Rumor: Jesse Eisenberg’s Lex Luthor Cut From ‘Justice League’?
Jesse Eisenberg’s manic portrayal of Lex Luthor was one of the most divisive aspects ofBatman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, but he’sLex Luthor.Regardless of fan response, one of DC’s most recognizable charactershasto appear in aJustice Leaguefilm…doesn’t he? Well, not necessarily.
A new rumor claims that, despite previous confirmation from Warner Bros. that he’d have a supporting role in the superhero sequel, Eisenberg’s Lex Luthor has been cut fromJustice Leaguein the wake of all of the recent changes to the film.
In a Q&A piece at the websiteBatman-on-Film(viaBatman-News), a fan asked one of the site’s reporters how big Eisenberg’s role as Lex Luthor will be inJustice League, and the reporter gave a surprising answer:
“He doesn’t have one. If he did prior to all the changes/reshoots, it was cut.”
That’s a supremely confident response – notice how they don’t hedge their bets by employing a qualifying phrase like, “the last I’ve heard” – so there’s either some truth to this or the reporter was fed bogus information. Keep in mind, of course, that this “news” should still be treated as a rumor, since we haven’t heard definitively from Warner Bros. that Eisenberg won’t be in the film. In fact, the last official word from the studiospecifically listed him as being a part of the cast, which seemed to align withthe actor’s comments from May of 2016in which he strongly hinted that he’d be coming back.
What That Could Mean For The Movie
If this rumor pans out, I’ll consider it surprising enough to raise an eyebrow. Remember, just a few days afterBvShit theaters, WB and DC Filmsreleased a deleted scene from the moviethat included Lex Luthor coming face to face with mother boxes and Steppenwolf, a military leader who serves one of DC’s biggest villain, Darkseid. We saw hints of Darkseid’s dystopian reign in the Knightmare sequences inBvS, and we know that both the mother boxes and Steppenwolf will factor intoJustice Leaguein a big way, so it was natural to assume that Luthor’s presence in that deleted scene hinted at him serving a key purpose inJustice League.
But considering the movie has beensignificantly reworked through reshoots, which Joss Whedon wrote before heeventually took over the director’s chairwhen Zack Snyder left the project, I suppose it’s reasonable to assume that they’ve found a way to convey the necessary information without involving Luthor at all. I guess that seemingly-important head-shaving sequence at the end ofBvScould be revised into a lead-in toMan of Steel 2?
Personally, I hope Luthor isn’t in this movie. With the casts of today’s superhero sequels growing to absurd levels (coughAvengers: Infinity Warcough), I’d like to see a more streamlinedJustice Leaguemovie that doesn’t get bogged down in unnecessary side plots or spend time with characters that could be better used to flesh out the ones we really need to care about for the story to function as intended.
What do you all think? DoesJustice Leagueneed Lex Luthor, or can you envision a version of this story that doesn’t include him?
