Next season, the titular hero of "The Flash" will face a villain named Zoom, and the mysterious bad guy has officially been cast.

Chuck") will voice the villain, who shows up in episode two of the series's upcoming second season. And according to executive producer Andrew Kreisberg, showrunners took inspiration for the character -- and Todd's casting -- from an iconic source.

"Last year, with the Reverse-Flash, we just modulated Tom Cavanagh's voice, and this year we wanted to do something a little bit different," Kreisberg explained to Variety. "Part of the mystery of the season is who or what is underneath the Zoom outfit, and so we wanted to do something like James Earl Jones as Darth Vader — this iconic voice coming out of this mask. Last year, we thought of the Reverse-Flash as a speed warrior; this year, Zoom is like a speed demon, and no one does demon-voice better than Tony Todd."

Kreisberg also told the trade that unlike the reveal of Cavanagh's villain last season, the reveal of Zoom's true identity will be drawn-out more "like a horror movie," with characters (and viewers) kept guessing for weeks. And while DC Comics fans may already have some ideas, the showrunner promised that the show's take on the character would be a unique one.

" ... [H]opefully comic book fans will be happy because we've come up with a clever way to spin the tale, but that also makes it exciting for the people who aren't as familiar with the comics and are just enjoying the show on its own terms," Kreisberg told Variety.

Season two of "The Flash" premieres on The CW on October 6.

[via: Variety]

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