Adrian Pasdar Joins AGENTS OF S.H.I.E.L.D. As HULK Adversary Glenn Talbot

Adrian Pasdar has a lot of superhero-related work on his resume, most notably as Nathan Petrelli in Heroes and as the voice of Iron Man for all of Marvel’s current animated series. When he stops by Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. this April, however, he won’t be one of the heroes. Pasdar will appear as notable Hulk nemesis Glenn Talbot, an ally of Thunderbolt Ross who participated in missions to kill The Hulk. The only other live-action portrayal of Talbot was in 2003’s Hulk played by Josh Lucas.

There’s no word yet on how he’ll be introduced, but he’s expected to cause trouble for the main characters and will possibly be a recurring character. Possibly the greatest news to come from this announcement is that Pasdar will don Talbot’s signature mustache. Take a look at the picture below and bask in it glory!

Talbot is the latest in a list of established Marvel character that have appeared on the show, including Deathlok, Victoria Hand, Lady Sif and Blizzard. As a frequent Marvel contributor, Pasdar was eager to appear, although he was amused by the fact he would be playing another jerk character.

In the same way that Iron Man [in “Marvel’s Avengers Assemble”] came up. I got a call from my good friend, [“Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.” Executive Producer] Jeph Loeb. “Would you come and do this role?” and I read the character description and I thought, “Oh man. Here it is again. The sanctimonious [jerk]. That’s what they’re coming to me for.” [laughs] His way’s the only way! I said, “Jeph, are you trying to tell me something?” He said, “No, not at all! Nobody can play this quite like you, but no.” [laughs] So he came to me and I said yes.

To prepare for the role, Pasdar actually went with his son to Midtown Comics in New York and looked for material related to Talbot. Pasdar stated that rather than look to previous Marvel movies for inspiration, it’s important to go directly to the comics. To him, it was important to remain true to how fans see the character.

I learned this through Iron Man, it really doesn’t matter what I think about who he is because everybody has such a huge idea about what they think the guy is. You have to meet their expectations rather than define it by your own, and it’s not pandering at all. It’s just a little more difficult way of bringing something to life. You can’t just rely on your instincts and your imagination, you have to match up with what the expectations are from the people who are hiring you and watching you.

Pasdar has always been a solid actor, and he played Nathan Petrelli’s many villainous turns on Heroes very well, so I think he’ll make for a good villain on the series. Fans have speculated that The Clairvoyant, the main villain of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., is possibly The Leader, last seen being exposed to Bruce Banner’s blood in The Incredible Hulk. That hasn’t been confirmed yet, but with a Hulk character joining the show, it’s possible that this might lead to The Hulk’s cerebral counterpart being the mastermind of these events.

Seriously though, isn’t Talbot’s mustache just magnificent?!?! It projects power and authority, something that signifies an efficient military officer.

SOURCE: Marvel