Alan Tudyk's Super-Secret And Important Peacemaker Role, Explained

Alan Tudyk is a great actor and an even better voice actor, even if he doesn't always get recognition for it. (See: his removal from the marketing for "I, Robot.") In fact, he's really become a go-to voice acting talent, having lent his vocals to both humans and non-humans alike in multiple Disney animated features, on top of voicing Optimus Prime and bringing the droid K-2SO to life in the "Star Wars" universe. He's also voiced many a DC character by this point, having portrayed Green Arrow in several video games (as well as the cartoon "Young Justice"), along with Mr. Nobody in "Doom Patrol," both Joker and Clayface in "Harley Quinn," and much more.

So far as James Gunn's DC Universe is concerned, Tudyk has already voiced both Doctor Phosphorus and Clayface on "Creature Commandos," in addition to playing 4 aka Gary in "Superman." Because Tudyk is apparently a workaholic, that or he can't resist working with Gunn, he even played a "secret" role in "Peacemaker" season 2.

No, Tudyk isn't the voice of Eagly; that honor belongs to a different animal voice acting legend in the form of Dee Bradley Baker himself. Still, Tudyk was crucial to the inception of one of the best parts of season 2: the opening credits dance sequence.

In a featurette released on DC's official YouTube page, choreographer Charissa Barton reveals she enlisted Tudyk to help her test out the dance moves. Why? They're actually married, and Barton needed an easily accessible actor to make sure the moves were appropriate for non-professional-dancers.

"It's a very fine line, making the movement attainable for actors who are not dancers," Barton explained. "Alan is an actor, so I'm able to test things out on him, and I can gauge when something tips into too difficult."

This is the same approach Barton took to choreographing the opening credits dance for "Peacemaker" season 1, which included recording videos of herself and Tudyk doing the moves to show Gunn how they would look when performed by two very different dancers with very different levels of experience. In both cases, the resulting dance sequences are complicated and impressive yet also simple enough that anybody watching could conceiably recreate the moves at home.

As hypnotic and elaborate as these dance numbers are (they are, after all, designed to discourage viewers from skipping the opening credits), they also speak to the show's plot and themes, especially when it comes to the big twist in "Peacemaker" season 2. Indeed, the very first move Christopher Smith (John Cena) makes looks a whole lot like he's forming an object that not-so-subtly foreshadows the eventual reveal.

Unfortunately, we don't know whether there will be more "Peacemaker" in the future. Gunn himself has said he hasn't made up his mind about the future of the show, although its characters could potentially return in a different format — like a "Checkmate" show — rather than "Peacemaker" season 3. The bigger question is how this will affect Barton's work and the possibility of another dance sequence in a DCU series. The dance is such an integral part of the identity of "Peacemaker" as a show, so to leave it behind feels unthinkable. But should a "Checkmate" series even feature a dance sequence? Or should it include something else and create its own separate identity? Time will tell, but it's safe to say fans everywhere would be quite sad if they never got to see Peacemaker and his pals cut a rug again.

"Peacemaker" is currently streaming on HBO Max.