Get ready to hate me, folks...

Courtest AICN comes this weekend's geekdom anger-generator du jour:
http://www.aintitcool.com/node/41645
Apparently on the shortlist of actor's desired for Warner Bros. Green Lantern movie? Justin Timberlake. Let the battle begin.

So... here's something you need to understand about movie geeks and superheroes: Right now, they (okay, we) hate EVERY superhero casting decision until we don't anymore; usually for the sole reason that the role has not gone to Nathan Fillion, who is generally adjudged to be "perfect" for every such role due to having a vaugely all-American WASPy look and having appeared as an action lead for Nerd-God Joss Whedon (see also: David Boreanaz.) But if you REALLY want to get our dander up? Cast someone who's more popular with "the mainstream" and/or tween-aged girls than with us. Which is why I doubt that this is true, because it's "too perfect" of a "rile the fanboys up" scenario.

However, since I'm feeling frisky, let me throw every shred of my film-geek street-cred away and say that I think it'd be good casting.

Yeah, I said it.

No, he wouldn't be my first choice. Yes, I think he looks too young. But then, we think EVERYONE is too young. Hell, Christian Bale is frankly a little too "fresh" looking as Bruce Wayne, yes? The fact is, we all want superheroes to look like our surrogate father-figures no matter how old we get - this is why Alex Ross's paintings are so "iconic": he paints these characters who're mostly supposed to be in the mid-30s at the oldest looking like hard-hewn 40-something John Wayne type dudes who these days ONLY exist in paintings and old movies. Warners is almost-certainly NOT going to cast someone over thirty as the lead in an action franchise.

As to Timberlake... look, we ALL despised NSync. But if you still "hate" this guy, I'm sorry, you need to mentally leave High School behind. He's an extremely talented singer and dancer (not a genre I enjoy, but that he excells at it is a fact) and his SNL stints prove he's gifted actor with great comic timing and real physicality. Not to mention - and I'm aware of the daming with faint praise aspect of this - he frankly has much more of a grown-up "man" look than most other actors in his range. I mean, would you rather they go with LaBeouf, again?

Heck, there's even prior acting experience to point to: Jordan is supposed to be military man, and Timberlake played an Army Rangers vet pretty convincingly in "Black Snake Moan." I'm sticking by this: He'd be well-cast in this role.