James Gunn has responded to reports claiming that the list of contenders to star in Superman: Legacy includes Nicholas Hoult, David Cornsweet, Rachel Brosnahan and more, saying that he would never comment on who auditions or not, and that only one person has been cast so far.
But a report revealed who THR Cornsuite is one of the “top contenders” for the role of Clark Kent himself, and his credit includes starring roles in Pearl and We Own This City. THR’s sources claim that he has moved into the screen testing phase which is expected to take place in early June.
It was reported that Euphoria’s Jacob Elordi was being considered for the role of Superman, but THR sources say he has not been nominated. Tom Britney and Andrew Richardson were other early names, and two other undisclosed actors were allegedly also in the audition stage.
Another actor of note is Nicholas Hoult, who THR says could play Lex Luthor. But according to a report from Deadline Holt is actually a candidate for the role of Kent himself. For those who may not remember, Holt was a prime candidate to play Batman in Matt Reeves’ The Batman before Robert Pattinson won the role.
Deadline also reports that their sources claim Gunn is checking a list of A-list actors he’s worked with in the past for the role of Lex Luthor.
Reports also indicate that there are some possible options to play Lois Lane, including Emma MacKay from Sex Education and Rachel Brosnahan from The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Phoebe Dynevor from Bridgerton, and Samara Weaving from Scream VI.
Brosnahan was said to have given an “impressive” audition, but given that she is 32, she may be in an older range than what Gunn ultimately hopes to achieve.
As for Gun, who is used to responding directly to these types of reports and rumors on Twitter, he responded to these articles with a single tweet.
For all of you asking, I would never comment on who is or isn’t AUDITIONING for a role. That’s the actor’s business only & isn’t something I’d make public unless they did it first after the fact (like @GlennHowerton or @ZacharyLevi having auditioned for Star-Lord & being top…
— James Gunn (@JamesGunn) May 13, 2023
Gann BooksTo everyone who asks, I would never comment on who does or doesn’t audition for a role. That’s the actor’s business alone and not something I’d announce unless they do it first after it’s done (like @GlennHowerton or @ZacharyLevi after they audition) Star-Lord was at the top of the list.) Right now, one person has been cast in Superman: Legacy, and he won’t be playing any of the regular players in the Superman universe.”
Gunn may have added more casting questions, as he ended his tweet with a mermaid emoji. Could this mean that a new Aquaman has been cast? Could this mean that Aquaman actor Jason Momoa has been recast as Lobo in the new movie, as rumored to be? Or could an emoji mean something else entirely or nothing at all? Only time will tell.
For more on the film, read how Superman: Legacy entered pre-production.
