Lex Luthor (DC Extended Universe)

"The greatest gladiator match in the history of the world: Son of Krypton versus Bat of Gotham!"

- Lex describing the battle between Batman and Superman as a legendary gladiator match

Alexander "Lex" Joseph Luthor Jr., better known as Lex Luthor, is the main antagonist of the 2016 epic superhero movie Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, the second installment of the DC Extended Universe and the sequel of 2013's Man of Steel.

Luthor is a megalomaniacal multi-billionaire and C.E.O. of the company LexCorp. Although he is one of the smartest people on the planet, he has developed an unhealthy fixation with the hero Superman, whom he views as an alien not native to earth. Thinking of himself as the superior one, he is fixated on defeating and killing Superman.

Luthor is portrayed by Jesse Eisenberg in his first villain portrayal of his cinematic career.

Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice
Eighteen months (running from May 2013 to November 2014 after Man of Steel in May 2013), he orchestrates the Kryptonite cutting off the skin of Zod's deceased corpse so he can gain access to the Kryptonian ship to resurrect Zod by cutting the blood off of his right hand to pour it on him and mutate him into Doomsday as a fail-safe just in case Superman isn't dead. He also orchestrated Wallace Keefe's suicide in the wheelchair he was riding by bombing the Capitol killing himself, Senator June Finch and Luthor's assistant, Mercy, leaving Superman alive and blamed by the public, sending him into exile. He also orchestrated Superman's battle with Batman at the abandoned Wayne Manor by kidnapping Martha Kent and bribing him to bring him Batman's head, or he will have Anatoli Knyazev (who he sent to frame Superman in Africa for the killing with a bullet) kill her. At the end, Luthor was revealed to have been responsible for the bombing of the Capitol and Doomsday's attack, and got his head shaved and was imprisoned.

Trivia

 * This is the seventh live action iteration of the character.
 * This version of Lex Luthor is inspired by the comics Adventure Comics #271 and real life Silicon Valley CEOs.
 * Lex is the youngest person ever to be both named Fortune’s Businessperson of the Year and included on the magazine’s list of the World’s 50 Greatest Leaders.
 * Lex is similar to Ichiro Yashida from The Wolverine: They are tech magnates who are fascinated with metahuman individuals, yet they wish to kill one in particular (Lex: Superman, Yashida: Wolverine).
 * He is also similar to Grings Kodai: They are wealthy businessmen who are willing to manipulate and blackmail others to get what they want and have access to advanced technology. They also wind up being arrested and sent to jail for their crimes.
 * He is also similar to Chris D'Amico aka the Motherfucker from Kick-Ass series, both of them are childish and nerdy and also ruthless killers and a monster. Both of them are obsessed about killing their arch rivals.
 * Lex is 31 in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, four years younger than Superman, when in most forms of media, he is either slightly or much older than Superman.
 * Before Eisenberg was cast, Mark Strong, Bryan Cranston, Billy Zane and Joaquin Phoenix were all rumored to being considered for the part.