Last September, we learned that Belgian actor Matthias Schoenaerts had been tapped to play the lead villain in Supergirl opposite Milly Alcock.
Schoenaerts, best known for his role in The Old Guard, is taking on the role of Krem of the Yellow Hills. The big bad in Tom King and Billquis Evely's Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow comic book, Krem kills the father of a young alien girl, who then enlists the Maiden of Might to join her revenge mission.
However, the actor may struggle to fulfil his promotional obligations next summer. Belgian news outlet, VRT News, has revealed that police caught Schoenaerts riding his motorbike in Pelt, Limburg, on two occasions in April 2024, without a valid driving licence.
He'd already been banned from driving in Antwerp in September 2021 after being caught driving under the influence of drugs, and failed to retake the compulsory "recovery tests" and exams.
Schoenaerts, who has reportedly been convicted 11 times in the past, did not appear in Beringen yesterday and has subsequently been sentenced to six months' imprisonment in absentia. He's also been fined €4,000 and received a one-year driving ban.
As the outlet explains, "This does not mean that the actor will have to go to prison immediately. He can still lodge an appeal." Schoenaerts was also arrested last week in a separate incident after allegedly refusing to take a breathalyser test.
How much of a disaster is this for the DCU? That remains to be seen, but it's obviously not a great look for the main villain in the upcoming Supergirl movie to be facing a prison sentence. We don't know whether DC Studios was aware of Schoenaerts' driving convictions when he was cast, and there's been no word from them on this news as we write this.
In June, DC Studios co-CEO James Gunn was asked about casting Milly Alcock as the Maiden of Might (a decision made before Craig Gillespie was hired), and shared, "I wanted her to be this little pixie-ish, but very attitudinal character. [Milly] was the first person I brought up."
Gunn later credited Gillespie with "[amping] up" the villainous Krem of the Yellow Hills, a character who debuted in the Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow comic book. "Dude, wait till you see how scary he is in the movie," he teased, reiterating that Schoenaerts is "scary," "creepy," and "cool" in the role.
In Supergirl, Supergirl travels across the galaxy to celebrate her 21st birthday with Krypto the Superdog. Along the way, she meets a young woman named Ruthye and winds up on a murderous quest for revenge.
The cast includes Milly Alcock as Supergirl, Eve Ridley as Ruthye Marye Knoll, Matthias Schoenaerts as Krem of the Yellow Hills, Jason Momoa as Lobo, David Krumholtz as Zor-El, Emily Beecham as Alura In-Ze, and Ferdinand Kingsley as Elias Knoll. Craig Gillespie directs from a script by Ana Nogueira.
Supergirl arrives in theaters on June 26, 2026.