Jesse Eisenberg Has A Blunt Piece Of Advice For DCU Lex Luthor Actor Nicholas Hoult

Nicholas Hoult has received some great advice from Jesse Eisenberg for his upcoming DC Universe role. With the release of "Superman: Legacy," James Gunn will officially usher in a new era of DC cinematic storytelling. "Superman: Legacy" will reintroduce several iconic characters to a new generation of fans. The picture is ripe with talent, with all eyes on David Corenswet and Rachel Brosnahan's debuts as Superman and Lois Lane, respectively. Perhaps the most interesting piece of casting for "Superman: Legacy" is Hoult, who is set to play the nefarious Lex Luthor.

One of the most beloved comic book villains of all time, Luthor has been portrayed and voiced by many actors on both the big and small screen over the decades. The most recent movie version was played by "The Social Network" star Eisenberg, who debuted as the famous bad guy in Zack Snyder's "Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice." The Oscar nominee has a sound piece of advice for Hoult ahead of his appointment as the LexCorp boss: Eisenberg bluntly told Variety while attending the Sundance 2024 Film Festival, "Don't watch me!"

Eisenberg's tech-bro take on Luthor was controversial at the time, but it's disappointing that the actor was never given an opportunity to expand the character in subsequent films due to the implosion of the DC Extended Universe. Ultimately, it's sound advice — regardless of your opinion on Eisenberg's Luther, Hoult should forge his own path with the character and lean into the nuances of the world that Gunn has created. Of course, Hoult is far from a rookie: Audiences have seen him in blockbusters such as "Mad Max: Fury Road" and the "X-Men" films, as well as smaller productions like "The Menu" and "The Favourite."

When asked by Variety if he still felt an attachment to Lex Luthor, Jesse Eisenberg opened up about his time as Superman's arch-nemesis, saying, "Whenever you play a role you feel connected to it." After his debut in "Batman v Superman," Eisenberg returned as Luthor for a brief appearance in "Justice League," setting up a Legion of Doom that never saw the light of day. Despite such a brief run as Luthor, Eisenberg explained his connection to the bad guy. "There's no way around it," he said. "Any time you do anything, even if it's a movie that's a Hollywood kind of thing, you connect."

While speaking with Deadline in 2022, Eisenberg described his experience with the character as personal and reflected on how he joined "Batman v Superman" because of writer Chris Terrio's strong abilities, not Luthor's comic book legacy. "He's a very emotional person," the actor said of Terrio. "He thought a lot about my character, and I thought a lot about my character, too. I talked with my acting coach about the character a lot, about his backstory with his father and his emotional life — and then people hate me."

The vitriol surrounding Eisenberg's take on the character was toxic, to say the least, but it did result in an extremely unique performance. It's safe to say that Hoult will take Eisenberg's advice and make the role his own. Zack Snyder and James Gunn are very different filmmakers and it's hard to imagine the new DCU boss wanting to create a Luthor that resembles a tech mogul. We'll have to wait until "Superman: Legacy" flies into cinemas on July 11, 2025 to see what direction Hoult is taking the iconic character in.