Lex Luthor Actor Jesse Eisenberg Says Batman v Superman 'Hurt My Career in a Real Way'

Zombieland and The Social Network star Jesse Eisenberg has said his role as DC villain Lex Luthor in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice hurt his career "in a real way."

The widely panned film arrived in 2016 as one piece of the now defunct DC Extended Universe, which starred Ben Affleck's Batman and Henry Cavill's Superman.

Eisenberg said on the Armchair Expert podcast that he's been in other poorly received films but, given just how mainstream DC is, the backlash for Batman v Superman was much greater.

"I was in this Batman movie and the Batman movie was so poorly received, and I was so poorly received," Eisenberg said. "I’ve never said this before and it’s kind of embarrassing to admit but I genuinely think it actually hurt my career in a real way, because I was poorly received in something so public.

"I’ve been in poorly received things that just don’t see the light of day, and for the most part, no one knows. But this was so public, and I don’t read notices or reviews or movie press or anything, so I was unaware of how poorly it was received."

Since starring in Batman v Superman, Eisenberg has appeared in the likes of Now You See Me 2, The Art of Self-Defense, Vivarium, and Zombieland: Double Tap. Now You See Me 3 is due out November 2025.

Batman v Superman, as just the second DCEU film, set the standard of quality fans could expect from DC's Marvel Cinematic Universe rival. It was followed almost exclusively by critical duds such as Suicide Squad, Aquaman, Justice League, and Black Adam before being scrapped and replaced by the new DC Universe, which kicks off proper on July 11, 2025 with Superman.

Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelance reporter. He'll talk about The Witcher all day.