The Greatest Hero You've Never Head Of has been cast. Maybe.
Entertainment Weekly has revealed that the CW series Legends of Tomorrow has cast Patrick J. Adams as "surprise DC character," which is more than likely Michael Jon Carter, better known to DC Comics fans as Booster Gold.
According to the article, the mystery DC character will appear in the Season One finale, "Legendary," as well as the Season Two premiere, with the potential for more.
Adams, 34, is best known as Mike Ross on the USA Network series Suits, and has appeared on the television series Orphan Black, Pretty Little Liars, FlashForward, Lie to Me, Ghost Whisperer, NCIS, Lost, Without a Trace, Numb3rs, and Cold Case. He also appeared in the movie Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story.
Two weeks ago, TVLine reported that Legends of Tomorrow was going to introduce a "beloved superhero from the DC canon" whose mysterious agenda serves as "a launching off point for Season 2." However, another article from TVLine now claims that they "since learned that one possibility can be ruled out: time traveler Booster Gold."
Regardless of this, Booster Gold makes the most sense, given Adams' physical resemblance to the character. Booster's significant relationship to Arthur Darvill's character, Rip Hunter, and the recent tease of a Legion of Super-Heroes flight ring on an episode of The Flash. In addition, during the red carpet premiere of Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, DC Comics Chief Creative Officer Geoff Johns remarked on Booster Gold, saying "You’ll see [Booster Gold] very soon, and there’s talks about…There’s actually a lot of plans for Booster Gold, one of my favorite characters. But yeah, Booster Gold fans, you will definitely be happy with what we’ve got coming up in the years ahead."
Created in 1986 by writer/artist Dan Jurgens, Booster Gold first appeared in Booster Gold (vol.1) #1 as Michael Jon Carter, a gifted athlete who had a twin sister named Michelle and attended Gotham University in the 25th century on a football scholarship. Michael was a star quarterback until his father reentered his life and convinced him to deliberately lose games for gambling purposes. He was exposed, disgraced and expelled. Later, he was able to secure a job as a night watchman at the Metropolis Space Museum, where he studied displays about superheroes and villains from the past, particularly the 20th century.
With the help of a security robot named Skeets, Michael stole devices from the museum displays, including a Legion of Super-Heroes flight ring and Brainiac 5's force field belt. He used Rip Hunter's Time Sphere, also on display in the museum, to travel to the 20th century, intent on becoming a superhero and forming a corporation based around himself to make a comfortable living. Carter's nickname as a football player was "Booster", but his chosen 20th century superhero name was "Goldstar." After saving the life of United States President Ronald Reagan Carter mangled the two names, causing President Reagan to introduce him as "Booster Gold" and the name stuck. He soon joined the Justice League and quickly became friends with fellow member Blue Beetle.
Booster eventually During the event known as Brightest Day, Rip Hunter revealed that the future version of Booster Gold was not only his father, but also watched Rip training the young Booster Gold, aiding him when needed. Future Booster also revealed that he was still married to Rip's mother, and that Michelle was with them in some unknown time.
If Adams does indeed turn out to be Booster Gold, he will be the second actor to portray the character in live action, after Eric Martsolf in the Smallville episode "Booster." The character has also appeared in various animated projects, including Justice League Unlimited and Batman: The Brave and the Bold (voiced by Tom Everett Scott), and Justice League Action (voiced by Diedrich Bader).
"Legendary," the Season One finale of Legends of Tomorrow, is slated to air on Thursday, May 19th at 8:00 p.m. EST.