Former Lex Luthor Actor Reacts To Nicholas Hoult's Superman: Legacy Casting

Former Lex Luthor actor Jon Cryer is totally on board with Nicholas Hoult's reported "Superman: Legacy" casting. 

James Gunn continues to find interesting talent for "Superman: Legacy," the first film in DC's upcoming reboot. The maverick director (and now DC boss) has reportedly brought Nicholas Hoult on board as villain Lex Luthor in the upcoming picture. Hoult, best known for playing Beast in the "X-Men" prequel films, and for starring in projects like "Mad Max: Fury Road," has been a fan-favorite casting for Luthor for quite some time. Following the initial November 2023 report of his casting, fans took to social media to praise the decision.

One of Hoult's most notable champions? Former Lex Luthor actor Jon Cryer, who played the iconic Superman villain in the Arrowverse. Cryer prominently starred as Kyrpton's No.1 hater in "Supergirl," and continued to boast appearances in the "Crisis on Infinite Earths" special, which took place across several programs like "Batwoman" and "The Flash." Taking to X, formerly known as Twitter, Cryer voiced his support for Hoult's hopeful casting, writing, "I hope this deal can get done. He would absolutely CRUSH this." 

These are certainly tall words of praise considering how popular Cryer was as the small screen's Lex Luthor. Cryer is known to respect the legacy of Luthor on screen. Back in 2021, he took to X to praise Gene Hackman and Michael Rosenbaum's respective performances. With Hoult now reportedly on board for "Superman: Legacy," it looks like Cryer could have a favorite new Lex Luthor. 

Plot details for "Superman: Legacy" are ultimately slim and it's unclear what Nicholas Hoult's performance as Lex Luthor will look like. While Luthor has notably been portrayed as bald, Hoult isn't. One fan, in response to Jon Cryer's X post about Hoult's casting, jokingly complained about how the English actor was taking away a role from a bald actor. Cryer replied, "We'll be okay" on the platform. It's anyone's guess if Hoult will be bald in "Superman: Legacy." Jesse Eisenberg, who played a controversial iteration of Lex Luthor in "Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice" notably boasted long hair until the film's final moments, which saw him getting his head shaved.

While there's much enthusiasm for Hoult's casting as the LexCorp boss, the actor hasn't publicly commented on the role as of this writing. Beyond that, Gunn has remained coy regarding the "Superman" picture's plot, though we do know that the film isn't an origin story. It remains to be seen if Superman, played by "Pearl" actor David Corenswet, will meet Luthor for the first time in "Legacy" or if they'll already be at odds with one another. 

What is known is that Hoult has had a long journey with DC. The "Menu" actor was previously in talks to star as the titular character in Matt Reeves' "The Batman," though he ultimately lost the gig to fellow Englishman Robert Pattinson. Hoult was also reportedly in talks to star as Clark Kent in "Superman: Legacy," but Gunn decided to go with Corenswet. Now, Hoult finally has a DC gig to call his own in Lex Luthor.