Doctor Fate, also known as Kent Nelson, was one of the best characters in the DCEU film Black Adam. Interestingly enough, this DC Comics character has never really reached the same level of mainstream popularity outside the comics. Many comic fans have long believed Doctor Fate helped inspire Marvel when they created Doctor Strange, especially since both characters focus heavily on mysticism and cosmic magic, though Marvel has always maintained that Doctor Strange was an original creation. In Black Adam, Doctor Fate was portrayed by former James Bond star Pierce Brosnan.

I do not think Black Adam explains his backstory especially well, but from what I remember, Kent Nelson gains his abilities through a magical helmet tied to cosmic forces and ancient power. I am also not entirely sure whether he is technically an actual doctor or a doctor in the same way Dr. Pepper is a doctor.

Like Doctor Strange, Doctor Fate possesses a wide variety of mystical powers. One of the abilities he uses most throughout the movie is creating temporary magical duplicates of himself during combat.

He also gets one of the movie’s strongest moments when he makes a defiant final stand against Sabbac, using every spell and ability he can to stop the demonic threat from destroying the world and killing countless people.

Sadly, Doctor Fate dies during the battle, though that apparently is not unusual for the mantle in the comics. There have been multiple successors and incarnations of Doctor Fate over the years who could have continued the role in the DC Extended Universe if the franchise had not effectively imploded shortly after the movie’s release. Still, I think Pierce Brosnan did a genuinely good job portraying the character. It is also kind of nice seeing him continue acting in major movies even though he looks far older now than he did during his peak popularity in the 1990s.