According to Zack Snyder, one of the most significant DCEU storylines seems to have originated from none other than Oscar-winning star Leonardo DiCaprio. The 49-year-old actor was once considered for the role of Lex Luthor, Superman’s greatest enemy. In an exclusive interview with Josh Horowitz for the Happy Sad Confused podcast, the director disclosed that he had a meeting with the Titanic star to discuss the role in his 2016 superhero flick, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.
However, Jesse Eisenberg ultimately won the role. Snyder also recalled that DiCaprio came up with the plan to pit Henry Cavill’s Superman against the Justice League. Sadly, the DCEU timeline came to an end in 2023 (Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom), capping ten years of superhero films that started with Snyder’s Man of Steel (2013).
Leonardo DiCaprio’s Unexpected Contribution to Henry Cavill’s Superman to Fight Against Justice League
Even though Leonardo DiCaprio has never dabbled in comic book films, he has undoubtedly considered it. Zack Snyder recently shared an intriguing anecdote regarding the creative origins of one of the most important scenes in the DC Extended Universe.
Best known for his work on the DC Extended Universe and the Justice League flicks, the director said in the latest Happy Sad Confused podcast episode that he talked with both Adam Driver and DiCaprio about playing the villain Lex Luthor in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. Snyder, 58, replied when the host, Josh Horowitz, asked about those casting rumors:
“I think I did talk to Adam on the phone, yeah. Leonardo DiCaprio, I talked to him about it.”
Horowitz, taken aback, responded, “Zack, you can’t just drop these Bombshell on us.”
DiCaprio “had a lot of great ideas, actually, just in the meeting”, according to Snyder, who ultimately decided to cast Jesse Eisenberg opposite Henry Cavill’s Superman and Ben Affleck’s Batman in the 2016 flick. As the director put it:
“I think, in the end, he was like, ‘Eh, I don’t know.’ But he was really smart about the material and really smart about the character. In a lot of ways, I think he was the one that mentioned to me this idea about Superman fighting the Justice League at some point, and I was like, ‘Oh, that’s cool’.”
Despite their discussions, DiCaprio decided not to take the role, which resulted in Eisenberg being chosen to play the Superman foe. Still, the DCEU might have gone in a different direction if DiCaprio had been chosen to play Lex Luthor.
Leonardo DiCaprio’s Strict ‘No Superhero Movies’ Policy
Timothée Chalamet received some sage advice regarding his career from Leonardo DiCaprio.
The 28-year-old actor revealed to Vogue UK in 2022 that, upon his initial meeting with DiCaprio in 2018, the latter cautioned him from doing “no hard drugs and no superhero movies”. Previously, the French-American actor revealed that “one of my heroes” advised him not to pursue superhero roles. However, he did not reveal the identity of this person at the time. In 2021, he told Time:
“One of my heroes — I can’t say who or he’d kick my a*s — he put his arm around me the first night we met and gave me some advice.”
The Killers of the Flower Moon star has never been featured in a movie based on a comic book. Chalamet recently hinted during his interview with The New York Times that he had taken DiCaprio’s advice for the time being—possibly, not permanently.
“Well, Leonardo DiCaprio said to me, ‘No superhero movies, no hard drugs.’ Which I thought was very good. I follow them both! But the movie that made me want to act is a superhero movie, ‘The Dark Knight.’ If the script was great, if the director was great, I’d have to consider it.”
DiCaprio would have been a fascinating addition to Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, even though he never chose to play Lex Luther. The actor’s upcoming project is an untitled Paul Thomas Anderson film starring Wood Harris, Regina Hall, Sean Penn, Alana Haim, and Teyana Taylor. It is expected to be released on August 8, 2025.
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice is streaming on Max.
