| “ | He's known as the Gambler. He's a master strategist. A genius when it comes to probabilities. A programming whiz. Encrypted networks are his thing. Real Dark Web stuff. He's wanted for fraud, conspiracy, and murder. | „ |
| ~ Beth Chapel about the Gambler |
| “ | Seems like you got a stronger will than your friend. It's too bad. For you. | „ |
| ~ Gambler before killing a truck driver |
Steven Sharpe, also known as The Gambler is a supporting antagonist in the CW superhero series Stargirl.
He is CFO of The American Dream and a member of the Injustice Society of America who went into hiding after Stargirl's JSA foiled the group's plan to enact Project New America. Gambler would resurface in Blue Valley a year later claiming to have turned over a new leaf and was killed by Dragon King in the Ultra-Hamanite's gorilla body at the behest of Jordan Mahkent after stumbling upon the hidden surveillance cameras the villains had set up in various locations to spy on their enemies. He is also the former leader of the No Limit Gang and the estranged father of Rebecca "Becky" Sharpe.
He was portrayed by Eric Goins.
Overview[]
Steven Sharpe was born in the Southern states, where he became a costumed supervillain known as The Gambler. His greed led Sharpe to become a master in the art of deception which he uses to make himself a vey rich man. He eventually joins the Injustice Society of America presumably to make even more money.
Ten years prior to the start of the series, Gambler accompanies the Injustice Society in their attack on the Justice Society of America, during which he fought the JSA's leader Starman and was defeated by him. After the heroes were defeated, Sharpe became the CFO of The American Dream in Blue Valley, Nebraska where he worked under ISA leader Jordan Mahkent.
During an open session on their next philanthropic event, Sharpe addresses the other employees to see if they any ideas and coldly dismisses Barbara Whitmore's community test suggestion. He is later seen in the ISA's secret base and welcomes Icicle back before showing him footage of an unknown person who defeated Brainewave using Starman's staff. Gambler asks Icicle what they should do and he advices the former not to worry.
Gambler later met with Sportsmaster and Tigress in their civilian identities to talk about the mission that involves him getting the data they need for Project: New America by hacking into Empire Enterprises which is a success.
Personality[]
| “ | Let me tell you something. That Kentucky-fried felon is not to be trusted. No matter what he says, he's only ever been in this life for the money. That's all he cares about. | „ |
| ~ Larry Crock warns Pat Dugan not to trust the Gambler. |
Sharpe was a very greedy man who made a living of profiting off the misfortune of others by robbing them blind with his technological skills without thinking twice. He had an off-putting reputation among his employees as he deeply hated everyone's suggestions and is quick to shoot down ideas that aren't his own or Icicle's, whom he sees to be on equal footing as him, and has a very egocentric yet cut-off personality. He also had a dark sense of humor, casually handing a poisoned chocolate coin as a "bonus" to an associate with a smile on his face.
Despite his evil nature Sharpe displayed a fondness for cats and was willing to make amends with those he had wronged so he could become a better person for the sake of his daughter Rebecca who he loved very much.
Abilities[]
- Genius-Level Intellect: The Gambler possesses a keen intellect that allows him to easily compete with JSA hero Dr. Mid-Nite who is a genius inventor and doctor in his own right.
- Master Hacker: The Gambler's main skill is his hacking ability, as he is able to hack into and access classified information from a remote location without leaving behind any trace of his involvement. His skill is so great he's able to engage and multitask in multiple acts of online gambling, including solitaire, while also performing complex coding with relative ease and was implied that he regularly encrypts and maintains software algorithms and technological programming for the ISA's strategic advantage. He was later even able to hack Dr. Mid-Nite's goggles despite their security measures and could contend with its own hacking ability, building up firewalls in record time quickly enough to prevent the goggles from interfacing with his own technologically-controlled security systems.
- Marksman: The Gambler's main weapon of choice is an easily concealed pistol literally under his sleeve, which he uses to execute a truck driver subdued by Anaya Bowin. However, because Sharpe generally implements this weapon at point-blank range, his skills as legitimate marksman can be called into question.
Gallery[]
_02.jpg "Gambler (Stargirl) 02.jpg (254 KB)")
Trivia[]
- In the comics the Gambler is an enemy of Alan Scott the first Green Lantern while in the series he is the arch-nemesis of the original Dr. Mid-Nite.
- Gambler owned a pet cat named Juniper, but it is not seen with him when he returns in season 3.
- He was a fan of Timber by Ke$ha as he was seen humming to it while trying to hack into the Empire Enterprises system.
- In Stargirl Gambler is the father of a girl named Rebecca Sharpe who in the comics is his granddaughter and a supervillainess known as Hazard.
- This version of the Gambler is similar to the Calculator from Arrow; as they are both notorious criminal masterminds who rely mostly on their intelligence and use computer hacking as an essential part of their schemes. Also, both men renounced their evil ways in order to have a relationship with their estranged daughters (Felicity Smoak and Becky Sharpe, respectively) although unlike the Calculator, Gambler was killed before he had the chance to meet his daughter.
