Man of Steel Sequel Will Feature a "Street Tough" Lex Luthor

[StewShearerOld]

Man of Steel Sequel Will Feature a "Street Tough" Lex Luthor

Inside sources have said that Jesse Eisenberg's Lex Luthor will be a former gang leader and self-made billionaire.

The announcement that <a href=http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/131876-Jesse-Eisenberg-Cast-as-Lex-Luthor-Jeremy-Irons-as-Alfred-in-Man-of-Steel-Sequel>Jesse Eisenberg would the new Lex Luthor in Zack Snyder's sequel to Man of Steel left many Superman fans with questions. At the forefront of speculation, of course, was what kind of Luthor would he be? Could we expect Eisenberg to just ape his Mark Zuckerberg role or would Snyder and company push him in a completely different direction?

If the Latino Review can be believed, it will be very much the latter. The site, which is known for breaking news from Hollywood productions, has released details from inside sources about the version of the character Eisenberg will be playing. Said sources indicated that Alexander "Lex" Luthor will be a self-made billionaire who used his brains to rise up from a life on the streets where he ran a straight-up bona fide gang. His experiences as a "street tough" will be integral to his character on account of them teaching him the importance of intelligence and resolve over pure strength and brute force.

Eisenberg's Luthor will apparently also have some less than cordial feelings for Bruce Wayne, whom he regards with disdain for his inherited wealth. The two will apparently be at odds over their opinion of Superman (whom Lex wants gone) but are willing to work together to rebuild the still devastated Metropolis. That said, Lex will apparently already be making preparations to dispose of Superman. Plans that, not unexpectedly, may involve a certain caped and pointy-eared vigilante.

Not a lick of this, of course, has been officially confirmed and should all be taken with a sizable grain of salt. That said, if these are true, the movie could potentially serve up one of the most original versions of Lex Luthor that we've ever seen. Just personally the mental image of Jesse Eisenberg as a gang leader is more than enough to catch my interest. Granted, that detail could wind up being pretty silly if it's done poorly, but we'll just have to wait and see how it goes.

Source: Latino Review


Permalink

 

[Tireseas_v1legacy]

...

Yeah, I can get behind that. Would also explain a penchant for less-than-legal means of achieving goals.

 

[Sigmund Av Volsung]

"Jesse Eisenberg"

"Gang-leader"

Uhh, not sure how that would work out, because when I see him, I do not think "self-made billionaire street tough".

But who knows?

Perhaps this will be okay?

Right guys...?

 

[MoltenSilver]

"Street Tough"

Something in my body involuntarily cringed at the thought of a Hollywood executive using that term

 

[Seracen]

Oh my god I am tired of this crap (assuming it's true). I appreciate them trying to break new ground, but not to the point that the characters become unrecognizable!

Perhaps such an odd casting of the character demands a reworking of the origin, but then one could just as easily create a new character. Essentially, "Lex" is simply there for the name recognition, with little else of his defining characteristics brought over (agaain, if it's true).

A few risks are well and good, but it's hard to remain optimistic about a project that's throwing so many curve balls.

1) Ben Affleck - huh, well he was actually good in the Director's Cut of Daredevil, and the man can act really well now, per Argo...

2) Gal Gadot - well, maybe she can bulk up and learn to act like a human being (and not a caricature)

3) Jeremy Irons - a certified badass, though I'd have preferred him in a Lex sort of role

4) Jesse Eisenberg - a good actor, but lacking the age and gravitas to pull off a good megalomaniac

It's just that ALL but one casting decision has been rife with debate. It doesn't send out the best image. Again, we may all be surprised, but it just doesn't bode well. We are looking at the same company that greenlit Superman Returns and Green Lantern.

Not that Man of Steel was perfect, but it would be tragic for them to fumble the momentum they've built with it and Batman (even though it isn't the same Batman we've seen before).

 

[Gorrath]

I will, of course, withhold judgement until I see it with mine own eyes, but all of this sounds just awful. The more I hear about this project and it being a lead-up to Justice League, the more I roll my eyes. For the record, I rather liked Man of Steel, with the caveat that the dark theme of it would turn brighter in the sequel. From the sounds of things this is not to be the case.

Again, judgement is withheld, the whole thing might turn out to be a masterpiece, I'm going to give it its full shot but I have not been thrilled by a single reveal since rumors about this project started coming out.

 

[The World Famous]

Not only is this a rumor, it's a rumor from Latino Review, who are wrong way more often than they're right. The title of this article asserts this rumor as fact; it's misleading.

 

[blackrave]

If this is true, it could work
But I personally always have seen Lex Lutor as Anti-villain version of Bruce Wayne
And that would be far better origin story for Lex
Only unlike Bruce he saw what idealism leads to, that is why he does whatever is necessary to achieve his goals

 

[Angelous Wang]

Not only is this a rumor, it's a rumor from Latino Review, who are wrong way more often than they're right. The title of this article asserts this rumor as fact; it's misleading.

I don't know, I kind of believe the plot points here, they make complete sense.

Luthor and Bruce Wayne two billionaires both know for philanthropy (though in Luthers case it's often a smokescreen) get together to rebuild the world greatest city (because it is in DC anyway) which was clearly levelled in the last movie.

Bruce Wayne (who is obviously pro vigilante) likes Superman, Lex who is a street thug turned billionaire (who would have authority issues) dislikes Superman.

Luthor then plans some way to get rid of Superman involving some way to manipulate Batman into thinking Superman is threat (Batman the guy that is most other DC media often carries Krytonite in his utility belt just in case, so I don't think it would be hard to push him that way).

All seems pretty believable.

 

[Moises Weintraub]

It's bona fide, not bonified. Today's Critical Intel is also full of typos and errors. Is anyone editing these articles? This is embarrassing. I want to show my friends what I consider to be a great source for news and content, and find that lazy editing is getting in the way of that. Please get it together. Spellcheck catches things like bonified, as does google. I don't mean any disrespect. I love this site and it's content. Otherwise, I wouldn't care.

Edit: Thank you for fixing it.

 

[Kmadden2004]

And to think my greatest fear was that they'd turn Luthor into Steve Jobs.

Honestly, I'd believe this if they hadn't cast Jesse Eisenberg as Lex.

But, I mean, really, that entire background story just sounds utterly ridiculous (a 15 year old gang lord who becomes a multi-billionaire by 18 and owns a multi-national corporation by his mid twenties? Yeah, sure, that's "realistic"), almost as ridiculous as the kind of bullcrap Frank Miller writes these days under the delusion/pretension of being "edgy".

 

[FPLOON]

Self-made billionaire from the streets? Is Lex's new super power battle rapping? Maybe Marshall Mathers would have been a better casting...

And just because it's funny...

...I can imagine Jesse's Lex rapping to that as his own theme song to the local populous...


OT: A different Lex Luthor, you say? You mean one who may actually have hair this time? Because, seriously, after seeing a photoshot of what Jesse would look like bald, it was more funny than "threatening", in my opinion...

 

[Trishbot]

A part of me wants this to actually be good.

A bigger part of me hopes it is utterly terrible and me and my friends can have marathon drinking-game riff-track sessions with it and Batman & Robin.

 

[shogunblade]

Someone, please, correct me if I am wrong, but people are gonna get their panties in a bunch over the idea of Lex being a Street tough come Evil Billionaire, which though it is not following the plotline of any Superman stories that I know of, I don't think is a bad idea, but that people are going to get upset by it when this plotline was similarly replicated in comics before?

Seriously, isn't the whole 'Dead parents, (sort of) Street Tough , became a billionaire' angle the same thing that happened to Adrien Veidt/Ozymandias in Watchmen? Why are people getting upset by it? As far as I can tell, that's different, surely, but it's not too crazy.

I kind of like the idea. It might not work for other people, but until I hear something else about the movie that says otherwise, I'm really not bothered by it. I'm all for Eisenberg as Luthor. Give me something I really don't want to hear, and then I'll get apprehensive. Until then, I'm still in.

 

[Baresark]

Honestly... it's not believable. Lex Luthor as a villain was very believable and very interesting. He was a man who lived a life of privilege but still strived to be the best in everything. He was the best and most powerful of business men. He was extremely into fitness because he wanted to achieve the best physical state a human could. He was excellent with firearms and in personal combat because he was always trying to achieve that next level. He was a genius who did a lot of his own research and development on many things. Almost like a bad version of Batman, if you think about it. It was part of the reason why he had extremely xenophobic feelings towards Superman, because he was just better in so many ways without having worked for it, which drove him mad. That is a fascinating character that I like to see (a character that was never shown in any of the movies, I would like to point out). I don't care to see a thug who came up in the streets and is a self made billionaire.

But, I will withhold any judgement till I see it. But, the Lex Luthor from the comics is a much better and more fascinating character. The Lex Luthor here is a cliche.

 

[bartholen_v1legacy]

I'm calling bullshit on this. First Superman against Batman. Then having Wonder Woman in the movie. Then casting Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman. Then casting Jesse Eisenberg as Lex Luthor. Then having him be "street tough". No. This has to be a prank. The studio just releasing bullshit rumors like this to keep the movie in the media

 

[templar1138a]

Excuse me, but that mousy little boy being "street tough?" May as well have the part played by Seth Green. This movie is sounding more like a comedy with every article I read. And I'm still not interested in seeing it (only making fun of DC's desperation to get a Justice League movie out).

 

[Kieve]

This sounds more hilariously awful with each tidbit that leaks out. At this rate, I think the "Superman vs Batman" thing stands a good chance of hitting So-bad-it's-good territory. Either that, or making Travolta feel better about being in Battlefield Earth.

 

[vid87]

I like the possible dynamic they're setting up with inheritance vs. achievement - basically a protracted Iron Man vs. Cap - that could make for some really interesting storytelling.

I DON'T like the idea of Batman potentially becoming a hired assassin.