Promotional material for the Superman sequel Man of Tomorrow has been scarce, but new artwork of the Man of Steel and Lex Luthor has surfaced. The image shows the two teaming up, the first time they have been depicted working together in the film’s marketing. The sequel arrives in theaters on July 9, 2027, after wrapping filming on August 26 following a 93-day shoot. Lex Luthor and Superman were at each other’s throats throughout the first movie, but they will operate very differently in the follow-up.
Man of Tomorrow camera operator Chris McGuire shared camera department artwork on his Instagram story, showing David Corenswet’s Superman and Nicholas Hoult’s Lex Luthor taking on two hulking robotic figures. The machines point what look like projectors or cameras at the duo. The art leans into a retro comic book style and places the brawl on the front page of a Daily Planet newspaper, complete with a Man of Tomorrow masthead at the top.
In the image, Superman wears his classic red and blue costume, while Lex is clad in his iconic green and purple warsuit, first revealed by James Gunn in June. The bulky robots the frenemies fight look similar to Lex’s Raptors from the first movie, the high-tech PlanetWatch soldiers he deployed against Superman. Since PlanetWatch was dismantled after Luthor’s downfall, the figures more likely double as a playful nod to the crew itself.
The pairing lines up with everything James Gunn has said about the film from day one. Speaking about the project last year, the writer and director explained, “It is a story about Lex Luthor and Superman having to work together, to a certain degree, against a much, much bigger threat. And it’s more complicated than that. It’s as much a Lex movie as it is a Superman movie.”
That bigger threat he makes mention of is Brainiac, with German actor Lars Eidinger playing the super-intelligent alien android. The Collector of Worlds from Colu is the perfect kind of villain to force two enemies into an alliance.
Gunn also opened up about why he built the sequel around both characters, saying, “I relate to both of them. I relate to Lex’s ambition and obsession, minus the murder. And I relate to Superman’s belief in people, his Midwestern values.”
Lex Luthor and Superman Teaming Up Shows How Powerful Brainiac Is
Brainiac is finally making his live-action debut in a theatrical release, which has been long overdue given how iconic he is as a villain in the comics. James Gunn looks set to give him a grand introduction to general audiences by forcing Superman and Lex to unite against him. That suggests the DC Universe’s version of the character will be one of his most powerful iterations. Superman is the most formidable metahuman on Earth in the DCU, and even he gets occasional help from the Justice Gang when threats become overwhelming.
If defeating Brainiac requires an alliance with his sworn enemy rather than just the Justice Gang, whose ranks include a Green Lantern in Guy Gardner and one of the smartest men alive in Mister Terrific, then the Coluan is a different beast altogether.
The villain isn’t known as the Collector of Worlds for nothing. In the comics, he shrank Kandor, the capital of Krypton, down to miniature size and placed it inside a bottle, a feat dating back to his very first appearance in 1958’s Action Comics #242. Warner Bros. even put that infamous act on display at Superman Experience: Defenders Unite, the immersive attraction at Warner Bros. Studio Tour Hollywood, where attendees can see a real-life bottled city of Kandor.
This could be a sign that DC plans to adapt the storyline in Man of Tomorrow, with Brainiac trying to “collect” Earth this time instead of Kandor. Whatever the direction may be, Brainiac, being a world-ending threat, is guaranteed. Lex hates metahumans, and if even he is willing to work alongside them, the alien from Colu must be on another level entirely.
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