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James Gunn’s Superman Just Gave Us The Best Lex Luthor In 47 Years

July 13, 2025

Warning! This post contains SPOILERS for James Gunn’s Superman

James Gunn’s Superman just gave us one of the best live-action versions of Lex Luthor. The classic arch-foe to the Man of Steel, no DC villain hates Superman more than Metropolis’ resident genius billionaire. As such, the DCU’s newest version of the arch-foe is truly a sight to behold.

One of Superman’s greatest strengths is how much it feels like a comic book come to life. Audiences are thrown into an established universe, one where the rivalry between Lex Luthor and Superman has already been active for some time. As such, the DCU’s Lex Luthor is one of Superman’s strongest performances, the best version of the classic DC villain we’ve had since 1978’s Superman: The Movie.

Nicholas Hoult Plays Lex Luthor In James Gunn’s Superman

Already Harboring A Major Grudge Against The Man of Steel

In James Gunn’s Superman, Lex Luthor’s master plan to kill Superman is well underway by the time the movie opens. However, audiences are quickly brought up to speed. Played by Nicholas Hoult, Lex Luthor is as intelligent as he is cunning, a prerequisite trait for any good depiction of the classic DC foe. Thankfully, Hoult pulls both off with relative ease.

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It becomes abundantly clear that the DCU’s Lex Luthor will stop at nothing to end Superman. Throughout the movie, Luthor continually believes he’s 12 chess moves ahead, having worked out all the supposed angles even as he’s warned by his “inferiors” that his plans are falling apart. Hoult’s Luthor is relentless, unwilling to allow Metropolis and the world to adore Superman when he feels he’s earned it.

The DCU’s Lex Luthor Is The Most Comic-Accurate Version We’ve Had In Years

In Both Appearance And Character

Not only does Hoult perfectly look the part of Lex Luthor, but he fully embodies everything DC fans would want to see. While he does make the role his own, Hoult also echoes the late Gene Hackman’s iconic performance as Lex Luthor in the Superman movies opposite Christopher Reeve. This is especially true when Hoult’s Luthor triumphantly declares, “Brains over Brawn!” as his superpowered enforcers continually beat the Man of Steel.

“The DCU’s Lex Luthor is truly merciless in both action and calculation…”

The psychology of Hoult’s Luthor is also on point. In a monologue worthy of the DC Comics page, Lex acknowledges his deep jealousy of Superman and all of his inherent power, especially after everything Luthor believes he’s done for Metropolis and the world at large. Despite recognizing it as a flaw, Luthor confirms he’s determined to make it a strength.

In Superman’s third act, Lex claims he’s made his envy his “calling”. He’s committed to this dark purpose, which results in orchestrating a grand-scale plan that would have allowed him to kill Superman (while still being loved). As a result, the DCU’s Lex Luthor is truly merciless in both action and calculation.

Will We See Lex Luthor Again In The DCU?

There’s So Much Potential For The Superman Villain

Nicholas Hoult's Lex Luthor screams in anger in James Gunn's Superman

It’s refreshing to see such a faithful performance from Nicholas Hoult in James Gunn’s Superman, along with some of the more unique traits not seen on screen before, like Luthor becoming increasingly unhinged with rage as his plans unravel. While Luthor is ultimately stopped by the ending of Superman, the hope is that the Man of Steel’s arch-foe has only just begun in the new DCU.

“The most exciting thing to come out of Superman in terms of Lex Luthor’s DCU future is the fact that he can’t really hide anymore…”

At the end of Superman, it’s confirmed that Luthor is being taken to Belle Reve, the maximum-security prison run by Amanda Waller and ARGUS. This does open the door for some exciting future possibilities, especially if Waller decides she wants to make use of Luthor’s genius in some way. Likewise, it will be fascinating to see how Luthor might learn from this first major scheme against Superman.

Perhaps Luthor may try to get his hands dirtier in the future of the DCU. For example, he could build his own warsuit like in the comics and take on Superman himself. We could also see Lex attempt to run for president like he does on the page, though that may be harder now that he’s been exposed by the Daily Planet.

Nicholas Hoult as Lex Luthor in Superman

The most exciting thing to come out of Superman in terms of Lex Luthor’s DCU future is the fact that he can’t really hide anymore. The world now knows just how evil he is with everything he tried to do in the hopes of killing Superman. He also tried to claim his very own nation by aiding Boravia and their invasion of Jarhanpur.

Sure, money talks and Lex will possibly still have some influence via his company. Even so, losing the bulk of the love he had from the world may very well be the thing that makes the DCU’s Lex Luthor even more dangerous in future movies. At any rate, I think it’s pretty safe to say that Nicholas Hoult is the best live-action Lex Luthor we’ve had in decades, and that he’s hopefully just getting started.

James Gunn’s Superman is now playing in theaters from DC Studios.