Jesse Eisenberg looks menacing in first Lex Luthor pic from Batman v Superman

March 25, 2015

Bow before Luthor! That’s the vibe we’re getting from the very first image of Jesse Eisenberg as the villain appearing in Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice that just debuted over on Entertainment Weekly.

“He’s not any of the Lexes that you’ve seen, that’s for sure, other than him being a captain of industry and one person to the world and another person to himself,” director Zack Sndyer said. “And bald, of course.”

While many wondered if the actor known for quirky roles in films like Zombieland and The Social Network could pull off a part like that of the Man of Steel’s longtime nemesis Lex Luthor, he sure looks like he’s tapping into the right amount of smoldering menace and disdain iconic to the character.

Eisenberg’s Luthor will debut in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice along with Ben Affleck’s Batman, Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman, and other Justice Leaguers like Jason Momoa’s Aquaman and Ray Fisher’s Cyborg before the heroes fully join forces in Justice League Part One. Zack Snyder is directing Dawn of Justice and both parts of Justice League. Considering Luthor has been known to create his own villain teams like the Injustice League in the comics, it’s very possible that Eisenberg will pop up in the other films as the bald-headed evil genius.

Lex Luthor debuted back in Action Comics #23, published in 1940. Since then he’s menaced Superman in a variety of incarnations ranging from a giant-robot-creating mad scientist to an armored supervillain to a cutthroat businessman hiding his evil intentions behind a positive public persona. Though his intentions have changed along with those incarnations, Luthor’s hatred of Superman stems from the fact that an alien from another world swooped in and overshadowed his own efforts as a scientist and businessman.

“Our Lex is disarming and he’s not fake,” Snyder added. “He says what he believes and he says what’s on his mind. If you can unravel the string and decipher what he means, it’s all there.”

Taking a page out of the Marvel Studios playbook, DC and WB started their own shared film universe starting with Snyder’s Man of Steel in 2013. Dawn of Justice comes next on March 25, 2016 and will be followed by Suicide Squad, Wonder Woman, Justice League Part One, The Flash, Aquaman, Shazam!, Justice League Part Two, Cyborg and Green Lantern.

For good measure, compare Eisenberg’s Luthor to the other Dawn of Justice images featuring Cavill’s Superman, Affleck as Batman, Gadot as Wonder Woman and Jason Momoa’s Aquaman.