Ben Barnes says he's desperate to play a DC or Marvel superhero

Ben Barnes is no stranger to sci-fi and fantasy, having starred in Westworld, Shadow and Bone, and The Chronicles of Narnia. But as the actor tells SFX magazine in the new issue, he's got his eye on another kind of role: playing a superhero.

In our upcoming issue, which features Star Trek: Strange New Worlds on the cover, we asked Barnes if he'd be up for returning to Marvel any time soon. As fans of the MCU will remember, he played Jigsaw – or Billy Russo – in The Punisher, who was one of the main antagonists taunting Frank Castle.

"Oh my god," Barnes replies to SFX about a potential return. "I saw pictures the other day of one of my best friends, Will Poulter, in Guardians Of The Galaxy [Vol 3]. Man, he looks good. I want someone to put me in a superhero suit before I age out. There's definitely been some chats about a couple of superheroes over the years, which didn't pan out."

He adds: "I read a lot of fantasy, so I love being in it. I love watching romcoms too, so I would like to do one. I've watched all the Marvel movies. DC is going to start becoming an interesting space again. Batman feels taken, but I love that style of alter-ego/hero. I loved playing Jigsaw. I'd love to reframe him and really mess his face up this time."

Even though his character had a grizzly fate, it's certainly not out of the question to see Barnes return as the villain. Not only to people rarely stay dead in the MCU, Jon Bernthal is set to reprise his role as The Punisher in Disney Plus' Marvel show Daredevil: Born Again.

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That's just a snippet of our interview with Barnes in the latest issue of SFX Magazine, which also covers some insight into the latest season of Shadow and Bone. The new issue of SFX features Strange New Worlds season 2 on the cover and is available on newsstands from Wednesday, May 17. For even more from SFX, sign up to the newsletter, sending all the latest exclusives straight to your inbox.