Last December, DC Studios co-CEO James Gunn finally confirmed that Brainiac will be the main villain in his 2027 Superman sequel, Man of Tomorrow. All the Light We Cannot See star Lars Eidinger will play the character.
He was something of a surprise choice when much bigger names were rumoured. At the same time, the DCU has seemingly struggled to attract A-list talent, either because the studio can't afford big names or because of Gunn's desire to cast the best people possible (a mix of both seems likely).
Regardless, after years of seeing Lex Luthor and General Zod on screen, Brainiac remains by far the most-requested Superman villain by fans. Gunn is making that a reality, has said that Eidinger's impressive audition is what landed him the role. Later, he hinted that he's inspired by the character's horror roots and the pretty terrifying interpretation of the villain seen in Absolute Superman.
In a new interview, Eidinger reflected on the audition process, revealing that it required him to spend two hours in the makeup chair before he could test for the role.
"I actually thought that at 50, Hollywood wasn’t going to happen for me anymore. And then, suddenly, this Zoom call with James Gunn came along. I was sitting in my living room, totally nervous, trying to be present somehow. I had no idea how I was coming across or whether anything would come of it. Afterwards, they told me to do a self-tape. I recorded it 15 times in my living room – over and over again until it somehow felt right. And suddenly they were completely obsessed with it."
"Then it continued: I flew to Atlanta. On the plane, I watched the new Superman movie to get in the mood. There, they did a body scan first, 3D modelling, and so on. And then I got this Brainiac – that’s the name of the character – a Brainiac mask. The whole time, I didn’t really know whether there were others there or if I was the only one. I thought maybe after the makeup, I’d still have a moment to concentrate or be by myself. But on the way out of the makeup room, I was escorted with an umbrella so that no one from outside could take photos of what Brainiac looks like. It was a ghost town, just a studio lot with no other people around. But I was properly shielded."
"Then I entered the room – an enormous studio, really the size of five halls. There was a team in the middle, and director James Gunn sat a bit off to the side with the other producers on a typical director’s chair behind a molton wall. For me, they had taped off about one square meter with gaffer tape. That was my range of movement. They said: 'Stand in there.' Then James Gunn came over and said: ‘Hey Lars, great that you’re here. Any questions?’ And I was like: 'No, no.'"
"'Okay, then let’s do a take. One, two, three – action.' I was shaking like crazy, the adrenaline was insane. But it was also really collaborative. James Gunn said he’s looking forward to designing the role together with me. And now I’m training four times a week because I need to be fit for the shoot, which is supposed to start in April 2026."
Matt Smith, Claes Bang, Sam Rockwell, and, later, Dave Bautista, were rumoured to be in the running for Brainiac in Man of Tomorrow. However, Gunn took to social media to debunk those claims, and Eidinger's casting came out of nowhere.
In Man of Tomorrow, Superman will be forced to team up with Lex Luthor to battle Brainiac, a threat not just to Metropolis but the entire world.
Written and directed by James Gunn, the movie stars David Corenswet as Clark Kent/Superman, Nicholas Hoult as Lex Luthor, Rachel Brosnahan as Lois Lane, Isabela Merced as Kendra Saunders/Hawkgirl, Frank Grillo as Rick Flag, Sr., Lars Eidinger as Brainiac, and Aaron Pierre as John Stewart.
Man of Tomorrow arrives in theaters on July 9, 2027.