See Nicholas Hoult As DC’s Lex Luthor
Nicholas Hoult is imagined as Lex Luthor in stunning fan art.
With James Gunn reportedly preparing to completely overhaul the Justice League as part of his new lineup of live-action DCU films, many fans have taken to the web to announce their own fan castings. While some fans have made impassioned pleas via Twitter to cast some of their favorite actors in the Justice League roles, others have gotten more creative, providing their own art as a visual aid to demonstrate just how well their pick could embody the role. One artist tagged @youssef_defenshi on Instagram has posted a number of fan casting art, including Renfield‘s Nicholas Hoult as Lex Luthor, to a host of positive responses.
The artist’s account, which posts to over 5,000 followers, has been uploading various fan castings for months now, each focussed on DC characters, including Harley Quinn and the Joker, The Flash, and Batman himself. In the Nicholas Hoult gallery specifically, the artist portrays the Mad Max: Fury Road actor in the Lex Luthor role, facing off against David Corenswet’s Superman, whom James Gunn has apparently been eyeing for the actual role.
While there have been no official casting announcements of the new Lex Luthor at this time, DC insiders have reported that Gunn is planning on bringing a new version of the character to the big screen and is currently on the lookout for up-and-coming talent to fit the bill.
In addition to pitting David Corenswet’s Superman against Nicholas Hoult’s Lex Luthor, the artist has posted eyebrow-raising fan castings such as Thor: Love and Thunder‘s Jaimie Alexander as Wonder Woman, Top Gun: Maverick‘s Glen Powell as The Green Lantern, and even Leslie Grace in a role audiences have never seen brought to the big screen, as Batgirl. These posts are uploaded in between concept art pieces and fan art of existing DCU performers such as Ben Affleck, Lady Gaga, and Ezra Miller. With a swath of new talent set to take on the iconic characters, it’s only a matter of time before some of these fan castings are brought to fruition.
Regardless of whether Nicholas Hoult gets the Lex Luthor role, he’s got plenty of work keeping him in high demand for the time being. According to the actor’s IMDb page, he’s currently slated to appear in five upcoming films in various stages of active production. Hoult is poised for the leading roles in Clint Eastwood‘s final film, Juror #2, alongside Toni Collette and Eastwood himself, and the upcoming genre-bending horror picture The One, helmed by Jaki Bradley.
In addition to the rising star’s aforementioned work, Hoult is also leading the latest Robert Eggers film, Nosferatu, alongside talented A-listers like Willem Dafoe, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, and Bill Skarsgard. Hoult also has an unannounced role in the 2024 Garfield animated film, which is set to star Chris Pratt as the iconic Monday-loathing orange cat. As for whether or not Nicholas Hoult’s busy schedule could even accommodate the fast-paced shooting schedule of Lex Luthor’s role in the upcoming franchise reboot is anyone’s guess, but we’d love to see him give it his best shot!
