Over the weekend, DC Studios co-CEO James Gunn finally confirmed that Brainiac will be the main villain in his 2027 Superman sequel, Man of Tomorrow. All the Light We Cannot See star Lars Eidinger will play the character, a surprising pick given the other names that were rumoured.
After years of seeing Lex Luthor and General Zod on screen, Brainiac is by far the most-requested villain by fans. Gunn is making that a reality, but which version of the character we'll see in the DCU is very much up in the air.
In this feature, we're bringing you up to speed on all things Brainiac. That includes his complicated comic book history, which version of the character we're likely to see in Man of Tomorrow, and how previous adaptations could influence this movie.
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5. Brainiac Arrives In The DC Universe
Created by Otto Binder and Al Plastino, Brainiac made his official DC Comics debut in 1958's Action Comics #242. Superman had been on the scene for two decades by then, and the publisher was entering the sci-fi-inspired Silver Age of comics.
It was around this time that the Man of Steel started becoming the hero we all know and love today, with Bizarro one of many now-iconic additions to his corner of the DC Universe (others included Supergirl, Krypto, and the Legion of Super-Heroes).
Introduced as a green-skinned alien from the planet Colu, Brainiac had already shrunken down the Kryptonian city of Kandor and set out to do the same to Metropolis. The villain continued to evolve in the years that followed, and was ultimately established not as an alien, but an android who had been dispatched by Coluan leaders to conquer other planets.
4. The Villain's Evolution Continues
Decades after first appearing, Brainiac was given a terrifying metal body and took flight in his skull-shaped ship. This reinvention in the 1980s was a game-changer, but the character's entire history changed when Crisis on Infinite Earths came along and rebooted the DC Universe.
Now depicted as a human called Milton Fine, the carnival mentalist was initially dubbed the "Amazing Brainiac." We'd later learn that an alien named Vril Dox had been executed on Colu, and that his consciousness connected with Fine's to give him his very real mental powers. Part-human and part-alien, he created new cloned bodies for himself, including a green-skinned alien-like creature and a formidable robotic form.
Heading into the '90s, Brainiac was established as a threat not just to Superman and Metropolis, but the entire DC Universe. As a result, he was elevated to being a Justice League-level baddie.
3. The Real Brainiac Is Revealed
Brainiac had somewhat stagnated heading into the 2000s, leading writer Geoff Johns and artist Gary Frank to finally reveal the real Brainiac. They established that every version of this villain Superman had faced before now had been a probe, clone, or in nanite-controlled bodies.
When Brainiac finally makes himself known, he's a much larger and more muscular version of the original, pre-Crisis villain (and more than a match for a powerhouse like Superman). His main motivation is to shrink and bottle cities, destroying the planets afterwards to ensure only he gains all of their knowledge.
After being defeated by Superman, he launches a missile at the Kent Farm that destroys it and causes Jonathan Kent to have a fatal heart attack. It's also established that Brainiac destroyed Krypton, an idea that originated in Superman: The Animated Series. In that, he was revealed as one of Jor-El's failed creations.
2. Brainiac's Previous On-Screen Appearances
We very nearly got to see Brainiac in Superman III, but the idea was scrapped for budgetary reasons. In fact, it wasn't until Smallville that this villain made his live-action debut, played by James Marsters of Buffy the Vampire Slayer fame.
In the show, Brainiac was a rogue Kryptonian A.I. who came to Earth and posed as human Milton Fine. We never got to see the villain in all his glory there, though Krypton did deliver a comic-accurate version who, years before Superman's birth, set out to add the titular planet to his growing collection.
The CW's Supergirl introduced us to Brainiac 5, a.k.a. Brainy (Marsters actually played Brainiac 5 in Smallville Season 10). This version of the character is a member of the Legion of Super-Heroes and one of Brainiac's "descendants." We wouldn't bank on seeing the heroic Brainiac in the DCU for a while yet.
1. What About Man of Tomorrow's Brainiac?
As we mentioned above, the DCU's Brainiac will be played by German actor Lars Eidinger. He's not a household name, but has plenty of impressive screen credits to his name. Gunn, meanwhile, has said that Eidinger's impressive audition is what landed him the role.
It's likely going to be months, if not upwards of a year, before we get to see Brainiac in Man of Tomorrow. The filmmaker has, however, hinted that he's inspired by the character's horror roots, and the pretty terrifying interpretation of the villain seen in Absolute Superman.
We'd bet on Gunn heading down the body horror route, likely meaning Brainiac won't himself be a physical threat to Superman and Lex Luthor. Instead, he'll no doubt have an army of aliens or robots at his beck and call, though we wouldn't bet against Eidinger seeing some action.