5 Actors Who Could Play Carl In Peacock’s Dungeon Crawler Carl Series

It’s official: “Dungeon Crawler Carl” is becoming a streaming series on Peacock. Naturally, every fan in the world has an opinion on who should play the title character.

Carl is a uniquely difficult character to cast. The chief avatar of author Matt Dinniman’s bloody and brilliant sci-fi action novels, this righteously angry, secretly sensitive, physically imposing man (trapped in an alien dungeon and filmed as he battles for his life in front of a viewing audience spanning the universe) also has to be really, really funny. Good luck finding that combination. And no, you cannot use a time machine to snatch 1991 Bruce Campbell or 1999 Brendan Fraser.

If you look online, you’ll find all kinds of fan-casting for Carl. Some of it makes sense, but really doesn’t work for one reason or another (sorry, Jensen Ackles is just too old for the part, folks). Others are just … no, absolutely not (zero apologies to Chris Pratt).

To assemble this list of potential candidates, /Film had a few criteria. The actor had to be capable of fitting the criteria noted in the paragraph above; they had to be age-appropriate (late 20s or capable of playing late 20s), and they had to be feasible, someone who could actually, realistically be cast as the lead in a Peacock streaming show. (And no, sorry, we can’t ask audiobook narrator Jeff Hays to bulk up for the part.)

With all of that in mind, here’s who we’d consider casting in the “Dungeon Crawler Carl” series. Feel free to send us a check, Peacock.

After exploding onto the scene (and into everyone’s hearts and, uh, loins) as stoic Russian hockey player Ilya Rozanov in HBO Max’s hit series “Heated Rivalry,” everyone wondered what this, the most promising of young talents, would do next. The clear answer: Carl, of course.

Handsome and physically imposing, he cuts the exact kind of figure you want carving his way through countless intergalactic beasts while wearing only a pair of boxers and a leather jacket. Raw and soulful, he has already showcased the tools necessary to take on Carl’s sensitive side (his love for his talking cat, Princess Donut) and his all-encompassing rage (“You will not break me”). Perhaps most importantly, his guest stint on “Saturday Night Live” proved Storrie was naturally funny and a totally game goofball, an actor certainly not above looking silly or acting preposterous to sell a joke.

Storrie is a proper actor, not a personality, a talent with a great deal of depth that remains untapped. This is a man who studied literal clowning. This could be the kind of casting that ensures Carl isn’t just a blood-soaked beefcake, but the tragic portrait of damaged but positive masculinity that has won over so many readers. (Jacob Hall)

After beginning his career as a bit of a scrawny, geeky type in films like “Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader” and “We’re the Millers,” the British actor Will Poulter has become a bit of a hunk. Thankfully, despite packing on the muscles with an intense workout for “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3,” Poulter hasn’t lost any of his comedic timing or charm. If anything, he’s ripe for the kind of leading man role that “Dungeon Crawler Carl” can offer.

Poulter cut his teeth on both comedy and action with childhood roles in projects like “Son of Rambow” and “The Maze Runner,” and as he’s grown into an adult, the actor has taken an eclectic assembly of roles, ranging from the intense war drama “Warfare” to the dark comedy “Death of a Unicorn.” Most recently, he gave a heartbreaking turn as a drug addict in the Sundance-selected “Union County.” 

All of his experience makes him the perfect actor to play Carl, by bringing the brawn, the charm, and the quiet emotionality required for our tough but vulnerable hero. I can already imagine him bickering with Princess Donut and exasperatedly and repeatedly shouting his signature catchphrase. (Ethan Anderton)

Coincidentally, another perfect candidate for “Dungeon Crawler Carl” co-starred with Will Poulter in “Union County” and the thrilling “Warfare.” 

Noah Centineo jumped onto everyone’s radar with the Netflix romantic comedy franchise “To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before,” but since then, he’s dabbled in everything from superhero action in “Black Adam” to espionage thrills in Netflix’s series “The Recruit” and even the A24 dark comedy “Dream Scenario” with Nicolas Cage. At one point, Centineo was even slated to play He-Man in the “Masters of the Universe” movie, but he gave up the power while the movie was stuck in development hell for a few years. 

Centineo is charismatic, has the body of a superhero, has a quiet gentleness behind his imposing size, and he’s overdue for a leading role like this. By the time “Dungeon Crawler Carl” gets off the ground, he’ll already have the “John Rambo” prequel under his belt, where he’s playing a young version of the character originated by Sylvester Stallone, so he’ll be primed for the monstrous battles within Matt Dinniman’s terrifying sci-fi video game world. (Ethan Anderton)

Carl is such an instantly beloved character that playing him could be a career-defining role, so looking to the new class of “stars on the rise” helps bridge the gap between unknown talent and a household name. College football player-turned-actor Tyriq Withers has had a pretty big last year, starring in the adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s “Reminders of Him,” playing the titular star player in the sports horror flick “Him,” and joining the “I Know What You Did Last Summer” slasher franchise as part of the new generation of friends with a deadly secret. At 6’5″, Withers has the towering, masculine presence that readers expect from Carl, and has more than proved he has the capacity to show the physicality and righteous anger necessary for the character.

But what folks only familiar with Withers’ breakout year might not know is that he is also a very gifted comedic actor. His supporting role in the remake of “Don’t Tell Mom the Babysitter’s Dead” is responsible for one of the funniest moments in the entire movie, but it’s his performance in the “Rich Wigga, Poor Wigga” episode of “Atlanta” that should have everyone on board with this potential casting. The episode itself is notoriously controversial, but Withers’ performance has always been hailed as the reason the episode works at all. Hollywood is still trying to figure out how to make him the star he has the potential to be, and “Dungeon Crawler Carl” could be the ticket. (BJ Colangelo)

If you haven’t seen the FX comedy series “Adults,” stop reading this article and go watch “Adults,” because you need to experience the best hang-out sitcom since “Friends,” especially Jack Innanen’s performance as Paul Baker. The Canadian actor is one of the legitimate success stories of someone who translated TikTok popularity into a career as an actor, appearing in the sketch comedy series “The Dessert” and the series “The Office Movers” before nabbing his role on “Adults” and “Big Mistakes” on Netflix alongside Dan Levy, Taylor Ortega, and Laurie Metcalf.

He’s quickly making a name for himself as a go-to comedic actor when you need a guy who is “down for anything,” and the fact that he’s also charming and attractive enough to generate consideration for a role in “Heated Rivalry” season 2 (which he sadly had to turn down due to scheduling conflicts), it’s clear he’s one to watch.

Innanen has been thriving as a supporting character, but he’s overdue for a leading role that allows him to showcase exactly what he’s capable of. The fact that Carl spends his time in the dungeon not wearing pants or shoes is a very specific energy not every actor can pull off, but Innanen absolutely can. Sure, he’ll need to bulk up a bit to truly embody how Carl is supposed to look, but I have full faith that he can pull it off and skyrocket to A-list status. (BJ Colangelo)