James Gunn Confirms Nicholas Hoult Is Lex Luthor in Superman Legacy

James Gunn has confirmed that actor Nicholas Hoult will be the DC Universe Lex Luthor, making his debut in Gunn’s Superman: Legacy reboot. 

Fans have long speculated and/or hoped that Nicholas Hoult was getting the DCU Lex Luthor role. Now Gunn has confirmed it with a Twitter (X) post, welcoming Hoult to the family: 

Yes, finally I can answer, @nicholashoult is Lex Luthor in #SupermanLegacy and I couldn’t be happier. We went out to dinner last night to celebrate and discuss how we can create a Lex that will be different from anything you’ve seen before and will never forget. “But, James, we heard this weeks ago, why didn’t you tell us it was true?” Because, although we were discussing it, it wasn’t final until a couple days ago and I don’t want to tell you all something that isn’t certain. Anyway, here’s to Lex (and Nicholas!), one of my very favorite characters in the DCU. 🙌🧬🔬⚗️

Nicholas Hoult has built up a lot of geek cred in films like Warm Bodies, Renfield, and  X-Men: First Class – not to mention critical acclaim from films like The Menu, Tolkien, and The Favourite. He’s also one of the few actors who gets almost universal approval from DC fans as a casting choice for the new Luthor. More importantly, Hoult looks like he’ll be a good onscreen pairing with the likes of David Corenswet’s Clark Kent/Superman, as well as Rachel Borsnahan’s Lois Lane. Hoult has big franchise universe experience with X-Men, so he’s also a solid bet for building a larger franchise arc around Lex Luthor, in subsequent DCU films and TV shows. 

It IS a bit curious that Nicholas Hoult took this long to be fully committed to Superman: Legacy. It came out during the casting rounds for the titular role of Superman that Hoult was one of the finalists on Gunn’s shortlist before Corenswet ultimately got the part. Part of the reason the Hoult/Luthor rumors popped up so quickly is that fans figured Gunn would simply shift Hoult into the villain role – but it doesn’t seem to have shaken out that smoothly. 

Some fans will be wondering: could Nicholas Hoult have had a prior obligation? There’s fair amount of rumor that his version of Hank McCoy/Beast from the X-Men movies could come back for Deadpool 3, which is expected to close the curtain on Fox’s era of the X-Men Universe. 

Other recent additions to Superman: Legacy include James Gunn’s brother Sean being cast as DC villain Maxwell Lord. 

Superman: Legacy has a release date of July 11, 2025.