Lex Luthor Cameo in Peacemaker S2 Ties DC Universe to Man of Tomorrow

Nicholas Hoult returned as Lex Luthor in the sixth episode of Peacemaker Season 2, offering a brief but consequential cameo that confirmed the series’ ties to the wider DC Universe and set up plot threads for the upcoming Superman sequel. In "Ignorance Is Chris," Rick Flag Sr., played by Frank Grillo, visits Luthor at Belle Reve to seek help locating Peacemaker’s portal and technologies tied to multiversal travel. The episode also reveals that the alternate reality where Chris Smith has been living is ruled by Nazis, a twist that reframes his idyllic visions as a dangerous illusion.

In the prison scene, Luthor greets Flag with sarcastic amusement, noting his long sentence and scoffing at the notion that Peacemaker poses anything beyond a vigilante threat. Dialogue in the episode indicates Luthor was sentenced to 265 years. Flag offers Luthor a deal: assistance in finding the portal in exchange for a transfer out of a prison housing metahumans. Luthor initially dismisses Peacemaker but is shown weighing the prospect of a transfer and, as Flag frames it, an opportunity for redemption.

Series creator James Gunn described the moment as important to the emerging DC Universe, saying...