In a brand-new interview, we sat down with the incredibly versatile actor and writer David Dastmalchian. Known for his captivating performances and unique voice as a storyteller, David opens up about his involvement with Creature Commandos (out October 2), a project that blends his love for horror, comic books, and genre storytelling into a compelling narrative.
David also discusses his childhood fascination with these stories and titles, how those early experiences shaped his larger creative journey, and the unique opportunity he found in Creature Commandos to explore characters seen as monstrous by the world yet possessing the potential for redemption and deep purpose.
As we explore the series’ themes, David also reflects on the differences between the Creature Commandos and his previous experience as a Suicide Squad member, offering a glimpse into the emotional depth and internal struggles that define these unique characters. Additionally, he teases an upcoming story in the DC Horror Presents anthology, hinting at a collaboration with a longtime creative partner that promises to deliver a truly chilling and heartfelt tale.
Courtesy of DC Comics.
Join us as we probe the mind of David Dastmalchian, a creator who continues to push the boundaries of genre storytelling and brings a fresh perspective to some of the most unsung, especially intriguing characters in the DC Universe.
This is an edited version of the interview. Be sure to tune into the AIPT Comics podcast in October for an extended, unedited version of this conversation with stories about Jim Lee, Bauhaus, and more!
Courtesy of DC Comics.
AIPT: How did you get involved with Creature Commandos?
David Dastmalchian: I grew up reading and loving comic books and also just obsessed with horror and watching the Creature Feature…with my local horror host, Crematia Mortem in Kansas City. I loved watching movies like Curse of the Werewolf.
The infusion of horror comics and genre science fiction superhero stories to me is the perfect soup. It’s everything that I love. I’m so fascinated by the potential of what we can do with these kinds of stories.
I’ve written a number of small and independent projects and started to develop my voice as a writer. To me, the Creature Commandos being my favorite assembly of comic book characters, was the perfect opportunity if I could have a chance to reexamine that world for a place to tell a tale about individuals who are afflicted with something that to the world and to themselves makes them appear monstrous, but that there is the potential within that, with the right support, with the right experience, with the right training even, to find purpose.
Courtesy of DC Comics.
AIPT: Having read the first issue, the art by Jesús Hervás is super pulpy. What was it about his work that you dig the most for this series?
DD: He takes great risks and he can bring a fresh look to something that we’ve seen many times before.
AIPT: Maybe it’s rude to ask, but now that you’ve scripted a few issues of Creature Commandos, do you have a favorite member of the team or one that you just get really excited to write?
DD: It changes from issue to issue. I was really excited about getting my hands on and doing some storytelling with our Gorgon character. I thought that was going to be really special for me because that’s a monster that I’ve always wanted to explore more. But interestingly, when you get into subsequent issues, I tried to focus on some backstory and history and emotional resonance with each of the different members of the team. Maybe an issue is focused on the mission, but we get into maybe one particular teammate’s head. There’s so much of me that I feel when I’m writing.
Vincent is a guy who has an affliction, a disease, an addiction that has basically just destroyed his life. And now he’s found a kind of purpose with it. But it’s a very self-serving purpose. His insecurities, his pain, the stuff that motivates him, are things that I could really relate to.
But then I think about Wanda and I think about sometimes my frustration with the system and with what’s going on in the world, and my desire to break things down and, and fight back.
Ultimately, at the end of the day, I do theorize that people who read this will fall most in love, and I could be wrong, with dear Sweet, private Lucky Taylor. This is a soldier who has been pieced back together time and again. This is a practice of reanimation that Dr. West is doing. This character, to me, is the embodiment of trauma and has secrets locked deep, deep within that cortex, even though maybe this is the third brain that’s been planted in that skull, and maybe this is the 16th heart that’s been transplanted into that chest. The fact of the matter is that this being has a beating heart that is filled with love and just doesn’t know how to express it yet. I deeply love that character.
Courtesy of DC Comics.
AIPT: This is an eclectic group of monsters. Were there any monster types you wanted to fit in?
DD: When our story opens, we’re on the heels of a pretty gnarly tragedy that’s taken place with this unit. People mockingly refer to Dr. West’s project within the Army Futures Lab; they call it the monster unit. The m that she utilizes is merge. She wants to merge the worlds of science and what people call the supernatural. She says that the supernatural is simply the science that hasn’t been scientifically proven or disproven yet. If you think about classic storytelling in the Jekyll and Hyde vein, that’s the only hint I would be able to give.
When the story begins, though, on the heels of this tragedy, something happened before we begin this story, and it’s going to be slowly revealed why there are no other monster soldiers at this moment. Then, hopefully, in the future, I will get to play even more with characters and monsters that I think are gonna make a great addition to this world. But you’ll see me getting to play around with my homage to Creature from the Black Lagoon, my homage to the zombie tradition. I am really excited about playing with different versions of classic and mythological monsters, as well as even some contemporary stuff. But for time being, mostly we’re just gonna focus on a Gorgon, a werewolf, a vampire, and a reanimated Frankenstein monsters type creature.
Courtesy of DC Comics.
AIPT: Speaking of that crew, we also understand Zatanna will be popping up in this series. Are you a fan of hers?
DD: My editor Katie was like, “What DC characters would you like to fold into the story, if any?” Who was a character who would have an understanding of monsters, the supernatural, and mysticism and could potentially be maybe even an ally for those who are misunderstood? Who’s someone with a really good heart? Who understands the difference between what is on the surface and what appearances are the difference between trickery and true magic? I jumped [on Zatanna], and I’m really excited for you guys to see what Jesus does with the book.
I wanted to bring an opportunity for Zatanna to be utterly perplexed and utterly horrified, but also because she’s such a brilliant, curious person that is on her own mission.
Courtesy of DC Comics.
AIPT: Having the pleasure of being a Suicide Squad member, how might you describe the differences between that team and this one?
DD: So the Suicide Squad has a similarity to the concept of The Dirty Dozen. A group of throwaway misfits put them on a mission because they’re willing to do whatever it takes with the suicide squad. ’cause they’re just trying to get time off their prison sentences. And they are villains who know that they’re villains. The difference is that with Creature Commandos, each of these figures is a monster.
They’ve not been embraced by anyone anywhere. Even villains have found home in the rogues galleries, in the assemblies of bad guys. They have a purpose. My creature commandos are surviving, but they’re surviving with this affliction. And the missions that they’re trying to carry out in life, be those missions that are illegal or simply just to stay alive. They have isolated them to the point where they are completely alone, and yet inside of them yearns a desire to be able to validate their existence, and they’re internally struggling with this notion of whether this world is just better off without me.
This is something that I have certainly felt and wrestled with in my own journey of mental wellness and the struggles that I’ve had and trying to survive in this very difficult life that all of us are trying to get through with as many laughs and smiles and love and comic books in hand as possible.
AIPT: You also have a story coming up in the DC Horror Presents anthology. What can you tell us about that?
DD: That was so fun. I collaborated with a longtime collaborator and co-writer on a number of comics, Leah Kilpatrick. We’ve been horror friends and creative friends for 15 years. When we were given the opportunity to tell a one-shot story of horror in the DCU, we said to ourselves, what’s the character that you wish you would’ve seen more of? Because they’re so horrifying. But we dug somebody out of the toy box, and there’s your only clue. We wanted to tell a heartfelt story.
