Lex Luthor Casting Thread

BOOM! There, I said it. Who's with me?

 

I second this

 

Okay, I'll start.

How to Do Lex Luthor Right

Alright, Goyer, pay attention.

And to those who think Brainiac or some other such is Superman's ultimate archnemesis, just move along. You probably think Bane is Batman's ultimate archenemy and Venom is Spider-Man's. So, yeah, you can have that.

Even once we get to the place where we acknowledge the last 60 years of comics and adaptations where Lex Luthor has been Superman's greatest enemy, there are still some problems. Most notably: Lex is played out. We've seen him in every other live action Superman movie, and a shell of his actual greatness at that. So... for adapting Lex into the MOS Universe, there are three simple rules, detailed below.

1) Make Lex Intelligent

Now back in the 50s this meant mad scientist, and that was cool then. In the 80s this meant a powerful businessman. But what does that mean today? Well, the smartest guys we know in fiction are people like Sherlock Holmes and James Moriarty, people like Tony Stark and Gregory House. A big part of modern intelligence is the ability to quickly analyze situations and understand non-obvious information. Then to use this to stay three moves ahead of everyone else. Portraying that analytical side of Lex is crucial. Adding a corporate empire with a powerful applied sciences division makes a great deal of sense, but unless Lex is able to size up Superman is seconds, even deduce his secret identity, then he loses some appeal. He should immediately go beyond the need to kill Superman, but to something more insidious, more destructive. Like Joker, he should be after nothing less than the heart of the city.

2) Make Lex dangerous

Leave the world of real estate behind, obviously. But more seriously, in keeping with modern intelligence, where being an inventor of one really cool thing with a lot of applications is a lot more endearing and realistic and truly intelligent than having the magical power to conjure pseudo science out of nowhere. What Lex makes could be any number of things. Perhaps harvesting the power source of the Kryptonian ship to create a Kryptonite reactor in the heart of the city, deadly to Superman? Perhaps his goal is to get Superman to cross that line (again), and show the world what a dangerous monster he really is. Perhaps he has a satellite laser he can drop whenever he wishes.

Naturally he should be paired with some other villain that has more of an arc, much as Joker was paired with Two-Face. That villain could be Metallo, or it could be Brainiac, just depending. But more than the physical threat, Lex Luthor should be able to reach out and touch Superman any time he chooses. He should have the keys to the man's house, be close with Lois, he should own the Daily Planet, and give Ma Kent a new house. He should be intimately in contact with Clark's entire life. And he should be untouchable, not just in having some Kryptonite on him or some such foolishness, but beyond that, never giving Superman a reason to confront him physically.

Though, I do see him somehow putting Superman back into a Kryptonian environment and going mano-a-mano at some point, that could be fun.

3) Make Lex fascinating

This is the hard part. This is what sets Joker apart from everyone else. This is where we take this idea of this egotistical malevolent businessman and we turn it on its head. You might need to get really creative with the casting to find a performance and an adaptation of the character that is truly fresh.

The crucial parts of making a character like this interesting is a) adding an impenetrable layer to him. Lex isn't after power, neither is his background known. He fell off the map for 5-10 years and now he's back, and his experiences are simply unavailable. Now he's here to apparently make people stand up for themselves, and make themselves better instead of relying on this superman... but at the same time, you realize that this person is a sociopath, and really might do anything at any time, and even he doesn't really claim his stated goal.

The second issue is B) Giving him some eccentrism. Something that contrasts with the typical evil corporate villain. A stirring martial arts workout regimen. A sick daughter. A predilection for extreme sports like skydiving. A heavily sarcastic wit. A dozen copies of the same exact custom designer suit. All of the above? Something that makes him not at all normal, even on the surface. Combined with an impenetrable layer can make Lex truly Fascinating.

Extra Credit) Play him against Superman.

This one's obvoius, but Superman and Lex are opposites. Superman is a physical powerhouse, Lex is not. Superman is an ideal to strive for, Lex is purely greed and survival instinct. Superman is from a small town, Lex form a big city. Superman is young dashing and handsome, Lex is older, reserved and a bit scary looking at times. Superman comes from above, Lex from below. Superman has no social power, Lex Luthor has all the social power. Superman is seen as a danger to society, Lex Luthor is seen as a necessary part of daily life. Superman is a good guy, who occasionally does bad things when absolutely necessary to do the most good. Lex Luthor is a truly bad guy, who does good things only when absolutely necessary to do the most harm. Superman cares about everyone, Lex cares about no one but himself. These comparisons go on, and on, and on. Play them up, to the max. The better the villain, the better the story.

So what say ye? Any thoughts?

 

President Lex. That's what I want. Preferably about the time we get to "Justice League".

 

In regards to using Lex Luthor....bring it...BRIIIIIIIIIIING IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Ahh, I'm torn here. I love the idea of a power suit for Lex to wear, but it would probably look similar to what Zod wore. And after finally getting a satisfying fight between Superman and anyone in live action with plenty of destruction, maybe they should go with a quieter conflict between Superman and Lex. However, Lex must create a death ray.

 

Jaquin Phoenix needs to play the part, for one. Two, Lexcorp has rebuilt Metropolis as Lex Luthor is running for President and very staunch anti-Superman rhetoric spewing left and right.

 

I am the one who knocks

 

You mean him and Billy zane right?

I love Cranston but i'm sure a lot of people are just bringing him up due to the bald thing he has experience with (easier to manip right?).

For Lex i'd like to see an actor cast that is as unlikely an obvious pick as Heath ledger was for the joker, just to shake things up.

 

Even though he's already played a bald comicbook villain, I think Colin Farrell could have the right charisma for Luthor.

 

I think Bradley Cooper would be good. I know he was rumored to cameo in MoS a long time ago, but I still think that he's a good choice.
Colin Farrell would be good, I dont think i'd like Joaquin Phoenix as Lex

 

As much as I hate people automatically going for bald actors (Billy Zane, seriously?), Bryan Cranston would make a pretty great Lex.

I don't want it to look like Superman is just fighting Walter White, but I'm sure he'd dress and act very different so it wouldn't be a problem.

 

I actually wasn't thinking of Cranston's rendition as being bald. I was thinking he'd have hair for most of it. Or perhaps a hairpiece, a la Gene Hackman.

Cranston is such a great actor. Anyone who has seen Breaking Bad knows that. The comparison to Billy Zane is misplaced. I think Cranston would nail it.

However, I do admit that the inevitable comparisons to Walter White might become distracting. Hmmm.

 

Yeah, especially with both character's being quite manipulative, cunning, and, as Season 5 of Breaking Bad has strongly exhibited, often openly arrogant/over confident ... to say the very least.

 

From what Goyer and Snyder have said in interviews, they seem to "get" Lex Luthor in the way that we've all so desperately wanted to see him portrayed for so long. Someone highly intelligent, charismatic and yet cold and calculating, driven by ambition and acting in a way that he believes to be "right," despite how depraved it actually might be.

There are a lot of actors that I think could give us the ideal Lex. Ideally, since LexCorp has already been established, Lex should probably be an actor no younger than his late 30s, though I suppose he could be one of those Zuckerberg types who made a fortune at a very young age.

I'm almost 100% sure it will be someone that NONE of us have even thought about, but here are some names for the hell of it:

Michael C. Hall
Damian Lewis
Greg Kinnear
Liam Cunningham
Luke Evans
Joel Edgerton

 

Here's an idea for a teaser trailer for the sequel that would feature Lex:

http://davidcoupe.files.wordpress.com/2013/06/supertease.pdf

 

Not bad... I think Lex is the right choice for the sequel in the wake of the devastation. I hope lex is evil and twisted. He will need to team up another super being to fight Superman.

 

Well, if the point is to bring Superman into the international context then I think LexCorp needs to be the status quo for what international ethics are. Have Lex producing some kind of weapons through dummy corporations in different countries and shipping them to a war zone in Corto Maltese or Kahndaq. The weapon ends up being some kind of weaponized suit of armor.

 

First time posting, so bear with me...

Agree with a lot of what's already been said, here's my two cents:

A) Luthor is POWERFUL. Not just money, or socially...but let's go into the political realm. I say either he's the odds on favorite to run for President, or even has become President. He's still mega rich (even making billions off real estate/buildings lost in the destruction of Metropolis BUT he reinvests in the city. New buildings, jobs, etc. He helps Metropolis 'heal' while gaining footing as a prominent political figure in the process. He is revered, but has dark motives.

B) The public will be torn on Superman. Loss of life and catastrophic damage will be addressed here. Half the public views him as a threat and blames him for the outcome, while some regard him as a deity of sorts. Lex uses this to his advantage. Perhaps we see a movement where he assumes power and creates a new vigilance program. Now that we know.we aren't alone, our 'War on Terror' makes us take watch to the sky. Public backlash ensues even greater on Superman.

C) Lex will come in possession of Superman's blood. The vial/extraction that was taken from him will have miraculously avoided the Phantom Zone (perhaps fell to the Earth, sucked out of the hole/room Superman escapes from, etc). Lex gets this in his possession. It's his key to becoming god-like. Superman is basically everything that Lex can't acquire via money, social power, etc. He envies Superman and his abilities. For Lex, the ultimate power is something only written in books or myths...and Superman is those embodied. How he uses that though..well, that's some more creative thinking/writing to be done later on.

How the story plays from there..I'm not sure. I think these are key elements to Luthor's character and motivation, and serve as important plot development points as well. What do you guys think?

 

With so much destruction he can come swooping in and buy up all the damaged property and rebuild.

Clark tries to rent an apartment but the rent is WAY too much thanks to Lex raising it.

Lex could say it was for structural improvements and other things. He's raising rent because people need a place to stay and he's exploiting that.

 

so.... Classic?


Earth One?


or Redbeard?

 

if they are to go bald, then Josh Brolin

but if they go Earth One or Ginger, then Michael C. Hall

 

Obviously, he will have to be bald. He should have control over everything even behind-the-scenes but not be the president. Hopefully also they do not go too old with the actor. I keep hearing Bryan Cranston on other sites, he is great, but too old.



Shave Jon Hamm's head.

 

Here's some interesting ideas for Lex Luthor in MOS 2
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I agree with most of the choices described here in the video. However I definitely think Benedict Cumberbatch is better for Brainiac.

In my opinion, Lex Luthor should be played by an A-lister, just to somewhat follow the example set by the TDK trilogy, as MOS is somewhat following a similar path, except more explosive action. For TDK we had Ledger, so I feel we should get someone on DiCaprio's level.

As for a secondary villain, definitely Metallo/John Corben as a hired bodyguard/gun for Lex. Basically Lex is the Brain, and Corben is the fists of the relationship. So that means Kryptonite has to find its way in though.

Another interesting thought I had, to show that Lex has connections with the greater criminal underworld that nobody knows about(to make money or further his empire etc etc) What if Intergang was on his payroll? And if as reporters both Lois and Clark have to expose their connection. I figured that if they want to introduce Darkseid/Apokolips in the future they could put in Intergang to give it that foundation?

The President concept doesn't sound too bad either. Are they still considering a Superman/Batman movie down the line? If so well, how about a "Public Enemies"-esque storyline anyone?

 

I want him to become President in Justice League, publicly outlawing superheroes or whatever, forcing the League to assemble and stop him.

I agree wholeheartedly with all the other ideas presented here