With Man of Tomorrow moving full speed ahead, the search for Brainiac, the villain expected to headline the Superman sequel, is reportedly heating up.
James Gunn’s DCU hasn’t chased A-list casting for the sake of name recognition, instead opting for actors who fit his long-term vision. That approach appears to be continuing with Brainiac. While Dracula star Claes Bang has been floated in recent chatter as a contender, a new rumor suggests the role is far from locked.
According to industry scooper @MyTimeToShineH, Gunn is currently looking at “mostly unknown names and three big names testing for Brainiac.” No details beyond that have surfaced, but earlier reports indicated the character will involve heavy prosthetics rather than a purely CG design, signaling a very physical interpretation of one of Superman’s greatest foes.
Fans who were lukewarm on revisiting Lex Luthor in Superman may find comfort in Gunn pushing Brainiac to the forefront for the sequel. The character is expected to be a threat significant enough to force Superman and Lex into an uneasy alliance. How Brainiac ties into the wider “Gods and Monsters” storyline — including the Quantum Unfolding Chamber and the “Salvation” arc teased across Gunn’s interconnected projects, such as Peacemaker, remains to be seen.
Gunn himself has teased the villain’s relevance without confirming anything outright. “Everything’s connected,” he said previously, noting the narrative threads running from Peacemaker into Man of Tomorrow. The filmmaker also emphasized that Lex Luthor will remain central, calling the film “as much a Lex movie as it is a Superman movie.”
Man of Tomorrow stars David Corenswet as Superman, Nicholas Hoult as Lex Luthor, Rachel Brosnahan as Lois Lane, Isabela Merced as Hawkgirl, and Frank Grillo as Rick Flag Sr. Several rumored appearances, including Aaron Pierre’s John Stewart and John Cena’s Peacemaker, suggest Gunn is continuing to expand the interconnected DCU world-building he set in motion.
Warner Bros. will release Man of Tomorrow on July 9, 2027. Or will it be Paramount or Netflix releasing? Couldn’t resist.
The Geek is a working screenwriter, director and screenwriting instructor.
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