After 77 years of various Superman movies on the big screen, James Gunn is finally adding a major first in next year’s Man of Tomorrow when it comes to Nicholas Hoult’s Lex Luthor. Whether it’s Gene Hackman, Michael Rosenbaum, or Jesse Eisenberg, Superman’s greatest arch-foe has always found ways to challenge Superman and his immense Kryptonian power, just like in the comics.
However, it’s just been confirmed that Hoult’s Luthor will soon be receiving a major upgrade from the original comics that’s never been featured on the big screen before. In James Gunn’s first Superman movie, Lex Luthor used his intellect and resources to create, recruit, and coerce all kinds of threats to bring down the Man of Steel. However, Man of Tomorrow may very well see Luthor changing tactics in a pretty significant way.
Whether it’s during the billionaire’s confirmed team-up with Kal-El or when their alliance inevitably falls apart, James Gunn’s newest Man of Tomorrow reveal confirms that Lex Luthor will no doubt be getting his hands a lot dirtier in the upcoming DCU sequel.
James Gunn Just Revealed Lex Luthor’s Warsuit For Man of Tomorrow, A Major Superman Movie First
James Gunn has just revealed the first official look at Lex Luthor’s iconic green warsuit from the comics. While fans have seen armored versions of Lex before in animated projects and television series, Man of Tomorrow marks the first time a live-action Superman movie has featured the classic comic book design in such a prominent way.
Completely practical, Lex’s new armored mech suit looks remarkably faithful to the DC source material, while also making Luthor much larger and far more imposing than he ever would be on his own. Typically featuring all kinds of advanced systems and weaponry, Lex’s warsuit in the comics has always given him a major tactical edge whenever he decides to take matters into his own hands. As such, the same will more than likely be true in the upcoming sequel.
Paying off Jim Lee’s original concept art released by Gunn last year when the Man of Tomorrow sequel was first announced, it’s pretty exciting to see the vision now a reality, especially with the movie’s production actually building a practical suit for Hoult to wear and presumably walk around in.
Likewise, the big screen debut of Lex’s warsuit represents a pretty big Superman movie milestone. Despite decades of films dating back as far as 1950 and even serials from 1948, no theatrical live-action Lex Luthor has ever suited up in his iconic battle armor before, making Hoult’s upcoming appearance as Lex Luthor even more exciting, especially with Lex and Superman reportedly having to work together against the new DCU villain Brainiac.
Why Lex’s Warsuit Makes So Much Sense After 2025’s Superman
Lex’s new warsuit also feels like the logical next step for Luthor’s character in the DCU following the events of 2025’s Superman.
In the first Superman movie, Lex Luthor was operating from a position of ego-filled intellectual superiority in the face of Kal-El’s physical strength, confident that “brain would always beat brawn” (a sentiment adapted straight from the comics’ Luthor).
Relying on strategy, manipulation, and proxies like The Engineer and Ultraman to do the fighting for him, Lex never attempted to take on Superman directly, a challenge that’s always been a point of great angst for various Luthor depictions. As such, the opportunity to see the DCU’s Luthor reflecting on past mistakes and working to have both brains and brawn is very exciting.
Even if Lex is meant to team up with Kal-El in Man of Tomorrow, there’s no way it lasts very long. As such, it stands to reason that Lex will put his warsuit to good use in the upcoming DCU sequel, whether it’s against Superman, Brainiac, or likely both.
Man of Tomorrow releases on July 9th 2027 from DC Studios.
- Release Date
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July 9, 2027
Cast
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Nicholas Hoult
Lex Luthor
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Rachel Brosnahan
Lois Lane
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