The Boys: The Star Trek Star That Almost Played The Deep

It's pretty much impossible to imagine anyone but Chace Crawford as the gnarly yet bizarrely sympathetic superhero the Deep on Amazon Prime's hit series "The Boys." Perhaps the most downtrodden of Homelander's (Antony Starr) sociopathic lackeys within the Seven, the Deep began the series with Crawford's unique brand of revolting smarminess, something that made the actor a "Gossip Girl" favorite.

It wouldn't be out of line to theorize that his role on the popular CW teen drama lent itself well to playing a superhumanly entitled character like the Deep — though he obviously wasn't the only actor considered for the part. According to The Direct, Ethan Peck revealed at Dragon Con 2022 that he made it pretty far into the casting process.

Peck — now best known for playing the iconic sci-fi character Spock on "Star Trek: Strange New Worlds" — was asked about some of his most memorable auditions, sharing, "I've had a lot of bad ones and some good ones ... I came pretty close to the role of the Deep in the Boys." But the Deep isn't the only superhero Peck came close to playing.

Ethan Peck also told fans, "I was [one] of a smaller few to be considered for Captain America." Finding Steve Rogers — famously played by Chris Evans since 2011's "Captain America: The First Avenger" — involved a lengthy casting process. Not only was the "Office" alumnus and Marvel Cinematic Universe's future multiversal Reed Richards John Krasinski in contention, but "Guardians of the Galaxy" breakout Chris Pratt also read for the role, something that led to him getting in the room for Star-Lord several years later (although he nearly blew his "Guardians of the Galaxy" audition). Perhaps Peck will also be given a second chance, though he seems happily busy exploring the final frontier for the time being.

Peck likely first landed on Walt Disney Pictures and Marvel Studios' radar sometime around his casting in the 2010 House of Mouse flick "The Sorcerer's Apprentice," in which he played Andre. Though his star-spangled aspirations were ultimately for naught, he at least got to be a part of the Justin Timberlake thriller "In Time" instead, out the same year as the patriotic hero's debut. Peck eventually found his way to the Marvel Universe via the podcast series "Marvels," on which he played Reed Richards.