"Never discussed a role": James Gunn finally addresses Brainiac's presence in Man of Tomorrow

DC Studios CO-CEO James Gunn took to Threads on Sunday and addressed one of the long-standing Man of Tomorrow rumors. The Wrap published a report last month revealing that fan-favorite DC supervillain Brainiac would be in the Superman sequel. The internet is rife with rumors of different actors playing the challenging Superman antagonist.

Matt Smith and Sam Rockwell were rumored to be in the running to play the alien supervillain in the follow-up to Superman. However, another name dropped to the surprise of the fans: Dave Bautista. However, this rumor prompted a response from James Gunn on Sunday on his Threads account:

"Oh boy. Let's forget a moment I've never said Brainiac was in the movie. I freaking love @davebautista & I have many ideas for who he could play in the DCU. But he & I have never discussed a role in Man of Tomorrow, nor have we discussed it amongst ourselves at DC. In addition, truly, NONE of the names, from the six or seven I've seen rumored for a role, have auditioned or been discussed at all. In general I'm just letting the silly rumors go - and this is certainly not the silliest I've heard recently - but Dave is a friend and that makes it more irritating. Btw I'm not blaming the poster here - I imagine this is coming from other places."

What do James Gunn's comments mean for Man of Tomorrow?

Only James Gunn and the cast members of the sequel know who the main antagonist of the movie is. Also, James Gunn said something similar before confirming Lex Luthor as the villain of Superman. So, it won't be surprising if Gunn confirms Brainiac as Man of Tomorrow's central antagonist in the future. But he will probably confirm the villain only close to the production date.

It seems that the script for Man of Tomorrow is complete, ensuring that the project is on track to begin filming next year. Gunn confirmed that he had finished the treatment for the sequel to The Hollywood Reporter at the red carpet premiere of Peacemaker Season 2:

“I’ve already finished the treatment for the next story in what I’ll call the ‘Superman Saga.’ The treatment is done, which means a very, very worked-out treatment. I’m working on that and hopefully going into production on that not too far away from today.”

What do we know about the Superman sequel?

Details about the Superman sequel are still secret. We know that Frank Grillo's Rick Flag Sr. and Nicholas Hoult's Lex Luthor will be in the movie. Apart from that, the regular Superman cast is expected to return in the follow-up. But one thing is clear about the movie: the yet-to-be-revealed antagonist will force the Man of Steel and Lex Luthor to team up. James Gunn confirmed this on The Howard Stern Show this year:

“It’s a story about Lex Luthor and Superman having to work together to a certain degree against a much, much bigger threat. It’s more complicated than that, but that’s a big part of it. It’s as much a Lex movie as it is a Superman movie. I loved working with Nicholas Hoult. I relate to the character of Lex, sadly. I really wanted to create something extraordinary with the two of them. I just love the script so much."