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EXCLUSIVE: That’s what we hear Multiple sources report that James Gunn has found his Lex Luthor in British actor Nicholas Hoult.
A movie star was always eyeing the role after Gunn chose fresh face David Corenswet for the title role and Emmy winner Rachel Brosnahan as Lois Lane.
The studio wanted to go through the casting process after the SAG-AFTRA strike to get an actor to play Luther. Warners is already working with Hoult on Clint Eastwood’s Juror No. 2” together. Hoult also starred in the 2015 Warner Bros. blockbuster “Mad Max Fury Road,” which grossed over $380 million at the worldwide box office.
Deadline reported last week that Venezuelan actress María Gabriela de Faría had landed the role of villain The Engineer.
Hoult joins the ranks of actors such as Gene Hackman, Kevin Spacey and Jesse Eisenberg who have portrayed Luthor on screen in Warner Bros.’ Superman franchise.
Gunn chose Corenswet and Brosnahan as his leads after months of audition tapes and in-person screen tests before the actors signed on, but continued to prepare for the film.
Gunn (the Guardian of the Galaxy films, The Suicide Squad, the original Max series Peacemaker) directs from his script based on the DC characters. Superman was created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster. The film is produced by co-DC boss Peter Safran (Aquaman, the upcoming Aquaman 2, The Conjuring franchise).
Superman: Legacy is scheduled to be released worldwide on July 11, 2025.
The project was announced earlier this year when Gunn and Safran laid out their plan for the first phase of this revamped series, and Superman: Legacy took center stage as a project that would help launch this strategy.
Hoult is repped by UTA, 42, and Sloane, Offer, Weber & Dern.
Warner Bros had no comment.