'Oldboy' Villain: Who Should It Be?

by Jeremy Gordon

Unreal as it may be to read, the Spike Lee-helmed "Oldboy" remake is definitely moving forward. Starring Josh Brolin as the titular old boy, the movie was supposed to start shooting in March -- now, it'll be tackled sometime later in 2012.

With Brolin's press commitments for "Men in Black 3" keeping him busy through the summer, Variety reports, they'll need a little more time to finalize the cast and get everything lined up. As the original came out almost a decade ago, the studio doesn't have to worry about timeliness, so why not give the project the care it deserves?

More interesting, though, is speculation over the biggest hang-up: the lack of a villain. Colin Firth and Clive Owen were reportedly offered the role as the megalomaniac millionaire who sets up and breaks down Oldboy's life (I know that's not his name, but bear with me -- it'll be changed for the American release), but they both turned it down. The villain's pretty important, but with two heavy hitters already out of contention, who could fill the blank? Here are three actors we've got in mind.

Tom Hiddleston

Hiddleston's the man of the year, thanks to star turns in "Thor," "The Avengers," and "War Horse." As Loki, he's got some serious experience playing a cold-hearted, devious villain. He doesn't look too bad in a suit, either. Playing another villain might bore him, but there wouldn't be a better way to cement his budding star than by going head-to-head with Brolin.

Benedict Cumberbatch

It wouldn't be too much of a stretch for Cumberbatch to turn his socially awkward Sherlock Holmes into a slightly eviller supervillain -- provided he undergoes a wardrobe update, he can keep the mannerisms and speech patterns. With upcoming turns in "The Hobbit" and "Star Trek 2" set to break him to American audiences, this would be a natural extension of his career.

Jim Carrey

Why not have some fun with it? Carrey hasn't done anything big in years, and he's got the acting chops to play a villain who's both chilling and whimsical in his grandeur. It might break him with the "Mr. Popper's Penguins" crowd, but really, that's not such a bad price to pay for reminding everyone that he's still quite the actor.

Who would you cast as the "Oldboy" villain? Let us know in the comments section and on Twitter!