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Nicholas Hoult, known for his work in projects such as Mad Max: Fury Road, X-Men: Days of Future Past, The Great, and more, has been cast as Lex Luthor in James Gunn’s Superman: Legacy.
Hoult’s casting is notable for numerous reasons, the first of which is that the character not only figures to be the villain of 2025’s Superman: Legacy but also a key figure in the newly-launching DCU at large.
The casting also represents as major personal win for Hoult, who was famously one of the final two choices for Matt Reeves’ The Batman (which ultimately went to Robert Pattinson) and was one of the final THREE actors in contention for Superman in this new film. American actor David Corenswet was ultimately cast in the iconic role.
Previous actors to portray Lex Luthor on the big screen include Gene Hackman, Kevin Spacey, and Jesse Eisenberg.
In addition to Hoult and Corenswet, Emmy-winning The Marvelous Ms. Maisel star Rachel Brosnahan has been cast as Lois Lane.
According to recent reports, Superman: Legacy — which will be the first official film in the Gunn-led DCU — will begin production in March and is still on track to release on July 11, 2025.
Further Superman: Legacy cast members include Isabela Merced as Hawkgirl, Edi Cathegi as Mister Terrific, Nathan Fillon as Guy Gardner (a Green Lantern), Anthony Carrigan as Metamorpho, María Gabriela de Faría as villain The Engineer, and more.
There is obviously tons riding on the success of Superman: Legacy considering the fact that it represents an entire reboot of Warner Bros’ DC brand, which had previously been known as the DCEU and featured Henry Cavill as Superman, Ben Affleck as Batman, and Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman.
Superman: Legacy is one of many DCU films to be announced, as Gunn has also confirmed that films such as The Authority, Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow, Swamp Thing, and The Brave and the Bold (a Batman movie) are in development.