There's something about Dominic Monaghan and appearing onscreen alongside scary, often hairy, supernatural forces.
The former Lost and Lord of the Rings star has become the latest addition to the cast of X-Men Origins: Wolverine, the Hugh Jackman-starring spinoff of the comic book-spawned franchise.
Monaghan will play Barnell Bohusk, a former military ally of the clawed one whose own mutation graces him with the power to harness energy and electricity.
The description of his powers differs slightly from Marvel Comics' official biography of the character, whose mutant alias was Beak, and later, Blackwing. Per the superhero purveyor, Beak wears an advanced body suit that gives him the ability to fly, superhuman strength, enhanced protection and energy blasts.
In addition to Monaghan, Daniel Henney has also joined the cast as Agent Zero, a blue-haired member of the Weapon X program and an expert tracker with lethal, mutation-enhanced marksman skills. Per Marvel's bio, he is able to absorb the energy of any impact without injury, but must release the energy he absorbs back out through his fingertips.
The film is set 17 years before the X-Men trilogy of recent years and traces, as the movie's title would suggest, the origins of Wolverine, who, in his premutant days, was known as Logan.
Liev Schreiber, Ryan Reynolds, Will.i.am, Danny Huston, Taylor Kitsch and Lynn Collins are also set to star in the tale of the taloned superhero.
Production on the would-be blockbuster, directed by Gavin Hood, kicked off in New Zealand earlier this month and is expected to move to Australia and New Orleans over the course of the shoot.
The finished product is slated to hit theaters May 1, 2009.