His casting comes on the heels of “Peacemaker” star Frank Grillo confirming his casting in the new DCU movie.

Matthew Lillard joins Superman sequel *Man of Tomorrow, *reunites with Scooby Doo screenwriter James Gunn

His casting comes on the heels of "Peacemaker" star Frank Grillo confirming his casting in the new DCU movie.

By Mekishana Pierre

Mekishana Pierre

Mekishana Pierre is a news writer at **. She has been working at EW since 2025. Her work has previously appeared on Entertainment Tonight and Popsugar.

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May 6, 2026 5:33 p.m. ET

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Matthew Lillard; David Corenswet in 'Superman'. Credit:

Kristina Bumphrey/Variety via Getty; Jessica Miglio/Warner Bros.

- Matthew Lillard has reportedly been cast in the upcoming *Superman* follow-up film, *Man of Tomorrow*.

- The move reunites Lillard with *Scooby Doo *writer — and current DC Studios co-head — James Gunn, who will write and direct the star-studded film.

- Gunn teased a confirmation of the news with a photo of him and Lillard posted to his Instagram account on Wednesday.

Matthew Lillard is going from Marvel to DC, thanks to a mysterious role in the upcoming *Superman* follow-up film, *Man of Tomorrow*.

*Deadline* reports that the actor has been cast in the DC sequel, joining a cast that features David Corenswet as Kal-El/Clark Kent, Nicholas Hoult as Lex Luthor, and Lars Eidinger as Brainiac. The move will reunite Lillard with his former *Scooby Doo *writer — and current DC Studios co-head — James Gunn, who will write and direct the star-studded film.

DC Studios and reps for Lillard did not respond immediately when ** reached out for confirmation. However, Gunn teased his confirmation of the news with a photo of himself and Lillard posted to his Instagram account on Wednesday.

"Just casually hanging out with my longtime friend @matthewlillard for no reason," the director cheekily captioned the post — to the delight of many fans in his comments.

*Man of Tomorrow*, scheduled to open in movie theaters July 9, 2027, will see the Man of Steel teaming up with his adversary, Luthor, to take on a much greater threat, the highly intelligent cosmic menace known as Brainiac.

"It's as much a Lex movie as it is a Superman movie," Gunn told Howard Stern of the sequel in September. "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."

Aaron Pierre will also reprise his role as Earth-based Green Lantern John Stewart after first appearing on HBO series *Lanterns* (premiering in August), EW previously confirmed. Frank Grillo will also reprise his role as Rick Flag Sr. in the sequel. Grillo has portrayed the character in several DC Studios titles, including *Peacemaker, Creature Commandos, *and *Superman.*

Other casting for the movie has not been confirmed, but Isabela Merced, who played Hawkgirl in *Superman* and *Peacemaker* season 2, teased her involvement in *Man of Tomorrow*, writing "see you soon" in a past Instagram Story.

Matthew Lillard attends Elton John AIDS Foundation's 34th Annual Academy Awards Viewing Party on March 15, 2026.

Leon Bennett/Getty

The casting of Lillard comes on the heels of the actor becoming the subject of headlines after Quentin Tarantino shared disparaging comments about Lillard, Owen Wilson, and Paul Dano on *The Bret Easton Ellis Podcast*.

During his appearance on the podcast, Tarantino called Dano "the weakest male actor in SAG" before stating, "I really can't stand Owen Wilson" and "I don't care for Matthew Lillard."

In the aftermath, it seemed that all of Hollywood rose to praise the prowess of the three stars. When it came to Lillard specifically, Mike Flanagan, who directed the actor in *The Life of Chuck* and works with him again on the upcoming TV series adaptation of *Carrie*, called him "the goddamn greatest."

Gunn referred to him as "one of my favorite guys (and actors)." George Clooney, his former costar on *The Descendants*, said during an AARP acceptance speech that he "would be honored to work with those actors" Tarantino mentioned. Lillard's *Scream* screenwriter and *Scream 7* director Kevin Williamson shared a behind-the-scenes photo on his Instagram Story with a caption that read in part, "Truly one of the best!"

James Gunn shoots down 'Man of Tomorrow' Maxima casting report as 'bulls---'

Matthew Lillard doesn't think 'anyone really likes' him, credits nostalgia factor for his Hollywood comeback

"It was like living through your own wake," Lillard told EW during a wide-ranging interview in January of all the tributes he received from his peers in the business on social media. "All those R.I.P. emails or tweets and Instagram posts and TikToks, all of the things we see after somebody passes are so sweet. And the reality is I just got to live through all of it firsthand — alive and kicking! I can't imagine a more lovely reaction to what happened."

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"It was crazy. I keep showing it to my wife to convince her that I am worthy, that people still like me," Lillard added, taking on a more jokey tone. "I am a piece of ass!"

He later noted, "Nobody has to like me. Nobody has to like any actor out there, obviously. It's personal preference. I am not everyone's first choice, that is obvious, but to then have that kind of reaction was beautiful."

Read the full profile on Lillard here.

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