The most high-flying Justice Society member in the upcoming DC Animated Original Movie Justice Society: World War II is Hawkman, portrayed by Omid Abtahi (The Mandalorian). As the superheroes battle against the Axis Powers across Europe in the new movie, Carter Hall draws from the memories and experiences of his past lives to help the Justice Society confront the Third Reich head-on.
In an exclusive interview with CBR, Abtahi spoke about his initial unfamiliarity with Hawkman, learning to love the character and where he would like to take Carter Hall next if given the opportunity to reprise the role in some capacity in the future.
How did the opportunity to portray the Golden Age version of Hawkman come about?
Omid Abtahi: The casting director Wes Gleason, who also did the voice direction on the project, reached out to me. I didn't audition for it. I think he just offered it to me because we had worked together on a prior project. When you're offered these roles, you usually don't know why or what they're looking for so I had a very lovely and brief conversation with Wes at the beginning, like, "What are you guys looking for with this character?" and he said, "The reason I thought of you was the work you did on this other project and I just wanted you to bring what you did and just be you and have fun with it. I'll guide you through it." Credit goes to Wes for that.
With Hawkman being so prolific in the comics, on television and soon on the big screen, what did you want to bring to the character yourself?
Abtahi: Going into it, if I can be honest, I didn't know too much about Hawkman. I didn't know too much about the superhero world, whether it be DC or Marvel. So I had to educate myself, first and foremost, and it was rather overwhelming and very confusing because there are so many different versions of this character and so many different backstories. I had to hone in on the Golden Age and base a lot off the Golden Age and what was given to me in the script.
Yeah, Hawkman is almost notoriously one of the more convoluted DC characters with all his different iterations and origins. What was something you wanted to highlight across all those iterations and lend your own voice to?
Abtahi: All these different iterations, what I got out of it was this is a character who has lived many lives, and he has access to those memories. So I wanted to bring that wisdom of someone who has access to that kind of information. I wanted to bring that wisdom, deep soul and old soul into this performance, that was the most important thing to me. I had seen a few clips of other performances and I had to turn them off right away because it just really messed with my mind. It just wasn't my interpretation. I wanted [to portray him as] deep-thinking, thoughtful, strong, the silent type so that when he talks, you listen. And he only talks when he has something important to say, that was my main takeaway from him.
Was there a scene or piece of direction that really clued you in on how to approach the character?
Abtahi: Yeah, there's a scene where he's talking with Black Canary about love and about Shayera and about [Black Canary's] love and her problems and that kind of opened the window for me into his soul. That has nothing to do with the action; this is an action movie and you're able to take this moment and talk about love and something deep and, without that scene, I would've been a little bit more lost.
With this thing taking place right at the height of World War II, how do you find the balance between those quiet moments and the big, bombastic action sequences?
Abtahi: A lot of that has to do with the guys in the booth, like Wes. As an actor, you just want to play every moment truthfully as best as you can. There are those moments where [Hawkman] is angry and wants to do damage and then you have those moments that are quiet, thoughtful and deep. Whatever moment, you just want it to be truthful as best as you can.
As someone that was more unfamiliar with Hawkman going into the project, how do you see him coming out of it, with the benefit of hindsight, after getting to spend time as Carter Hall?
Abtahi: That's a good question because, when I was doing it, I was just kind of trusting the process and Wes and I fell in love with the character. And then when I saw it, I fell in love with the character even more. I spent so much time with Hawkman but, after I saw the movie, I would love to continue voicing this character, I would love to learn more about this character and live more in his skin. I just fell in love with him.
What direction would you like to take Hawkman next if given the opportunity?
Abtahi: Maybe it has in comics and other projects but I would just love to explore his connection with Shayera more. I think there's a beauty to it, a love that could last many a lifetime. Me, personally, I would love to explore that.
Having seen the film and your role on this ensemble, what are you most proud of with your performance and breathing new life into Hawkman?
Abtahi: This sounds a bit snarky but I'm glad my voice doesn't sound like a typical voice-over. At first, I was very insecure about it and while I've done voice-overs in the past, most of my work was done on-screen. And I've so many of these cartoons and everyone has these wonderful, rich voices and mine, to me, always sounded a bit different. But I like how it is different and that I can offer something that's a little different and I just hope other people feel the same.
Produced by Warner Bros. Animation, DC and Warner Bros. Home Entertainment, Justice Society: World War II stars Stana Katic as Wonder Woman, Matt Bomer as The Flash, Elysia Rotaru as Black Canary, Chris Diamantopoulos as Steve Trevor, Omid Abtahi as Hawkman, Matthew Mercer as Hourman, Armen Taylor as Jay Garrick, Liam McIntyre as Aquaman, Ashleigh LaThrop as Iris West, Geoffrey Arend as Charles Halstead/Advisor, Keith Ferguson as Dr. Fate and Darin De Paul as Roosevelt. The film will be released digitally on April 27 and on 4K UHD and Blu-ray on May 11.