Daredevil (Charlie Cox) matched wits with The Kingpin (Vincent D’Onofrio) and Jessica Jones (Krysten Ritter) will have to contend with Zebediah Killgrave (David Tennant). Luke Cage (Mike Colter) will make his debut on ‘Jessica Jones’ which debuts this year on Netflix, before taking the lead on his own show next year. And what Marvel menaces will he be grappling with? Well, his first adversary has been revealed… Cornell Cottonmouth.
Check this guy out! Cornell Cottonmouth was one of Luke Cage’s earliest foes, debuting in ‘Power Man’ #18 in 1974. (I know, judging by his picture, you’d never guess he was created in the 70s.) Despite appearances, he was not a pimp but a drug dealer. In addition to having super strength on par with Cage’s, his real gimmick was his razor sharp, golden grill.
The role has not yet been cast, but it is known that Cottonmouth will not be the show’s Big Bad, but will be the first villain the hero encounters.
In the comics, Carl Lucas was framed for drug charges and went to jail, where he agreed to participate in an experiment which granted him super strength and impervious skin. After escaping, Lucas changed his name to Luke Cage and became a ‘Hero For Hire’ although he almost never collected his fees, either out of the goodness in his heart or from getting screwed. On the show, it could be possible that Cottonmouth will factor into these events, setting up Cage to take the fall which leads him to become the protagonist of this series.
In the comics, Cottonmouth was the rival of another gang lord Willis Stryker, a.k.a. Diamondback and over the course of their conflict, Cage was pitted against Iron Fist. Of course, the result of this was the two heroes becoming permanent partners and following ‘Luke Cage,’ the next Netflix Marvel series will be ‘Iron Fist.’ Just as Cage is being introduced on ‘Jessica Jones,’ it’s quite likely that Iron Fist will also make his first live action appearance on ‘Luke Cage.’
Also, keep in mind that these new shows are building on what has been established in ‘Daredevil.’ With the vacuum created by the elimination of The Kingpin in that series, expect the underworld goings on in these shows to be affected.
Just to be clear, there are two other Marvel villains named Cottonmouth (right) and Diamondback, members of the Serpent Society. Though more colorful, these characters aren’t related to the ones from the ‘Luke Cage’ comic book.
What do you think of Cornell Cottonmouth appearing on ‘Luke Cage?’ What other bad guys do you think should appear on the show?
Personally, they had me at “razor-sharp, golden grill.”
Comment below!
Sources: Cinema Blend and Screen Rant
