Doom Patrol Season 3: Madame Rouge cast on HBO Max series

A new villain will patrol Doom Manor when Doom Patrol Season 3 streams on HBO Max. TVLine reports that Michelle Gomez has been cast as Madame Rouge, the DC Comics baddie who was first introduced in the Doom Patrol comics in the 1960s.

Gomez is a veteran of genre television, having recently appeared on Chilling Adventures of Sabrina and was a fan-favorite as Missy on Doctor Who. She is the first new cast member added to the series for Doom Patrol Season 3.

The DC Comics adaptation follows a band of outcast superheroes played by Diane Guerrero (Crazy Jane), April Bowlby (Rita Farr), Matt Bomer (Larry Trainor/Negative Man), Brendan Fraser (Cliff Steele/Robotman), Timothy Dalton (Niles Caulder), and Joivan Wade (Victor Stone/Cyborg).

The show was given an early renewal in 2020, and it was announced that Season 3 would stream exclusively on HBO Max. Previously, Doom Patrol had debuted on DC Universe, but that platform has now been abandoned in favor of HBO Max.

Doom Patrol Season 3: Who is Madame Rouge?

The character Laura De Mille has plenty in common with Rita Farr—she was an actress, till an accident gave her split personalities, ala Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. In the comics, De Mille takes on the moniker of Madame Rouge and joins the Brotherhood of Evil. This band of villains is the Titans’ greatest nemeses in many comic book runs.

Madame Rouge is most familiar to fans from the Teen Titans animated show. She’s said to be a master of disguise and has also developed superpowers similar to those of Rita Farr. Could she be pitted as Rita’s rival in Doom Patrol Season 3?

In some comic runs, Rouge and Niles Caulder are romantically linked. We’ll need to wait to see if the show will go down a similar route. For one, while Gomez is maybe a veteran actress, she’s still 20 years Dalton’s junior. If romance is on the cards, an older actress would have been better suited to the role.

At the end of the previous season, Niles was heartbroken over the loss of his daughter, Dorothy, who had been poisoned by Niles’ immortal wife. The team hadn’t fared much better—they had all been turned to wax. Since there is another season, we can imagine they’ll be right as rain. Or as close to possible, considering they’re the Doom Patrol.

What do you think of the casting of Madame Rouge on Doom Patrol Season 3? Let us know in the comments below.

New episodes of Doom Patrol Season 3 will stream on HBO Max.