Peacemaker Season 2 is currently underway, and the long-awaited return of James Gunn’s superhero series has been tackling the multiverse. As Peacemaker (John Cena) becomes enamored with an alternate reality, other versions of familiar characters have been introduced, including Emilia Harcourt (Jennifer Holland), a love interest for the titular hero this season. The second season of Peacemaker introduced a shockingly different iteration of Harcourt, but one that won’t be played for laughs anytime soon. During an interview with Cinema Blend, Peacemaker star Jennifer Holland talked about playing two versions of Emilia Harcourt, one from the main timeline and another that appears in an alternate dimension. As shown in the third episode last week, the new Harcourt is far less emotionally distant, which has led to mainline Peacemaker to fall for her. Surprisingly, this stark difference between Harcourts is not played for laughs, and that was on purpose. While the raunchy series typically leans into comedy, Holland did not want that to affect her take on “Harcourt 2.”
“For me, the most difficult aspect of playing Harcourt 2 was that I didn’t want it to be comical. That how different she is from our Harcourt… I didn’t want it to seem like a comedy routine. Like we’re always calling out how different she is or something like that. So I wanted to make sure it stayed grounded and that it was real and that you could buy both that Chris found her attractive not just because she looks like Harcourt, but also that she still shares some of the similarities of Harcourt’s personality.”
Creating this new version of Harcourt was no easy task, but Holland credits director Greg Mottola for helping her find a balance. She may be far less rigid and tough than her mainline counterpart, but Holland made sure to keep the qualities that make the character singular in Peacemaker.
“She still has a strength to… she’s not a total pushover, but she wears her heart on her sleeve. She is much more open with her feelings than Harcourt from our dimension. So it’s really just about trying to make sure… and Greg Mottola helped me with this a lot because he was really the one who brought Harcourt with me to the screen. So yeah, it was a delicate balance of making sure that she was grounded and real, and not comically different from our Harcourt.”

‘Peacemaker’ Star Revealed To Be the DCU’s Nick Fury

Warner Bros.

With Peacemaker Season 2 directly tackling alternate dimensions, an idea introduced in Superman, it seems the adult-rated series is a major stepping block for the DC Universe. The series also features one of the more consistent faces in the cinematic universe thus far, Rick Flag Sr., portrayed by Frank Grillo. In fact, the actor recently revealed that he is not only out for revenge against Peacemaker in the HBO Max series, but has a role to play in a “big” DCU project on the way. It seems James Gunn has found his own version of Nick Fury.
“We were at the premiere, and I was like, ‘This is cool. Like I’m really entangled in this world.’ And then this is why I love Gunn: we were at the afterparty, and he leaned in, ‘You know what we got coming next, right?’ And I’m like, ‘No.’ He goes, ‘We got something big—and you’re all over it.’ I don’t know what it is, but he knows, whatever he needs me for, in whatever capacity, I’m in. My agents know, when the call comes, just say yes and we’ll figure the rest out later. I feel very lucky that somehow I got my caboose attached to his train. I don’t know how it happened, I don’t know why it happened, so, at this point in my life, I’m just so happy it happened.”
The next project in the DCU that Grillo seems to be teasing is Man of Tomorrow, which Gunn just announced as the next chapter in the Superman Saga. Not only will David Corenswet’s hero have a prominent role, Lex Luthor (Nicholas Hoult) appears to be the co-lead this time around. A bevy of other heroes are also rumored to appear, including Peacemaker, which could lead to Grilllo’s Flag Sr. getting involved.

Peacemaker

Release Date

January 13, 2022

Network

HBO Max, Max

Directors

James Gunn, Brad Anderson, Rosemary Rodriguez

Christopher Smith / Peacemaker

Danielle Brooks

Leota Adebayo