Fantasy Cast: Who should play William M. Gaines in a biopic?

As the publisher and co-editor of EC comics and as the publisher for Mad Magazine for more than 40 years, William Gaines was the center of a whole lot of controversy.   In 1947, after a brief stint in the military, Gaines took over his father’s EC comics.   At the time, it stood for Educational Comics, and most of the stories were adapations of Biblical stories.   Gaines would have none of that, and he found his calling in publishing horror stories.

Under the EC Comics logo, he would release such classics as “Tales from the Crypt,” “The Vault of Fear,” ‘Two-Fisted Tales,” and more.   In the 1950s, Gaines gave an unapologetic testimony to a Senate Subcommittee investigating morality in the comic books of the era.

There is so much that could be told in a biopic on the publisher’s life, and here is where you come in today.   Who should play William Gaines in a biopic of his life?

In early 2008, it was rumoured that John Landis would be directing the film.   In 2007, a screenplay was being written by Joel Eisenberg (producer of ‘Hollywood Vampyr’).

Who would you cast as Jerry Garcia-look-a-like Gaines?   Would you go with someone who already sports a beard of some sort a la Seth Rogen?   Would you go with a thespian who would have no problem growing the full face-forest out?   Let us know by throwing out your ideas in the comment area below.

And, as always, if you have any ideas for future Fantasy Casts, shoot us an email with your ideas. You can find all of our email addresses right here!