The 'X-Men: First Class' actor is added to the cast of James Gunn's movie as the villainous Lex Luthor after he was reported to be eying the lead protagonist role, which eventually went to David Corenswet.
- Nov 20, 2023
AceShowbiz - Nicholas Hoult is going to star in "Superman: Legacy" anyway. After reportedly missing out the lead role, the British actor has been added to the cast of the upcoming movie as the classic DC Comics villain Lex Luthor.
Deadline was the first to report the news. Hoult joins David Corenswet, Rachel Brosnahan, Nathan Fillion, Isabela Merced, Edi Gathegi, Anthony Carrigan and Maria Gabriela who were already cast for the superhero film. The Golden Globe and Emmy Award-winning actor was previously reported to be in contention to play Clark Kent, but the role eventually went to Corenswet.
Brosnahan is going to star as Lois Lane. Fillion, Merced, Gathegi and Carrigan and will make appearances as DC heroes Guy Gardner a.k.a. Green Lantern, Hawkgirl, Mister Terrific and Metamorpho respectively, while Gabriela was recently cast as the villain the Engineer.
James Gunn, who writes and directs "Superman: Legacy", has stressed that it will not be an origin story. Instead, the film will focus on a young version of Superman as a reporter interacting with key characters such as Lois Lane as he goes on a journey to reconcile his Kryptonian heritage with his human family in Smallville, Kansas.
Gunn's DC co-chair Peter Safran described Superman in the film as "the embodiment of truth, justice and the American way; he's kindness in a world that thinks of kindness as old fashioned." Gunn and Safran consider the film to be the true beginning of the DCU.
Following the end of the Hollywood strikes, Gunn said that the movie is still on track for a summer 2025 launch. "Thanks to the efforts of our talented crew, who never lost faith during the longest strikes in Hollywood history, and who never let their foot off the pedal, continuing to barrel forward, creating the most amazing character and set designs I've seen in my entire career, 'Superman: Legacy' will be making the originally planned release date of July 11, 2025," he wrote on X, formerly Twitter, earlier this month.
Hoult previously played mutant Hank McCoy in "X-Men: First Class" and reprised the role in "X-Men: Days of Future Past", "X-Men: Apocalypse" and "Dark Phoenix". He also starred in "Jack the Giant Slayer", "Mad Max: Fury Road" and "Renfield". He also lends his voice to Jon Arbuckle in the animated "The Garfield Movie".
