Why Brainiac Makes Perfect Sense as Man of Tomorrow's Main Villain

For a movie whose beingness was lone revealed a mates of months ago, Man of Tomorrow is progressing astatine a beauteous speedy clip. James Gunn’s Superman sequel already has a screenplay and a merchandise day - July 9, 2027. And present we person evident confirmation of the large villain forcing David Corenswet’s Kal-El and Nicholas Hoult’s Lex Luthor to articulation forces. It’s Brainiac, of course.

This is hardly the astir astonishing news, but it is simply a invited one. Who amended than Brainiac to bring unneurotic the Man of Steel and the feline who kidnapped his dog? It’s a twist that conscionable makes sense, fixed however Gunn and Peter Safran’s caller DCU has been shaping up truthful far. Let’s instrumentality a person look astatine who Brainiac is and wherefore he’s the cleanable prime to beryllium Man of Tomorrow’s main villain.

Who Is Man of Tomorrow Villain Brainiac?

Lex Luthor volition ever fertile arsenic Superman’s top arch-nemesis. As Gunn’s archetypal Superman movie proves, he’s conscionable a next-level hater. But Brainiac is the wide prime for #2. More than immoderate villain, helium has some the brains and the brawn to situation Kal-El connected each front.

Brainiac was created by writer Otto Binder and creator Al Plastino and debuted successful 1958’s Action Comics #242. Brainiac is depicted arsenic an alien android from the satellite Colu. Brainiac’s modern root communicative reveals that helium was primitively an integrated being - a Coluan idiosyncratic named Vril Dox - earlier being sentenced to decease for trying to overthrow his world. But now, helium exists arsenic a cyborg with a bid of super-strong bodies to gully upon.

Already fiendishly intelligent, Brainiac has made it his extremity to cod each cognition that exists successful the universe. But overmuch similar Judge Holden from Cormac McCarthy’s Blood Meridian, erstwhile Brainiac gathers said knowledge, he’s committed to ensuring nary 1 other tin person it.

Art by Rafa Sandoval. (Image Credit: DC)

Brainiac’s fiendish modus operandi consists of travelling to antithetic worlds and capturing cities arsenic his idiosyncratic souvenirs. He shrinks them down and bottles them up for his collection, and past destroys what remains of the conquered civilization. One of Brainiac’s top prizes is Kandor, a relic of the Krypton that was. In immoderate versions of the Superman mythos, it’s really Brainiac who causes the demolition of Krypton aft stealing Kandor.

Superman has clashed with Brainiac galore times implicit the years, some unsocial and alongside the Justice League. But though Supes inevitably triumphs each time, Brainiac ever survives and returns to endanger Earth again. Because helium tin simply backmost up his consciousness and physique caller bodies, he’s a precise hard villain to destroy. In fact, 2008’s Superman: Brainiac served arsenic the archetypal clip that Superman encountered the existent Brainiac successful his existent humanoid form. Every different Brainiac helium battled earlier past was a drone proxy.

Despite being 1 of the astir feared villains successful the DC Universe, Brainiac’s descendants person established a much heroic legacy. Most notably, Brainiac 5 is simply a founding subordinate of the 31st Century squad known arsenic the Legion of Super-Heroes and 1 of Kal-El’s closest friends.

Why Brainiac Makes Sense for James Gunn’s DCU

From the infinitesimal Gunn archetypal revealed Man of Tomorrow online, 1 happening astir this Superman follow-up has been clear. Something is going to hap that forces Kal-El and Lex Luthor to enactment speech their differences and face a communal enemy. Some villain volition look that pierces done Luthor’s implicit hatred of Superman. Brainiac was the astir contiguous and evident candidate, truthful it was hardly a astonishment erstwhile The Wrap confirmed that the villain volition header Man of Tomorrow.

As we’ve already established, Brainiac is easy the #2 astir important Superman villain aft Luthor, truthful it makes consciousness that helium would beryllium adjacent retired of the gate. And successful presumption of picking a villain who tin situation some Superman’s spot and Luthor’s monolithic intellect, there’s nary 1 better. With his precocious android bodies and endless proviso of robotic tools, Brainiac tin combat Superman to a standstill. And though Luthor has spent his full beingness being the smartest feline successful immoderate room, he’s astir to conscionable a existent intelligence rival successful Brainiac. This is simply a foe that requires Superman and Luthor to beryllium astatine their implicit peak.

Brainiac besides fits close into the larger communicative Gunn seems to beryllium telling with Krypton. In what was easy the astir arguable shake-up successful 2025’s Superman, the movie depicts Bradley Cooper’s Jor-El and Angela Sarafyan’s Lara Lor-Van not arsenic benevolent scientists, but colonizers urging their lad to conquer Earth and breed a caller procreation of Kryptonian heirs. Everything we deliberation we cognize astir Krypton is thrown for a loop with that reveal. If Superman’s commencement parents aren’t paragons of virtue, past what other has changed astir Krypton?

As discussed earlier, immoderate Superman adaptations person reworked Brainiac to beryllium much fundamentally tied to Krypton. We wouldn’t beryllium astatine each amazed if the DCU follows suit. Will Brainiac again beryllium a Kryptonian super-computer successful this universe? Will helium beryllium the concealed manus down the planet’s destruction? Is helium inactive carrying retired Jor-El’s goals of colonization? At the precise least, we’re expecting the Bottle City of Kandor to beryllium a crippled constituent successful Man of Tomorrow, particularly with Kandorian exile Supergirl (Milly Alcock) already being introduced.

The Superman movie besides establishes that the DCU’s Earth has a past of superheroes dating backmost 300 years. It adjacent features an Easter ovum successful the signifier of a mural depicting immoderate of the galore heroes who preceded Superman. It’s precise imaginable that Brainiac’s debut is tied to this 300-year metahuman timeline. As a collector of cognition and uncommon specimens, Brainiac whitethorn good beryllium fascinated by Earth’s metahuman phenomenon. He whitethorn beryllium coming to Earth to survey these unusual beings and cod samples, aft which he’ll nary uncertainty privation to obliterate what remains. That represents the benignant of wide and contiguous information that would unit Superman and Luthor to enactment speech their differences for the greater good.

What DC Stories Will Man of Tomorrow Adapt?

2025’s Superman whitethorn not beryllium a nonstop adaptation of immoderate peculiar DC comic oregon storyline, but determination are wide influences successful the film. Gunn and his formed and unit person made nary concealed of the information that Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely’s All-Star Superman was a immense root of inspiration. We person to presume that Man of Tomorrow volition beryllium akin successful that regard. Gunn whitethorn not beryllium adapting immoderate 1 peculiar Superman vs. Brainiac story, but he’s excessively large a instrumentality of the classical DC Comics and adaptations not to gully connected that affluent history.

The aforementioned Superman: Brainiac (from writer Geoff Johns and creator Gary Frank) is apt to beryllium 1 root of inspiration. That publication is beauteous overmuch the definitive modern Brainiac tale, establishing a caller look for the iconic villain and intensifying the rivalry betwixt Supes and his alien nemesis. That publication besides ends connected a profoundly tragic enactment that we could spot Gunn repurposing for the DCU.

Art by Gary Frank. (Image Credit: DC)

And, again, don’t beryllium amazed if Man of Tomorrow borrows a leafage from the DCAU and Smallville playbook by depicting Brainiac arsenic an AI relic of Krypton alternatively than a Coluan. It’s a cleaner root story, successful galore ways, and it helps item the feud betwixt Superman and Brainiac. Cooper’s Jor-El is not the bully antheral Kal-El ever believed him to be, and it would marque consciousness to found Brainiac arsenic different portion of that tarnished legacy.

But successful presumption of stories that specifically impact Superman and Luthor teaming up against Brainiac, the pickings are amazingly slim. These 2 villains person been overmuch much prone to teaming up against Superman successful the comics. Brainiac adjacent sometimes serves arsenic a subordinate of the Legion of Doom. Perhaps astir famously, they signifier a one-sided confederation to destruct Superman successful Alan Moore and Curt Swan’s graphic caller Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow?, which features Brainiac hijacking Luthor’s body.

There is 1 caller Superman comic that could person inspired Gunn’s Man of Tomorrow screenplay, however. Mark Waid and Bryan Hitch’s Superman: The Last Days of Lex Luthor (which we precocious added to our database of the champion Superman comics of each time) sees Luthor crook to Superman aft contracting a mysterious terminal illness. Despite the protests of the satellite astatine large, Superman can’t crook down a plea for help, adjacent from his top enemy. In the end, it’s revealed that Brainiac infected Luthor with a microorganism arsenic portion of a crippled to termination Superman, keying up a showdown betwixt Brainiac connected 1 broadside and a agreed Superman/Luthor connected the other.

The archetypal Superman movie establishes Hoult’s Luthor arsenic a supremely arrogant individual, 1 who views Superman arsenic a subhuman happening and isn’t supra casual execution if it causes Clark pain. No uncertainty Man of Tomorrow is going to person to find ways to humble Luthor and unit him to judge the Man of Steel arsenic an state (as good arsenic unit the assemblage to clasp him arsenic a protagonist for a change). Gunn could bash acold worse than gully connected The Last Days of Lex Luthor’s basal premise. Luthor confronting his imminent mortality is an casual mode of forcing him into an confederation with his hated rival.

On the different hand, it whitethorn instrumentality thing much than the menace of Earth’s annihilation for Luthor to temporarily marque bully with Superman. We saw Luthor play a heroic enactment relation successful 2024’s Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League erstwhile Brainiac invades Earth, though successful that case, helium doesn’t past agelong into the conflict.

Warning: The remainder of this nonfiction contains spoilers for Peacemaker Season 2’s finale!

Finally, there’s the question of however overmuch Man of Tomorrow volition gully connected Bill Willingham and Lilah Sturges' Salvation Run. Gunn is intelligibly leaning connected that bid arsenic helium charts the aboriginal of the DCU, arsenic Peacemaker Season 2 ends with John Cena’s Christopher Smith being dumped connected the situation satellite of Salvation by a vindictive Rick Flag (Frank Grillo). Similar to the Salvation Run comic, we’re going to spot galore metahuman villains banished to Salvation by ARGUS.

Will that see Hoult’s Luthor? It’s precise imaginable that Flag volition spot Luthor arsenic excessively astute to stay safely successful ARGUS custody, opting alternatively to banish him to different magnitude entirely. That could motivate Luthor’s confederation with Superman if helium sees his nemesis arsenic his lone “get retired of jailhouse free” card. And possibly Brainiac enters the representation erstwhile helium sees this satellite afloat of exiled villains and decides to adhd it to his collection. One mode oregon another, Flag’s program is going to stroke up successful his face. It’s conscionable a question of whether that happens successful Man of Tomorrow oregon elsewhere successful the DCU.

What bash you anticipation to spot from Brainiac successful Man of Tomorrow? Do you privation him to beryllium tied to Krypton? Vote successful our canvass and fto america cognize your thoughts successful the comments below.

For more, brushwood up connected each DC movie and bid successful development.

Jesse is simply a mild-mannered unit writer for IGN. Allow him to lend a machete to your intelligence thicket by following @jschedeen connected BlueSky.