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After he starred in 2015 Mad Max: Fury Road and miscellaneous X-Men Movies Nicholas Hoult has had a commercially successful career thus far. Additionally, his roles in movies like food menu And Favorite It earned him praise from critics.
While Hoult found success, he was a supporting cast member in all of the previously mentioned films. In recent years, it’s been apparent that the actor was eager to take the leap to leading man status. Holt auditioned to play the leading role in both Batman And Superman: Legacy He was even a final contender for both parts. However, each of the highly coveted roles managed to slip through his fingers, continually sending the actor back on his career path.
Persia (not dark enough?)
Back in 2019, when selection was still underway for BatmanIt was reported that Nicholas Hoult and Robert Pattinson were the final contenders for the titular role. Unfortunately, after already losing out on a starring role in Top Gun: MaverickHolt didn’t land the role of The Dark Knight either. Of course, Pattinson took on the mantle of Bruce Wayne/Batman in Matt Reeve’s BatVerse.
While both films were scheduled for an earlier release, Batman And Top Gun: Maverick Both hit theaters in 2022 and have become some of the biggest movies of the year. If Holt had starred in a scene that brought crowds of people back to movie theaters or both, chances are he would be one of the hottest actors in Hollywood right now.
While he undoubtedly loved portraying the Caped Crusader, Holt has since admitted that he just wasn’t a good fit for Gotham City Reeves as Pattinson. He said,
“I think Matt Reeves’ ideas were great and he made a great movie. I also think Rob [Pattinson] He did a great job with the character, and I loved seeing him in it. So I don’t think I would have done as well as him in the end. I don’t think I could have adapted to the world Matt created the way Rob did.”
Long before Holt was considered for the role of Batman, he had played Hank McCoy/Beast in the Sony films. X-Men being. Hank’s superpowers make him very different from Batman. However, it’s possible his experience playing one of the more fully-integrated members of the X-Men would make Holt a better fit to play another DC superhero…
beacon of hope
After losing several career changing roles (Hoult landed a major role in… Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part 1 but was forced to drop out due to scheduling conflicts), there was finally some hope for the actor. A few years after almost landing the role of Batman, Holt was the latest contender to play Clark Kent/Superman in James Gunn’s new DC Universe.
As noted in the above quote, Holt didn’t think he would fit into Reeve’s darker world as well as Pattinson. So, if the actor is looking for something different, it could be a great choice to showcase Superman’s optimism.
In the X-Men From the movies, Hoult’s Beast has always been one of the characters who kept the team intact and fought for mutant rights. However, he has faced his own struggles. in First gradeSpecifically, Hank was actively trying to find a cure to get rid of the physical mutation, as he was ashamed of his monstrous appearance. However, by the end of the film, his fellow mutants, especially Raven, have convinced Hank to embrace this side of himself.
While Beast struggles with the supernatural side of himself, Superman, a Kryptonian by birth, struggles with his humanity. Just like Beast relies on Raven and the other X-Men to embrace his mutant form, Clark Kent relies on Lois Lane, along with Jonathan and Martha Kent, to stay connected to humanity. Therefore, as its inverse X-Men It was interesting to see Holt portray an alien who struggles to accept his new relationship with humans.
However, Holt will not be the new Superman, as David Korenswet will be taking over his role instead. While this is another huge loss for Holt, the actor’s past comments suggest he will move forward with optimism and hope:
“When they tell you for the first time that it’s not you, it hurts, but then you have to just accept it as normal. I think that’s probably an asset to me as an actor too. I can accept that they didn’t cast me very well and when I see the actor who’s been cast does a great job, And I’m having fun with it, which is fine, and I’m like, ‘Yeah, they made the right choice. They knew what they were doing.” So it’s not like I’m sitting there like, “Oh, I’m not going to watch it now.”
“Either you die a hero…”
While Holt failed to get the part of Batman and Superman, a darker fate likely awaits him. It was reported that James Gunn was initially interested in Holt for the role of Lex Luthor, Superman’s archenemy. However, at this time, it’s not clear if the actor will want to continue exploring the role after not being chosen to play the Man of Steel.
Regardless, Holt’s performance as the insane Nux in Mad Max: Fury Road Proving that he sure has the potential to play a wacky and terrifying comic book villain. As Harvey Dent once said: “You either die a hero, or you live long enough to see yourself become the villain.” Time will tell if Hoult appears as Lex Luthor Superman: Legacyis set for a July 11, 2025 release date, or if he’ll play another character in the DCU down the line.
