Braniac is the most famous Superman villain never to feature in live action, so his chances of appearing in either the DCEU or some sort of franchise reboot aren't all that unreasonable.
Introduced in 1958's Action Comics #242 by Otto Binder and Al Plastino, Braniac is a sentient piece of artificial intelligence designed with the sole purpose of cataloguing all the knowledge in the universe... before destroying it completely.
Braniac has tested the Last Son of Krypton on numerous occasions both in and out of the actual comics themselves, featuring heavily in Bruce Timm's Superman: The Animated Series and in subsequent animated efforts set within the wider DC Universe. Just the other year he also featured as the main villain in NetherRealm's sequel to Injustice: Gods Among Us, cementing his iconic status with a plot taylor-made for a big-budget superhero ensemble.
Braniac might invite comparisons to other average aliens, but the truth is he provides both the mental and physical challenge Superman needs in order to succeed on the big screen.
What Superman villains do you want to see in a future film? Be sure to let us know in the comments below!
WhatCulture's very own resident movie guy, Ewan has been working in the content creation biz for over 10 years now, having started as a freelance contributor to WhatCulture Gaming all the way back in 2015. After graduating with a First-Class Honours in History from Northumbria University in 2017 (where he won a prize for a totally killer dissertation on the Watergate years), Ewan took on the role of Comics Editor at WhatCulture and quickly developed WhatCulture Comics into one of the biggest superhero-focused channels on YouTube. He followed this with a brief hiatus at Screen Rant in 2021, where he worked across the Gaming and Film sections as a writer and editor, before returning to WhatCulture as a Senior Content Producer / Presenter in 2023. He started his own podcast, We Love Dad Movies, in 2022, and has contributed several written pieces to the Eisner-nominated comics website Shelfdust as well.
In his current role, Ewan incorporates his love of cinema, comic books, and history into written pieces and video essays for WhatCulture's Film & TV channel, as well as WhatCulture Gaming and WhatCulture Horror, with a particular focus on nineties-era Dad Movies, old school Westerns, and Golden Age Hollywood Noir. John Carpenter is his fave, and he thinks Batman Beyond should never have been cancelled. If that's your vibe, you'll probably like his stuff.
