When You Finish Saving The World Trailer Released for Jesse Eisenberg's Directorial Debut

By Timothy Adams

Oscar-nominated actor Jesse Eisenberg makes his directorial debut with When You Finish Saving The World, which has released an official trailer. The Lex Luthor actor has recruited some big names to headline his first film, such as Academy Award winner Julianne Moore (Lisey's Story) and Finn Wolfhard (Stranger Things, Ghostbusters: Afterlife). When You Finish Saving The World comes from A24 Films, the studio behind hits like Moonlight, Lady Bird, Ex Machina, The Witch, Eighth Grade, and Hereditary. Moore and Wolfhard play mother and son, respectively, who are having a hard time getting along. 

When You Finish Saving The World is based on Jesse Eisenberg's 2020 Audible Original audio drama of the same name, and was first screened at this year's Sundance Film Festival. The trailer shows Ziggy (Wolfhard) with an apparent crush on a girl in his school, so he starts agreeing with her views on politics. As for Evelyn (Moore), she begins to give parenting advice to a teen at her shelter. Evelyn and Ziggy continue to butt heads throughout the trailer, which also shows Ziggy's successful career as a social media streamer.

Jesse Eisenberg's DC Villain Lex Luthor

Of course, Jesse Eisenberg played the DC villain Lex Luthor in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. Luthor manipulated Henry Cavill's Superman and Ben Affleck's Batman, leading to the resurrection of General Zod as the monstrous Doomsday. After Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman defeat Doomsday, Luthor is arrested for his crimes.

However, before Luthor can be sent to jail, he's rescued by Deathstroke (Joe Manganiello) with the tease of the Injustice League being formed to counteract the Justice League.

DC Fans Defend Jesse Eisenberg's Portrayal as Lex Luthor

After Iron Man star Robert Downey Jr. shaved his head for a new HBO series titled The Sympathizer, DC fans realized the new bald look would make him the perfect Lex Luthor. Of course, facial hair became one of Robert Downey Jr.'s trademark looks as Tony Stark, the billionaire playboy philanthropist that also moonlights as Iron Man. Downey famously retired from playing Iron Man in 2019's Avengers: Endgame, sacrificing himself to stop the Mad Titan Thanos. While fans wait to see if Robert Downey Jr. is truly done as Iron Man, his new bald look was enough to send fanboys wild as the new DC Universe Lex Luthor.

This was enough to make another set of fans rush to defend Jesse Eisenberg's version of Lex Luthor. Eisenberg explained his feelings about the future of the character with Deadline earlier this year.

"Listen, I'm not a comic book fan," Eisenberg explained. "To me, it was not playing a role that I'd envisioned since childhood. To me, it was a chance to play this great character that this great writer wrote, and I loved doing that. So, to play it is a joy, and to not play it isn't something that I'm going to be ashamed to tell my kids about, because that is not an important genre in my life, even though I loved doing that movie."

When You Finish Saving The World opens in theaters on January 20, 2023.

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