DC has had a wild life in theaters, full of plenty of behind-the-scenes changes. Case in point: James Gunn and Peter Safran being name co-CEOs and forming a brand new shared universe. Fans are super curious about the upcoming DC movies, especially Superman: Legacy which will mark the first installment of the new timeline. The cast of Superman: Legacy has been coming together, and Gunn recently confirmed who would be playing Lex Luthor. And he's an A+ choice: actor Nicholas Hoult.
What we know about Superman: Legacy is limited, but James Gunn has brought together a stellar group of actors to populate Metropolis. And after a ton of chatter and rumors, Gunn posted on Instagram confirming the rumors about Hoult were true. As he put it,
There you have it. Hoult is officially going from Marvel to DC, playing Lex Luthor after his years as Beast in the X-Men franchise. And it should be fascinating to see him flex his villainous muscles, playing arguably the most iconic Superman foe. Hopefully we find out more about James Gunn's plans sooner rather than later.
Gunn made this announcement on Instagram, sharing it to his 2.7 million followers on the social media outlet. He also took the time to explain the timing of this reveal, as Hoult had been rumored to be playing Lex for a while now. Case in point: the fan art of Hoult as Luthor. While Gunn maintains he'll never lie to the fans, he was unable to confirm it earlier because the deal wasn't official. But now it is, and the Warm Bodies actor will be everyone's favorite bald baddie.
This casting announcement is doubly intriguing as Nicholas Hoult was reportedly a finalist to play Clark Kent in Superman: Legacy. While that role would go to David Corenswet, clearly James Gunn was impressed enough to give him a very different, but still quite large, role in the blockbuster. And just like that, he'll presumably be the first big villain of the new DC Universe.
As previously mentioned, Gunn is putting together a killer cast to bring his upcoming DC flick to life, with Superman: Legacy even including other heroes from the comic book lore. In addition to Hoult and Corsenswet, Marvelous Mrs. Maisel star Rachel Brosnahan will play Lois Lane. Skyler Gisondo will be Jimmy Olsen, while the other heroes include Nathan Fillion's Green Lantern, Isabela Merced's Hawkgirl, Edi Gathegi's Mr. Terrific, and Anthony Carrigan's Metamorpho. Although the story of this movie are a mystery, the talent of the cast should help buoy excitement until we kno more.
The next DC movie hitting theaters is Aquaman 2 on December 20th, followed by Superman: Legacy on July 11th, 2025. In the meantime, check out the 2024 movie release dates to plan your next movie experience.
