Morena Baccarin played an important Marvel Universe character as Vanessa, most recently in Deadpool & Wolverine, but she also played a similar role in the DC Universe. Baccarin rose to prominence with her roles in Stargate SG-1 and the cult-hit Firefly before moving on to acclaim in Homeland. Baccarin is perfect for the DC Universe, and she has done a number of superhero voice roles, including Black Canary in Justice League Unlimited and Cheetah in Batman: The Brave and the Bold. From there, Baccarin moved into an iconic DC role in 2015.

Many actors have been in projects from both Marvel and DC even in the same year. Performers from Christian Bale to Ryan Reynolds have taken on roles from each studio with varied degrees of success. However, few seem to be as committed to the DC Universe as Baccarin, who most recently lent her voice to Batman Unburied: Fallen City. Among several of these excellent performances, however, one is especially prominent from a hit television show similar to her MCU role.

Morena Baccarin’s DC Role Has A Lot Of Parallels With Her Deadpool Character

Baccarin Played Leslie “Lee” Thompkins In A Live-Action DC Series

In Gotham, Morena Baccarin played Leslie “Lee” Thompkins, a DC character who is usually presented as an older woman who comforted Bruce after the death of his parents. On the surface, Vanessa and Leslie have little in common. However, Gotham did an excellent job creating a complex figure with motivations and drive of her own, that allowed her character’s journey to coincide perfectly with her love interest in Jim Gordon. The tension of this relationship, as well as the charm Baccarin brings to the role, mirrors Wade and Vanessa.

Vanessa is a sex worker with incredible charisma, and she and Wade forge a perfectly complementary relationship that is still tinged with darkness in the Deadpool films. The same, including the tension at play with the on-again-off-again format of their affection, can be said for Gordon and Thompkins in Gotham. Following this, the DC show is the perfect place to see more of Baccarin crafting a stylish, elegant, and somewhat twisted character with incredible depth.

Gotham Is The Perfect Show For Fans Who Wanted More Of Morena Baccarin’s Vanessa

Gotham Gives Morena Baccarin The Chance To Shine

Vanessa was the emotional anchor of the first two Deadpool movies, but Baccarin only had a small role in Deadpool & Wolverine, leaving many audiences wanting more. Fortunately, Baccarin appeared in 67 episodes of Gotham, garnering plenty of screen time. With incredible style and flair, Baccarin brings her sharp and fun charisma to a character that is a long-running part of the Batman mythos, reinventing her into a compelling love interest with a dark past. This reinvention of comic book origins is an important part of Gotham.

Many wished for more of Baccarin in the MCU, especially after the actor barely appeared in Deadpool & Wolverine. However, there are plenty of other places to find similar character types, and Baccarin brings the same charm and energy to her love-interest role here. While she is far from a one-note performer, much of the same energy and style is brought to Thompkins as Vanessa, making Gotham the perfect watch for anyone wishing for more.

Why Gotham Is A Great DC Match For Deadpool’s Movies

The Two Very Different Franchises Have Some Big Similarities

While the franchises are very different, with the Deadpool movies taking a meta look at the Marvel Universe, while Gotham examines a crime-ridden DC city under the guise of a police procedural, the two have more in common than expected. Gotham itself, which used comedy and drama in a similar albeit less obvious way than Deadpool, deconstructs the Batman mythos through a more subtle postmodern lens. This is done especially well with the reinterpretations and reinventions of several familiar Batman villains over the run of the series.

Both projects having Morena Baccarin in the cast, which adds to this comparison point, but it is significantly beyond that. Each project has a loving affection for their comic book lore. Just as Deadpool & Wolverine looked for over-the-top ways to introduce characters like a comic-accurate Gambit, so Gotham did the same with characters like Mr. Freeze. As a celebration of a large canon of comic book history, each project has so many draws that overlap in some unexpected ways.

Morena Baccarin will continue to shine as one of the best actors working today, and there is hope that more of Vanessa may appear in the future MCU. If this does not occur, then hopefully her clear passion for the DC Universe will bring her into more projects soon. While both Vanessa and Leslie have a number of clear similarities, the two characters are also distinctly different, speaking to Baccarin’s dynamism. Wherever she appears next will surely be worth paying attention to.