The release of a new superhero movie is always thrilling, but James Gunn’s “Superman” is particularly awaited. This film marks the inaugural big screen venture of Gunn’s cinematic DC comics-based universe and promises to introduce numerous cherished DC characters beyond the familiar Superman comics ensemble. Among these is Mister Terrific, a brilliant engineer and scientist endowed with various technological skills and expertise in hand-to-hand combat. Actor Edi Gathegi, aged 46, takes on the role of Mister Terrific. Although he hasn’t gained much name recognition yet, Gathegi has been active in television and film for quite some time. His face might ring a bell yet could be hard to pinpoint for many — that’s where Looper steps in.

The Kenyan-American actor embarked on his career in 2006, debuting as a cab driver in the Jason Statham movie “Crank.” In the following year, he featured as Boa in three episodes of “Lincoln Heights” Season 1 and also had a stint on “House.” Gathegi portrayed Doctor Jeffrey Cole, one among the many doctors from Season 4 vying for a spot on House’s diagnostic team. During this period, he also appeared in single-episode arcs on series like “Veronica Mars,” “CSI: Miami,” and “Life on Mars.” However, more substantial roles soon came his way, both in television and films. Notably, “Superman” isn’t Gathegi’s first superhero film. Read on to explore more about his career journey.

Before landing the role of Mister Terrific, Edi Gathegi performed as a Marvel character on the silver screen. He portrayed Darwin in the 2011 Fox film “X-Men: First Class,” alongside actors such as Michael Fassbender, James McAvoy, Jennifer Lawrence, and other prominent cast members of the film’s mutant ensemble. Darwin, a mutant first introduced to the Marvel comics universe in the 2006 book “X-Men: Deadly Genesis” #2, possesses the ability to adapt to survive any threat to his life. In theory, he is indestructible, yet this wasn’t reflected in practice, at least in the films: Darwin faced an unwarranted and nonsensical death in “X-Men: First Class.” Nevertheless, it may have been fortuitous, as he possibly wouldn’t have been cast as Mister Terrific many years later had Darwin survived, so perhaps it was ultimately beneficial.

The year before he played Darwin, Gathegi appeared in another blockbuster film: “Twilight.” Fans of the franchise will recognize him as Laurent, a morally bankrupt vampire who comes to target the franchise’s protagonist, Bella Swan (Kristen Stewart). Laurent is ultimately killed by Jacob’s tribe of shapeshifters in “Twilight: New Moon.” Despite not making it to the end of the franchise, it was a dream role for Gathegi. “My dirty little secret is that I have always wanted to play a vampire but I have never really been attracted to vampire films,” the actor told the fan website Twilight Lexicon. “But the story of ‘Twilight’ is more of a romance set in a world where vampires exist. Stephenie Meyer did a wonderful job defining this world and making it accessible and intriguing and the story is so truthful, kind, and compelling.”

While Edi Gathegi hasn’t managed to land any starring movie roles yet, he did play a lead character in a TV show at one point. He co-starred in “StartUp,” a web series that debuted on Crackle in 2016. The cast of “StartUp” includes a lot of well-known faces, such as Adam Brody, Ron Perlman, Martin Freeman, and Otmara Marrero. It follows three strangers — Nick Talman (Brody), Ronald Dacey (Gathegi), and Izzy Morales (Marrero) — as they attempt to launch a project centered on digital currency with the potential to be very lucrative. Despite its strong cast, “StartUp” received mixed reviews from critics and was cancelled after three seasons. 

Gathegi wasn’t a lead in the popular NBC show “The Blacklist,” but he did have an extended arc as a sketchy character named Matias Solomon, appearing in over 20 episodes across the main show and the spin-off series “The Blacklist: Redemption.” Solomon was a CIA asset in Ethiopia before he enlisted to fight in the Eritrean-Ethiopean War, during which he committed multiple war crimes. Despite this, Solomon is still utilized as a little-known asset by the CIA after the war.

Currently, Gathegi is playing a character named Dev Ayesa on the underrated sci-fi series “For All Mankind,” which explores an alternate timeline in which the USSR put a man on the moon before the United States. Ayesa is an accomplished engineer and businessman who founded the private company Helios Aerospace. He is also partially responsible for the construction of the first-ever viable nuclear fusion reactor in the show’s timeline. Gathegi has appeared in 17 episodes so far and is expected to reprise his role when the Apple TV+ series returns for a fifth season.