- Lex Luthor’s hate for Superman began when Lex lost his hair because of Superman’s mistake as a teenager.
- In Adventure Comics#271, we see that a young Superman tried to save Lex from a fire-engulfed lab, but accidentally made some chemicals spill, causing Lex to lose his hair permanently.
- Since then, Lex swore revenge on Superman and became his greatest enemy.
Superman has faced an insane number of villains since the day he came into being. However, there is one who has been the arch nemesis of our hero for as long as one can recall, and he is none other than Lex Luthor. Now, after watching Superman, it would only be natural to think that Lex’s hate for Superman comes from a point of envy, but what if I told you the real reason that caused the seeds of hatred to be sown was given to us back in 1960, and had something to do with Lex’s baldness? So, now that I think I have you curious enough, let’s dive right into it.
Did you know Lex Luthor was a Superman Fan?
Image Credit: DC Studios (via YouTube/DC, screenshot by Shashank Shakya/Beebom)
Back in 1960, we were introduced to Adventure Comics #271, where we met a teenager, Clark Kent, who went by the name of Superboy, along with a young, brilliant, and aspiring scientist, Lex Luthor. In this comic, Lex was a massive fan of Superboy and met him on occasion. However, one day, he saved Superboy’s life from Kryptonite poisoning he got from a Kryptonite meteor. Following that, Lex and Superboy became fast friends, but the friendship was not meant to last very long.
This One Mistake Gave Superman a Lifelong Enemy in Lex
One of the defining factors of Lex Luthor has always been his bald head. However, according to Adventure Comics #271, this was not always the case. Lex Luthor had gorgeous brown hair, which he was greatly fond of. When he helped Superboy and they became friends, Suprboy helped Lex build a laboratory for himself to develop a more potent antidote for Kryptonite poisoning. To do so, Lex would work tirelessly with volatile chemicals, but one day, due to his own mistake, the lab caught fire, which spread dangerously.
Superboy arrived at the scene and used his super breath to put out the flames. However, the young Superman was still learning the extent of his powers, and in a sense of urgency, kind of overdid it. Viles of toxic chemicals spilled and mixed, giving out toxic fumes. These fumes reacted with Lex’s hair, making them fall out permanently, which in turn turned Lex Luthor bald.
In his mind, Lex Luthor turned the events around and convinced himself that Superboy made him bald purposefully because he was jealous of Lex’s intellect and swore revenge on the young hero who would later become Superman. This very incident became the root cause of everything Lex did as an adult, which ultimately led him to become the greatest enemy of The Man of Steel .
However, in Man of Tomorrow, we will see Lex Luthor and Superman team up to fight an undisclosed enemy.
Shashank Shakya is an entertainment writer at Beebom. He has completed his Bachelors (Honors) in English Literature and is a published author. Shashank boasts incomparable knowledge about the Marvel and DC universe, along with other branches of entertainment with substantial experience in the field of writing.
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When James Gunn confirmed that Man of Tomorrow will see Superman and Lex Luthor working together against a larger threat, the fandom collectively raised an eyebrow. After all, Superman and Lex are usually the last two people you’d expect to fight on the same side. But with Gunn also hinting that the movie is “as much a Lex story as a Superman story,” and Brainiac heavily rumored to be making his DCU debut, it’s worth diving into DC comics to see what blueprints might inspire this new chapter. So, here are five DC comics storylines that Man of Tomorrow could adapt.
1.Superman: Brainiac (2008)
Image Credit: DC Comics (via Amazon)
If Brainiac is truly the villain Gunn is saving for DCU’s future , Geoff Johns and Gary Frank’s Superman: Brainiac is the most obvious starting point. It redefined Brainiac for the modern era, showing him not just as a collector of bottled cities but as a terrifying invader with godlike intellect.
Superman is pushed to his emotional and physical limits, and Lex Luthor’s presence in a Brainiac story almost writes itself simply because when Earth is on the line, even Lex’s self-preservation instinct forces him to work with Superman. For Gunn, this gives him a blockbuster spectacle with a deeply personal hook of Kal-El facing the villain who embodies his worst fears about alien power.
2.Superman: For All Seasons (1998)
Image Credit: DC Comics (via Amazon)
On paper, Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale’s For All Seasons is a Superman comic that isn’t about Brainiac at all. But what it does brilliantly is explore Clark Kent and Lex Luthor as two men shaped by Smallville and Metropolis in very different ways. If Gunn truly wants this film to be “as much about Lex as it is about Superman,” he’ll need this kind of emotional grounding. For All Seasons provides the character-driven core where Superman embodies hope, and Lex embodies ambition, forced to set aside their rivalry when the universe demands it.
3.Superman: Up, Up and Away! (2006)
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If Brainiac is attacking Earth with overwhelming force, Superman might need Lex’s intellect and ruthlessness in ways he never wanted to admit. That uneasy alliance could be the beating heart of Man of Tomorrow.
4.Superman: The Black Ring (2010–2011)
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Paul Cornell’s The Black Ring is one of the best modern Lex Luthor stories, where we see him on a cosmic journey to obtain ultimate power. Along the way, Lex faces threats bigger than even he can manipulate, forcing him into unlikely alliances. For Gunn, adapting elements of The Black Ring would put Lex front and center, not just as a foil to Superman, but as a co-protagonist with his own arc.
5.Superman vs. Brainiac / Injustice League Arcs (2007–2014)
Image Credit: DC Comics (via Amazon)
From Justice League: Injustice League to Forever Evil, we’ve seen versions of Lex Luthor stepping up as Earth’s defender when bigger villains threaten annihilation. These arcs aren’t strictly Superman stories, but they capture the essence of what Gunn has teased, a reluctant partnership forged by necessity. If Man of Tomorrow borrows this DNA, we could see Lex and Superman clashing as much as cooperating, in some of the finest ways imaginable.
Shashank Shakya is an entertainment writer at Beebom. He has completed his Bachelors (Honors) in English Literature and is a published author. Shashank boasts incomparable knowledge about the Marvel and DC universe, along with other branches of entertainment with substantial experience in the field of writing.
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