10 Actors Who Were Cruelly Shafted By Franchise Reboots

3. Kevin Spacey - Superman Returns

Lex Luthor is consistently recognized as one of the most well-known and popular supervillains of all time. From his beginnings as a mad scientist to his reinterpretation as a power-hungry industrialist, Luthor has fought Superman for decades with only his genius intellect, providing an excellent contrast to the multi-powered Kryptonian. His status as Superman€™s arch-nemesis saw him appear in three of the original four Superman films. However, while Gene Hackman opted for a more comedic take on the character, Kevin Spacey went a little more serious in Superman Returns. Although he€™s still obsessed with real estate in this film, his hatred towards Superman is much more apparent. He nearly succeeded in killing his sworn enemy with a Kryptonite shard, but as always, he was defeated when Superman chucked the Kryptonite landmass into space. We last see Luthor stranded on a desert island contemplating eating his girlfriend€™s dog for survival. Spacey€™s Luthor was ruthless and diabolical while still maintaining that sense of humor that originated with Hackman. It would have been cool to see him come back for a sequel, although not as the main villain. However, due to Superman Returns€™ low box office return, Warner Bros. decided to reboot the franchise with Man of Steel. The next time we see Luthor, he€™ll be played by Jesse Eisenberg as a Richard Branson/Brad Pitt amalgamation with hair. While this is certainly an innovative direction to go with the character, if you prefer your Luthor older, balder and more...comic booky, Spacey is one of your best bets.