13 ‘True Blood’ stars who have also played Marvel or DC characters

Eight years before making her debut as a telepath named Sookie Stackhouse on “True Blood,” Anna Paquin made her first appearance as Rogue in the 2000 “X-Men” movie.

Paquin starred as the mutant in “X-Men” (2000), “X2: X-Men United” (2003), and “X-Men: The Last Stand” (2006).

She reprised the role in “X-Men: Days of Future Past,” which was released the same year that “True Blood” came to an end. 

Stephen Moyer, known for playing a vampire named Bill Compton on “True Blood,” went on to star on Fox and Marvel’s short-lived series about mutants called “The Gifted.”

“The Gifted” ran for two seasons between 2017 and 2019, starring Moyer as Reed Strucker, a father to two mutant teenagers.

Rutina Wesley, who played Sookie’s best friend named Tara Thornton, guest-starred on two episodes of the CW series “Arrow.”

On “Arrow,” based on DC Comics characters, Wesley played a sergeant of the Star City Police Department named Liza Warner.

Joe Manganiello joined “True Blood” on season three as a werewolf named Alcide Herveaux. He also has experience playing comic-book characters.

Prior to “True Blood,” Manganiello starred as Flash Thompson in Sam Raimi’s “Spider-Man” trilogy.

After the hit HBO drama ended, the actor got cast as the villain Slade Wilson/Deathstroke in the DC Extended Universe (DCEU).

He made his first appearance in the end credits scene of the 2017 movie “Justice League.” Manganiello also played the character in Zack Snyder’s 2021 cut of “Justice League.”

“Birds of Prey” star Jurnee Smollett portrayed Nicole Wright on the last two seasons of “True Blood.”

Her “True Blood” character was the cofounder of the Vampire Unity Society, which focused on supporting the rights of supernatural creatures.

Six years after the vampire series ended, Smollett starred as the iconic DC Comics character Dinah Lance/Black Canary in the 2020 film “Birds of Prey.”

Marvel fans will recognize Deborah Ann Woll for her role as Karen Page on the “Daredevil” series, but before that, she played a vampire on “True Blood.”

Woll joined “True Blood” later in season one as Jessica Hamby, a woman whom Bill turned into a vampire. 

On “True Blood,” Jim Parrack starred as Hoyt Fortenberry, one of the few genuinely decent guys in Bon Temps.

Frost, Parrack’s character in the 2016 movie “Suicide Squad,” was one of the Joker’s goons — making him vastly different than Hoyt.