Ghost Rider: is Connor Storrie playing Daimon Hellstrom?

Connor Storrie has reportedly been cast as the villain in Marvel's new Ghost Rider movie, opposite Ryan Gosling and directed by Shawn Levy. I think it's excellent casting. The moment I saw his name next to Ghost Rider, I thought: that's Daimon Hellstrom. That's an educated guess, not a confirmation, but the comics give a strong reason for it.

I also want to get into the conversation around Jennifer Lawrence's plastic surgery comments, and a genuine problem for the industry: less than 1% of SAG members qualify for the streaming bonus actors went on strike for.

Why I think Connor Storrie is playing Daimon Hellstrom, not Mephisto

Gosling and Levy came to Ghost Rider quickly. Project Hail Mary was hot and Levy is coming off Deadpool and Wolverine, and Disney feels very good about the duo. They also have a Star Wars movie coming, and we don't know how that will do. The trade report said Storrie is playing a villain and suggested it might be Mephisto, who is sometimes involved in Ghost Rider's origin in the comics.

Sacha Baron Cohen already plays Mephisto, though. He was finally introduced in Ironheart, which unfortunately didn't get much attention. Some people wonder about a recast, but I don't think Marvel wants to open that can of worms or explain why it was recasting. Mephisto is supposed to be an older character. He's the devil. Storrie looks much more like the devil's son, which is Daimon Hellstrom.

The resemblance is uncanny. Hellstrom's hair sometimes turns into fire, he's usually shirtless, and he has a star on his chest. And there's a reason for him to be in this movie: his very first appearance was in Ghost Rider volume 2 number 1 in 1973, when Johnny Blaze held the name. Popular enough to get a spinoff, The Son of Satan, he was an antihero in a series that apparently stirred some controversy. A crazy comic to be selling in the 70s.

I'm less sure about Blackheart. I've read plenty of comics with Hellstrom and either never saw Blackheart or don't remember him, so he didn't make the same impression. And is Storrie really 26? He looks early 30s to me. If I were his agent, I'd keep him out of anything called Young Avengers.

Daimon Hellstrom, Wiccan and the case for an occult antihero

Hellstrom has the powers of hell and is also a magic user, capable in the occult. That brings to mind another male witch and another LGBTQ character: Hellstrom is bi, but what about Wiccan? I don't understand why you'd have both. When Ghost Rider was announced, I asked why they didn't put Wiccan in it. Maybe Hellstrom could be something of a mentor to him, but I want Wiccan to get a fair shot. I like the character in the comics and I think he was wonderfully brought to life. Poor Joe Locke, though. It would be very hard to compete with Storrie dressed like Hellstrom.

This is also an MCU villain, so he's probably going to turn into an antihero. Hellstrom is an antihero in the comics and I believe he's been part of the Midnight Suns. I can see him starting as the villain in Ghost Rider, then becoming the occult Loki. Storrie is an excellent choice for that. Even Ultron is being turned into an antihero over in Vision Quest. It's bizarre that Marvel won't just have a villain. Then again, I don't think anybody wants to see Storrie as a full villain.

Gosling is this close to being oversaturated. Giving Storrie such a big role in such a big franchise makes the movie seem fresher, and Gosling balances it out and keeps that four quadrant appeal. More occult characters in the film would only benefit it. As was pointed out to me, the movie is being shot on film, like Sinners and Black Panther 3. I don't know if MCU fans care, but I guess it'll help and give it a little more cachet. How do you keep Ghost Rider from seeming like it should be on Disney Plus?

It's also a big deal for LGBTQ characters in blockbusters to have a bi character played by an LGBTQ actor. I hope Jonathan Bailey, like Matt Bomer before him, gets credit for the trail he blazed in Wicked and Jurassic World Rebirth. I don't know if Storrie could have gotten this role without Bailey's success. It matters that this feels organic: the public reacts badly when it feels forced, but when it's done naturally, it works. As for Peter Claffey playing Beast, I haven't seen confirmation, so I can't discuss it as true.

Jennifer Lawrence's comeback and Sunrise on the Reaping

Jennifer Lawrence did the Call Her Daddy podcast as part of a run of interviews, and she's staging a comeback. The headline I saw was that she confirmed she's coming back for Sunrise on the Reaping, along with Josh Hutcherson and Woody Harrelson for a brief cameo. Nobody is really talking about the movie, though the fans are strong, and I don't know if she should have confirmed it.

She hit a rough patch, particularly PR-wise. She has an Oscar and is highly regarded, but she still has trouble at the box office. Late in her first run, Red Sparrow and Passengers didn't do well, and many recent films haven't either. I thought No Hard Feelings was funny, and she was very funny in it. Mystique was a big problem: fans felt she didn't like the role and wasn't good in it. It looked like she was turning things around when she signed on for Zach Cregger's The Flood, a Steven Spielberg produced sci-fi film that maybe is going to be made for Warner Bros. Apparently it hasn't been greenlit.

Followers matter. She finally started an Instagram account and hit a million almost immediately, which points to Maya Hawke's comments on the importance of followers in Hollywood. Lawrence seemed to underscore that she felt she couldn't have a career without them. She has the Miss Piggy movie with Emma Stone, and she just revealed a hair care line. Get your bag. But it's a fine line: are you a reality star like the Kardashians or a serious actress? Rihanna and Selena Gomez made a lot of money selling products, and Gwyneth Paltrow and Jessica Alba made more than they ever would have as actresses. I understand what she's trying to do.

The Jennifer Lawrence plastic surgery debate

Unfortunately, the plastic surgery conversation has gotten away from her. Lawrence said she got plastic surgery, and that set off a flurry of comments online I thought were nuts, about her eyelids and much more. I think she only admitted to having something done for her own comfort that wasn't on her face. I'd noticed she looked a little different, but I thought it was weight loss and getting older. It never crossed my mind she'd had work done.

Emma Stone, her close friend, has faced similar comments. Maybe they're just getting older, and both still look very beautiful. Male stars get a significant amount of plastic surgery too, though it usually doesn't change how they look. Barry Keoghan is in the news for a similar situation, which is sad because people bullied him about his looks. I think what's throwing everyone for a loop is the trend of talent getting plastic surgery when they're much younger.

Denise Richards is a good example of openness. She said on a podcast that during her divorce, her ex brought up in court that she'd had a facelift, and the press covering the closed hearing didn't report it. She felt it was only a matter of time, so she shared what she had done and who did it. I think she made a good point: secrecy around women's procedures, IVF and more means people keep relearning instead of benefiting from others' experience. What she did was beautiful. But she's significantly older than Stone and Lawrence, and she still looks like herself.

When the Odyssey trailer came out, people said Anne Hathaway couldn't move her forehead, yet she's a front runner for best supporting actress. I think she looks phenomenal and still looks like herself, just refreshed. Nicole Kidman and, I'm sure, Sandra Bullock have had a lot of work done, but I think both still look relatively like themselves. These women are removing the taboo, and I like it being discussed. But plastic surgery can't be undone. If it doesn't turn out, you're stuck.

Jennifer Lawrence will always be famous, even if acting doesn't work out

I think she's had a tough time since the reports that she lost out on the role of Sharon Tate in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. That was understandably difficult. Her original problem was moments like yelling at a reporter backstage, where people pointed out English wasn't his first language. I feel she's heading back in that direction and needs to be careful not to Olivia Wilde herself, though Wilde is a front runner this awards season, so comebacks happen. I hope her publicist points these things out. And the sexiest thing about anybody is self-confidence.

I like Jennifer Lawrence. She's interesting and very talented. I don't know if she'll make it as an actress with so many box office duds, which would put her in the Gwyneth Paltrow category. But I think she'll always be famous, and her Instagram proves it. Worst case, she gets a reality show, which maybe could be her best act yet. Her personality is her biggest asset, and her lack of filter might get her in trouble but keeps her relatable.

SAG's million dollar salary and the health insurance problem

SAG-AFTRA represents actors, and its studio contracts require union talent, so working in Hollywood means being a member. The 2023 writer and actor strikes crippled the industry, but people felt they were worth it because streaming was killing residuals and AI was emerging. Now there's Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, the union's CEO. His contract runs through 2032, a ridiculously long extension, and he makes a million dollars a year paid from actors' dues while most members can't afford health care. I think that's shocking.

Domestic production is declining as more projects shoot overseas, so there isn't enough work, and even people who get jobs can't piece together a salary. Writers face the same as staffs shrink. Drake Bell, a former child actor, warned kids not to act because they can't afford it, saying he can't earn enough to qualify for union insurance. The cutoff is $28,000 a year and rises about $500 annually. Actors like Heather Matarazzo have said they don't qualify either.

Why less than 1% of SAG members qualify for the streaming bonus

There used to be the working actor. Think of all the roles on Law and Order. Watching The Exorcist III, I recognized the actor playing the doctor without knowing his name. Those actors lived on residuals. I still get checks for my handful of lines in Zombieland: Double Tap, about $20 when it makes $40, because the union takes a substantial cut. Streaming has no residuals because ads don't run on specific titles. Sean Astin, the president after Fran Drescher, posted a message remembering when working actors could support a family in LA. Comments were turned off. I wasn't surprised.

The strikes produced a bonus fund to pay members from a pool, but you must have been working to qualify. It was just revealed that less than 1% of members qualify. People marched and went months without pay, thinking they'd fixed residuals, and it's going to the top 1%. That's why the salary matters. I'm not saying don't pay him, but why not $250,000, or even $500,000? That frees money for members. As was pointed out to me, other union heads reportedly make $200,000 to $500,000, exactly what I suggested.

Is acting still a viable career, and how members could fight back

Many people give themselves five years. John Krasinski nearly quit early, but his mother told him to finish, and near the end he got The Office. I tried acting for a couple of years, but it felt too risky to rely on others to employ me, and I didn't see enough progress, so I pivoted. My parents taught me you can pursue anything, but you must show progress. Harrison Ford worked as a carpenter for 11 years before meeting George Lucas. Pedro Pascal stuck it out, leaning on friends; Sarah Paulson famously gave him her per diem so he could eat.

If fewer people choose acting, studios may turn to AI for supporting roles. That's scary. The AI dub for Ramayana, which changes lip movements to match the dubbed language, is a slippery slope to me. And how do you fight a union? He's voted in until 2032, legislation to cut his salary would be difficult, and leaving the union means you can't work on studio projects. There's debate over whether unions are good, as with Amazon, but workers need someone looking out for them. I really feel he is abusing his power and shouldn't accept that salary.

Maybe actors could sue, joined by some big names, arguing SAG isn't providing what a union should while overpaying an executive whose salary doesn't align with other unions in the same business. But who pays the lawyer, and you could make enemies. The big problem is that people don't vote, just like in politics. You've got to vote.