James Gunn Almost Made Brainiac the Main Villain in His SUPERMAN Movie
Fans of DC Comics' iconic hero Superman have seen their fair share of Lex Luthor on the big screen, but there's one villain who's remained conspicuously absent from cinema… Brainiac. Director James Gunn, whose Superman prominently features Nicholas Hoult’s Lex Luthor, recently revealed that his original vision included the notorious cybernetic alien villain.
In a fascinating discussion with Josh Horowitz on the Happy Sad Confused podcast, Gunn disclosed that he seriously "considered" featuring Brainiac as the primary antagonist. Although Gunn ultimately settled on Lex and his powerhouse ally, Ultraman, this tidbit offers hope that Brainiac might finally arrive in future installments
The fact that Gunn acknowledges Brainiac's potential significance suggests exciting possibilities for DC’s cinematic future. While DC Studios isn’t actively planning a direct sequel yet, it’s possible that David Corenswet's Superman may eventually clash with Brainiac on the big screen.
First appearing in the pages of Action Comics #242 back in 1958, Brainiac was created by Otto Binder and Al Plastino. Initially depicted as a classic B-movie-style alien invader from Colu, Brainiac is a brilliant and villainous character hell-bent on amassing the universe’s knowledge, often by shrinking entire cities into bottles after obliterating their worlds.
Famously, Superman once discovered the shrunken Kryptonian city of Kandor among Brainiac's captured treasures, forever tying the villain's fate to the Last Son of Krypton.
Interestingly, Brainiac’s name has seeped into popular culture to describe anyone exceptionally intelligent, but it's actually the villain who popularized the term, not the other way around.
Over decades, Brainiac's origins have shifted. Originally an alien from the planet Colu, DC eventually reimagined him as an advanced android, partly due to legal issues with a similarly named product.
Later interpretations, notably the acclaimed Superman: Brainiac storyline by Geoff Johns and Gary Frank, blended both concepts, showing a green-skinned cyborg controlling skull-faced robotic drones.
Superman: The Animated Series in 1996 took Brainiac in a fresh direction by making him a rogue Kryptonian AI, voiced by Corey Burton. Rather than saving Krypton from destruction, Brainiac preserved only himself and the planet’s knowledge, coldly allowing Krypton’s demise to occur. This gave Superman and Brainiac an intensely personal rivalry, one further explored in the recent animated series My Adventures with Superman, where Michael Emerson voiced the villain.
Brainiac has long been a fan-favorite villain, so it's surprising he's never appeared on the big screen. It's not for lack of trying. Early drafts of Superman III included Brainiac as the primary villain, though the final product opted for a rediculous amnd generic supercomputer antagonist instead.
Similarly, early concepts for Zack Snyder’s follow-up to Man of Steel also featured Brainiac, though the sequel never materialized.
One explanation for Brainiac’s cinematic absence might be because of the recurring reliance on Lex Luthor and General Zod. These villains dominated early Superman movies due to memorable performances by Gene Hackman and Terence Stamp, respectively. Later reboots like Superman Returns and Man of Steel continued this pattern, returning to these familiar foes rather than venturing into less-explored territory.
Additionally, Zod already occupies Brainiac’s narrative territory, an alien villain connected intimately to Superman’s Kryptonian past. However, Brainiac's appeal is unique as he combines the intellectual threat of Lex Luthor with the physical menace of Zod. This dual threat positions Brainiac as potentially the most formidable foe Superman has yet to face in cinema.