Now that Superman has finally hit the big screen, more intimate details of the film’s productions are being revealed. One of the most recent details about the casting reveals that Superman’s rival was almost played by Superman’s father.
Directed by James Gunn, the latest take on the Man of Tomorrow finds him struggling with the mission his Kryptonian parents sent him to earth for, while contending with Lex Luthor attempting to strip Superman of his reputation. With Clark Kent played by David Corenswet, Nicholas Hoult plays opposite him as Luthor, with Bradley Cooper appearing briefly as Jor-El, Superman’s father.
While he wrote and directed the film, Gunn is also one of the co-heads of DC Studios, and is overseeing many of the creative decisions for the cinematic universe moving forward. One of the aspects Gunn kept in mind for the future of the story was the direction of Lex Luthor, as he told Josh Horowitz on the Happy Sad Confused podcast.
Specifically speaking, he took into account the age of Luthor in correspondence to Kent, as they would be rivals. And although Cooper was on the table to play Lex, with him and Gunn even discussing it, Gunn turned down the idea. He stated that he wanted Lex to be Superman’s contemporary, going hand in hand with the idea of a younger actor for what future films may have in store for Luthor.
Screenrant notes that although Cooper was shifted from a major role to a supporting role, he still joins the ranks of other iconic actors to play Jor-El. When it comes specifically to big screen adaptations, legendary actor Marlon Brando played Jor-El in Richard Donner’s 1978 Superman, while Russell Crowe played him in Zack Snyder’s 2013 Man Of Steel.
Superman is now playing in theaters.
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