot.
Amber Heard
There have been fewer news stories in the last few months that have drawn more consistent attention than the legal battle between Johnny Depp and Amber Heard. The former pair's public war has been an unusually contentious one, leading to waves of social media feedback, celebrity opinions, and of course -– a verdict as divisive as the case itself. As legal experts and media outlets hustle to dig up all the information they can about either side, their excavations have unsurprisingly unearthed drama from both actors' pasts, as well. It turns out that both had been arrested previously, which in Heard's case produced a rather unflattering mugshot.
Heard's mugshot came from 2003 in Austin Texas, when the then-17-year-old girl was arrested for driving with a suspended license –- a far cry from the many online rumors of vehicular manslaughter. Oddly enough, though both Depp and Heard have been arrested multiple times, several of those times for violent offenses, Depp has managed to avoid a single mugshot and Heard's only shot was for a throwaway teenage offense.