What is James Gunn’s muse for Lex Luthor? The director reveals his sources of inspiration of Nicholas Hoult’s take on the iconic Superman villain.
Despite how much has been leaked about Superman and the media that influenced it, relatively little is known about the role Nicholas Hoult’s Lex Luthor will play in the story. Despite being confirmed to be the main villain of DC Studios’ inaugural film, barely even a BTS photo has been released. Luckily, James Gunn has come to tithe over starving fans by revealing some of his influences when crafting the character for the upcoming reboot.
“God there are so many,” Gunn explained in a recent post on Threads. “Lex is one of my favorites – he works on so many levels – and it’s been a joy bringing him to the screen with the incredible Nicholas Hoult. Some of the influences were, of course, All-Star Superman, Azzarello’s Luthor, and the reckless scientific genius from the 1950’s and ‘60’s”
While it was obvious that All-Star Superman was going to influence Nicholas Hoult’s Lex Luthor given how much James Gunn took from it for the rest of the film, the other inspirations illuminate potential plot points in the upcoming film. Brian Azzarello’s Lex Luthor: Man of Steel paints the villain in a much more sympathetic light than other books, and the mad scientist angle may suggest that DC Studios may be leaning in to the character being an inventor in the upcoming film.
Nicholas Hoult’s Role In Superman As Lex Luthor
Even though most of the press around Superman‘s villain stems from the mysterious man in black, James Gunn may have just given fans the key to linking the character to Lex Luthor. If the film truly is focusing on Lex as a mad scientist, it’s almost certain that the man in black is one of his creations. This would also explain why Nicholas Hoult wasn’t often seen on set of the DC Studios film, as he was manipulating his creation from the sidelines.
Of course, it’s possible the influence James Gunn mentions applies to another DC Studios project. The upcoming Bane and Deathstroke film may actually be about a team with prominent ties to Lex Luthor. So while Nicholas Hoult may not be a genius inventor in Superman, there’s an almost infinite amount of possibilities as to what influence he could have on future projects.
Superman is currently scheduled to hit theaters on July 11, 2025. Stay tuned for the latest news regarding the future of the DC Universe and make sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel for more content!