Lex Luthor is one of the most influential supervillains in the comic book world. The archenemy of Superman, Jerry Siegel, and Joe Shuster created the character, which first appeared in Action Comics #23. In addition to comic books, Lex Luthor has been portrayed in several films and television shows. He may not have any superpowers, but his genius-level mind and endless resources make him one of the most talked about supervillains from the DC Universe. Despite this, there has yet to be a Lex Luthor movie.
Of course, not every Lex Luthor portrayal is the best. In fact, some are considered rather bland. For example, many look at Jesse Eisenberg’s turn in the role as a bit laughable. Since he has been on screen so many times, we decided to put together a list of the 5 best Lex Luthor portrayals that show why we need a Lex Luthor movie.
5 Best Lex Luthor Portrayals
Getting Lex Luthor right on-screen is not an easy feat. This is because Lex doesn’t have a suit, he’s not always a flashy character, and because he’s a villain, he’s not typically the one people root for. However, there have been some pretty notable Lex Luthor portrayals in film. A few of them were so well done that they show why a Lex Luthor movie would work. Of course, he’d need to be surrounded by an interesting group of people, but we think it’s finally time for a solo Lex movie.
Some of these Lex Luthor portrayals come from the small screen instead of movies, but this just shows that there is an audience for Lex Luthor on both mediums. Superman may be the good guy, but sometimes we just want to see an evil super genius play around with his many expensive toys.
Michael Rosenbaum As Lex Luthor in ‘Smallville’
Smallville is a fantastic show that perhaps has a few flaws that stop some Superman fans from taking it seriously. However, one of the CW show’s biggest highlights is its portrayal of Lex Luthor. Michael Rosenbaum plays the supervillain in the hit series, which you can watch in its entirety on Hulu. Smallville is a show that doesn’t always have the best acting, but Michael shows in more ways than one that his version of Lex Luthor is easily the best.
Fans got to see Michael Rosenbaum as Lex Luthor for seven incredible seasons. In addition, he appeared in the show’s final season. Though Lex Luthor in Smallville is pretty tame compared to some of the other versions of the arch nemesis of Superman, it’s still a portrayal that shows us why we need a Lex Luthor movie. Also, Michael would be a fine choice to reprise the role depending on how they age the character. If not, we’d be fine with seeing him in the film as another character.
Gene Hackman in ‘Superman: The Movie Franchise’
Gene Hackman is one of the most influential on-screen actors. So, it makes sense that his portrayal of supervillain Lex Luthor would be one of the greatest. He played the iconic character in Superman: The Movie Franchise in 1978. The biggest difference between Gene’s Lex Luthor and many of the others is that he is much more comedic in the role. This may be jarring for some fans because of the stark difference, but he is one of the best versions of the character. In addition, he was super charming but also had the necessary evil qualities to be Lex Luthor on the big screen.
Perhaps the best part of Gene Hackman as Lex Luthor is that you always want more of him on screen. Gene Hackman’s performance really makes us want a Lex Luthor movie. In addition, it would be pretty awesome to see a modern well done comedic take on the character.
Jon Cryer From ‘Supergirl’
Most people know Jon Cryer from Two And A Half Men. However, the actor recently played Lex Luthor on The CW’s Supergirl. For many viewers of the show, his portrayal was a slam dunk, and he brought a lot of life to the character. The downside is that he is only in three episodes as Lex. Still, he is considered a highlight of that season. Besides this, many fans wanted Jon to play Lex Luthor in Superman & Lois.
Jon Cryer might be an excellent choice if a Lex Luthor movie ever gets made because he played the character so recently. It’s also apparent that fans enjoy him in this role so that it could be a hit.
Clancy Brown In ‘Superman: The Animated Series’
There are far too many animated portrayals of Lex Luthor to name. However, one of the 5 best Lex Luthor portrayals comes from Superman: The Animated Series, with Clancy Brown voicing the character. In fact, Brown has voiced Lex in other animated shows such as Justice League and Superman/Batman: Public Enemies. Clancy Brown perfectly uses his voice to bring Lex’s intelligence and ability to intimidate to life in ways that would even be hard to do with live action.
This makes us want some sort of animated Lex Luthor movie. Though you don’t see many animated superhero movies on the big screen, this one could work. Mostly, we just really want to hear Clancy Brown as Lex Luthor again.
John Shea in ‘Lois & Clark: The Adventures of Superman’
Another of the 5 best Lex Luthor portrayals comes from the 1990’s Lois & Clark: The Adventures of Superman series. This version of Lex Luthor is perfect because John perfectly displays the necessary charisma. However, John Shea as Lex Luthor is not the lightest version of the character. In fact, many fans feel that this version of Lex Luthor sometimes went too far. But, of course, others love this more insane iteration of Lex Luthor. The problem is that sometimes the writing for his character just didn’t work. Still, he reminds us why Hollywood needs to make a Lex Luthor movie.
Lex Luthor is one of the most iconic supervillains ever. As a character, he’s super charming, intelligent, and laser focused. When done right, he is one of the best characters in the world of superheroes.
Who is the best Lex Luthor, in your opinion?
