SUPERMAN & LOIS Casts Michael Cudlitz as Lex Luthor

 
Superman's archenemy has a brand-new face.

Entertainment Weekly has revealed that the CW series Superman & Lois has cast Michael Cudlitz as DC Comics supervillain Lex Luthor for the show's upcoming third season.

According to the official description for the character, this version of Lex Luthor is "known to the world as the visionary billionaire behind LexCorp, but secretly, the criminal underworld knows who Lex truly is: a brutal psychopath who terrorizes anyone he crosses paths with. When Lex debuts this season, it's been years since he dropped out of the public eye and he's re-emerging hellbent on correcting a personal injustice by enacting revenge on the two people he feels have wronged him — Superman (Tyler Hoechlin) and Lois Lane (Elizabeth Tulloch)."

Cudlitz, 58, is best known as Abraham Ford on the AMC series The Walking Dead and recently starred as Paul Krendler on the short-lived CBS series Clarice. He's appeared in the films Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story, D3: The Mighty Ducks, and Grosse Pointe Blank, as well as the HBO miniseries Band of Brothers. In addition, he starred in the TNT series Southland and has appeared in episodes of 21 Jump Street, Beverly Hills 90210, ER, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Six Feet Under, 24, The Dead Zone, Bones, Lost, and Invincible.

Created in 1940 by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, Lex Luthor first appeared in Action Comics (vol.1) #23 as Alexander Joseph "Lex" Luthor, a diabolical genius referred to only by his surname. He resided in a flying city suspended by a dirigible and plotted to provoke a war between two European nations. Lois Lane and Clark Kent investigated, which resulted in Lois being kidnapped. Luthor battled Superman with a green ray but he was ultimately defeated, and Lois was rescued. Superman destroyed Luthor's dirigible with him still on it, implying that Luthor may have died. Stories ending with Luthor's apparent death became common in his earliest appearances, with him turning up alive later on.

In 1960, Siegel and artist Al Plastino introduced a new Silver Age version of Luthor in Adventure Comics (vol.1) #271, now with the first name "Lex" (later said to be short for Alexis and eventually retconned as Alexander) and an origin story. Originally hero-worshiping Superboy, teenage Lex Luthor of Smallville was determined to prove he was Earth's greatest scientist by creating artificial life. His recklessness and inexperience caused a fire in his lab and he called for Superboy to save him. The Boy of Steel put out the fire, but in the process accidentally destroyed the artificial life form and the years of research notes that led to its creation, while fumes from the chemical fire caused Luthor's hair to fall out. Unwilling to hold himself responsible for the lab fire and the destruction of his own life's work, Luthor decided that Superboy was jealous of his intellect and caused the fire himself. Believing himself betrayed by his hero and friend, Lex swore revenge, creating a hatred that lasted until both of them reached adulthood.

Following the event series Crisis on Infinite Earths, DC rebooted its universe yet again, creating the "Post-Crisis" reality. In the 1986 limited series The Man of Steel, writer and artist John Byrne redesigned Lex Luthor from scratch, intending to make him a villain that the 1980s would recognize -- an evil corporate executive. Initially overweight, the character later evolved into a slimmer, more athletic version of his old self. In this version, Luthor eventually became bald after his hairline receded naturally over time. This version of Lex Luthor was a product of child abuse and early poverty. Born in the Suicide Slum district of Metropolis, he was instilled with a desire to become a self-made man of great power and influence. As a teenager, he took out a large life insurance policy on his parents without their knowledge, then sabotaged their car's brakes, causing their deaths. Upon graduating from MIT, Luthor founded his own business, LexCorp, which grew to dominate much of Metropolis.

In 2009, writer Geoff Johns and artist Gary Frank revised Luthor's history again in the limited series Superman: Secret Origin. This version of Lex's backstory restored his sister, Lena Luthor, and while Lex knew Clark as a teenager in Smallville, he rejected the other boy's attempts to form a friendship. Resentful toward his alcoholic and abusive father, Lex arranged his parents to die in a car accident and used the insurance money to leave Smallville and start a better life. After studying under the villains Ra's al Ghul and Darkseid, he founded LexCorp and used his PR, resources, and media control to set himself up as a near-savior in Metropolis. The Daily Planet opposed Luthor and he retaliated in ways that left the newspaper almost bankrupt. Superman's arrival challenged Luthor's image and brought renewed interest to the Planet when he gave exclusive interviews with their staff. Superman told the public they should strive to achieve great things themselves and not wait for others to be their saviors. Angry at Superman's interference and blaming him for losing the love of the public, Luthor swore vengeance.

Cudlitz will be the eleventh actor to portray the role in live-action, after Lyle Talbot in movie serial Atom Man vs. Superman, Gene Hackman in the films Superman (1978), Superman II and Superman IV: The Quest for Peace, Scott James Wells and Sherman Howard in the TV series Superboy, John Shea in the ABC series Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman, Michael Rosenbaum on the WB/CW series Smallville, Kevin Spacey in the film Superman Returns, Jesse Eisenberg in the films Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and Justice League, Jon Cryer on the CW series Supergirl, and Titus Welliver on the HBO Max series Titans.

Superman & Lois returns to The CW for Season 3 on Tuesday, March 14th.