Well, here’s a bit of casting news we didn’t see coming.
According to Variety, Warner Bros. is courting the Her star to play the main villain – presumably Lex Luthor – in Zack Snyder’s upcoming Man of Steel sequel with Henry Cavill and Ben Affleck.
Joaquin Phoenix attends the film premiere of Her at Directors Guild of America in Hollywood December 12, 2013. REUTERS/Kevork Djansezian
With a handful of exceptions (Gladiator, Signs, The Village, Walk the Line), Phoenix has pretty much avoided high-profile movies. But if producers do end up going with him, it’ll be in keeping with the casting of Affleck as Batman, who I think is going to be terrific.
Jason Momoa and Callan Mulvey have also been mentioned as playing possible villains, but, as Variety writes: “Warners has always wanted someone who would be a slam dunk in the role.”
Personally, I think it’s a great choice. Phoenix already has proved he can do crazy really well (2010′s I’m Still Here is a case in point), and the last time Warners did something like this with Heath Ledger in The Dark Knight it ended up being the best comic-book interpretation ever captured on screen.
Of course nothing is confirmed and other actors like Mark Strong and Bryan Cranston have been mentioned as possible villains in the upcoming Batman-Superman film.
What do you think of Phoenix starring as Lex? Do you think it’ll work? Sound off in the comments.
Man of Steel 2 opens July 17, 2015.