Nicolas Hoult might be in the running to play Lex Luthor, but some fans are adamant that another DC villain might be making their debut in Superman Legacy.
So far, we’ve never seen Brainiac in the DC Universe, although James Marsden played a version of the DC villain in Smallville. But he’s a very pivotal villain in the Superman comics and is one of the DC character‘s four arch nemeses alongside Lex Luthor, General Zod, and Darkseid. Like all good villains, Brainiac’s main goal is to take over the universe — but he also wants to consume as much knowledge on what he conquers as he can. Hence the name.
We don’t know a lot about the Superman Legacy plot, only that it will involve the character (played by David Corenswet) “embark[ing] on a journey to reconcile his Kryptonian heritage with his human upbringing.” Brainiac ties into this well because many comic storylines involve the villain being responsible for Kal-El’s home planet’s destruction, whether that be purposefully or indirectly.
So, what better way for Superman to reconcile his heritage than to face off against the villain who destroyed his home in the first place? But while Brainiac’s appearance would open up a wealth of possibilities in the new movie, Gunn has made it clear that we shouldn’t expect the character to show up in Chapter 1 Gods and Monsters.
When asked by one fan on Threads if we could expect to see Brainiac, Gunn remained a little coy, saying “who knows what the future will bring.” Meanwhile, on Bluesky, the director shared how busy he’s been, which led to one fan asking, “Is this code for Brainiac being in the DC movies?”
“Most notably not,” Gunn responded. “Although everyone seems to think everything is code for Brainiac in Legacy these days!”
Whether Brainiac will appear in upcoming DC movies further down the line is anyone’s guess, but if you’re more focussed on the here and now, check out our articles detailing the Aquaman 2 release date, The Batman 2 release date, and the Joker 2 release date.