You guys can scream ‘what?’ as many times as you want, but it does not change the fact that Leonardo DiCaprio was in talks to play Lex Luthor in Zack Snyder’s Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016). DCEU’s godfather, Snyder himself, has revealed that The Revenant star almost accepted the role of Man of Steel’s greatest adversary in BvS.
In his recent appearance on the ‘Happy, Sad, Confused’ podcast, Snyder was asked about plenty of old rumours that circulated before BvS’ theatrical release. One such rumor involved Leonardo DiCaprio being considered for Lex Luthor. Snyder disclosed that this rumour was true. He also met the actor to discuss the DC villain.
“Leonardo DiCaprio, I talked to…I think so [when asked if the actor was intrigued by the idea] I think DiCaprio had a lot of great ideas, actually, just in the meeting. I think in the end, he was like, “Eh, I don’t know…” but he was really smart about the material.”
Imagine what would have happened if DiCaprio donned the role of Lex Luthor in Snyder’s Batman v Superman? Well, the DCEU project would have easily grossed over $1 billion globally. The actor would have also broken his “no superhero movie” rule. Most importantly, his portrayal of Lex Luthor could have been far more compelling than Jesse Eisenberg’s take on the character in the film. While Eisenberg is a talented actor, his performance in BvS fell short for many viewers.
Zack Snyder’s DCEU has been done and dusted. Now, we have a new superhero media franchise and shared universe for DC characters, the DCU, created by the one and only James Gunn. He is ready to kick things off with his own Superman film, which features Nicholas Hoult as Lex Luthor. The film will arrive in theatres worldwide on July 11, 2025. Stay tuned for more updates.