The following contains spoilers for The Northman, now in theaters.
One of the most interesting aspects of Moon Knight is how Ethan Hawke's absolutely nailing it as Arthur Harrow. He's delivering a truly brilliant performance as the cult leader as Steven Grant/Marc Spector battle to stop an evil goddess, Ammit, from razing the world. It throws back to Hawke's range and his desire to commit to roles he truly believes in.
More so, seeing him in a comic book property feels full circle, given he also has graphic novels under his name, such as Meadowland with artist Greg Ruth. However, Moon Knight is just the tip of the iceberg, with other properties out and upcoming pretty much compounding that 2022 is indeed the year of Hawke.
Now, it's hard to deny Harrow will be the role Hawke's most known for this year, but fans shouldn't discount his role as King Aurvandill, aka the War-Raven, in Robert Eggers' The Northman, currently in theatres. There, Hawke was a tour de force in the opening half-hour, training Amleth to be a ruler. It led to a weird occult ritual where they pretended to be wolves, showing Hawke's kooky side, all before he went out like Ned Stark.
He got beheaded in a coup, but again, the actor displayed his grit, dying in front of his son while indicating that he had to escape to get revenge. This was the heartbeat of the movie, which honestly felt like it should have had more of the king involved, especially because his queen hated his toxic ways and was the one who engineered the betrayal.
The Black Phone will make up for that lack of screen-time, though, where Hawke stars as The Grabber. Out in June, The Grabber kidnaps a young kid, Finney, in a supernatural story that involves the ghosts of past victims, as well as his psychic sister, Gwen, trying to save the boy. If it sounds like Stephen King, that's because it's based on a short story from his son, Joe Hill, with trailers already evoking the likes of It to tease another piece riddled with tension, horror and suspense for a new generation. And make no mistake, from the official trailer, The Grabber's look and Hawke's sinister, intimidating presence will definitely be impressing on fans.
In addition, Hawke's due for a special cameo in Knives Out 2, which he hasn't elaborated on much, as well as the role of Bruce Wayne in Batwheels, with both properties yet to confirm release dates. The latter will focus on iconic cars from the DC Universe taking on personalities of their own, leaving fans excited for what Hawke will bring to the table as the Dark Knight.
Again, adding Batman to the C.V. is a strong way to cement one's nerd cred, even if it's a Cartoon Network and HBO Max series. Ultimately, this is a stacked slate, reaffirming Hawke's range and how he's apparently on a massive upsurge this year. He's come close to winning Oscars for Training Day. And with movies like Sinister, Boyhood, Daybreakers and Before Sunset in his portfolio, it's apt he reminds mainstream Hollywood what he can do on film and TV, and with a lot of volume at that.
