Lex Luthor first appeared  in the 1978 movie Superman: The Movie. Luthor is a charismatic yet cutthroat businessman purely motivated by money, as well as the desire to swindle as tremendous a fortune as possible to prove his genius, and no concern for the consequences his schemes could produce or how they could affect others. Although he is bald, he wears a variety of wigs throughout the film to conceal it. Luthor's schemes are offset by a tendency to surround himself with unsatisfactory help; he is burdened by his bumbling henchman Otis (Ned Beatty), as well as his conscience-stricken girlfriend Eve Teschmacher (Valerie Perrine). Luthor plots to divert a nuclear missile into hitting the San Andreas fault, causing California to sink into the ocean, thereby turning its neighboring states into prime beachfront property. Lex Luthor's role in Superman II is relegated to a supporting one . Luthor escapes prison thanks to a jailbreak organized with the help of Miss Teschmacher while leaving Otis behind. After journeying to the Fortress of Solitude, Luthor learns of the existence of General Zod and the other Kryptonian criminals Ursa and Non. Hoping to rule his own continent once the evil Kryptonians take over Earth, Luthor allies himself with Zod. He asks Zod for control over real estate in Australia. However, when Superman confronts Zod and his cronies at the Fortress of Solitude at the film's climax, Luthor tricks Superman into revealing that there is a chamber in the Fortress which can nullify a Kryptonian's powers using synthetic red solar radiation- in essence turning a Kryptonian, such as Superman, Zod, and his followers Non and Ursa, into a vulnerable human. Fortunately, expecting Luthor's betrayal, Superman had already reversed the mechanism of the chamber, and when forced inside by Zod, the "red sun" beams are dispersed throughout the Fortress while Superman is safely shielded; Zod and his followers are defeated easily because of the loss of their powers. Luthor is sent back to prison. The final parts of Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut had Superman rotating the Earth backwards to prevent Luthor from escaping from prison while also making sure that General Zod, Ursa, and Non remain in the Phantom Zone. Lex Luthor reappears  in Superman IV: The Quest for Peace, escaping from prison once more, this time with the aid of his nephew Lenny (portrayed by Jon Cryer) who uses his car to distract the guards when Luthor was working in the prison's rock pile. In the film, Luthor never takes off his wig. Once again, Lex allies himself with other villains, in this instance a cadre of war profiteers and arms dealers who are worried about what Superman's efforts toward nuclear disarmament will do to their business. Lex uses his own DNA combined with a strand of Superman's hair that is stolen from a museum to create a hybrid clone that he dubs Nuclear Man (portrayed by Mark Pillow and voiced by Gene Hackman). The radioactive villain possesses abilities similar to Superman, but receives his power from direct sunlight, whereas Superman can still operate in darkness. Superman exploits this weakness eventually, destroying Nuclear Man. In Superman Returns, ignoring the events of Superman III and IV and (loosely) taking place years after Superman II, Luthor has been paroled from prison bent on revenge against Superman. Luthor funds his criminal operations by seducing a wealthy, elderly benefactor named Gertrude Vanderworth (portrayed by Noel Neill). Luthor's machinations once again concern real estate, as they did in the first two films. This time, he is assisted by his sidekick wealthy heiress Kitty Kowalski (portrayed by Parker Posey). He spends most of the film bald, only wearing a wig in his opening scene.
Lex Luthor first appeared as the primary antagonist in the 1978 movie Superman: The Movie. Luthor is a charismatic yet cutthroat businessman purely motivated by money, as well as the desire to swindle as tremendous a fortune as possible to prove his genius, and no concern for the consequences his schemes could produce or how they could affect others. Although he is bald, he wears a variety of wigs throughout the film to conceal it. Luthor's schemes are offset by a tendency to surround himself with unsatisfactory help; he is burdened by his bumbling henchman Otis (Ned Beatty), as well as his conscience-stricken girlfriend Eve Teschmacher (Valerie Perrine). Luthor plots to divert a nuclear missile into hitting the San Andreas fault, causing California to sink into the ocean, thereby turning its neighboring states into prime beachfront property. Lex Luthor's role in Superman II is relegated to a secondary antagonist . Luthor escapes prison thanks to a jailbreak organized with the help of Miss Teschmacher while leaving Otis behind. After journeying to the Fortress of Solitude, Luthor learns of the existence of General Zod and the other Kryptonian criminals Ursa and Non. Hoping to rule his own continent once the evil Kryptonians take over Earth, Luthor allies himself with Zod. He asks Zod for control over real estate in Australia. However, when Superman confronts Zod and his cronies at the Fortress of Solitude at the film's climax, Luthor tricks Superman into revealing that there is a chamber in the Fortress which can nullify a Kryptonian's powers using synthetic red solar radiation- in essence turning a Kryptonian, such as Superman, Zod, and his followers Non and Ursa, into a vulnerable human. Fortunately, expecting Luthor's betrayal, Superman had already reversed the mechanism of the chamber, and when forced inside by Zod, the "red sun" beams are dispersed throughout the Fortress while Superman is safely shielded; Zod and his followers are defeated easily because of the loss of their powers. Luthor is sent back to prison. The final parts of Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut had Superman rotating the Earth backwards to prevent Luthor from escaping from prison while also making sure that General Zod, Ursa, and Non remain in the Phantom Zone. Lex Luthor reappears as one of the three villains in Superman IV: The Quest for Peace, escaping from prison once more, this time with the aid of his nephew Lenny (portrayed by Jon Cryer) who uses his car to distract the guards when Luthor was working in the prison's rock pile. In the film, Luthor never takes off his wig. Once again, Lex allies himself with other villains, in this instance a cadre of war profiteers and arms dealers who are worried about what Superman's efforts toward nuclear disarmament will do to their business. Lex uses his own DNA combined with a strand of Superman's hair that is stolen from a museum to create a hybrid clone that he dubs Nuclear Man (portrayed by Mark Pillow and voiced by Gene Hackman). The radioactive villain possesses abilities similar to Superman, but receives his power from direct sunlight, whereas Superman can still operate in darkness. Superman exploits this weakness eventually, destroying Nuclear Man. In Superman Returns, Lex Luthor returns once again as the main antagonist (now portrayed by Kevin Spacey). Ignoring the events of Superman III and IV and (loosely) taking place years after Superman II, Returns sees Luthor on parole from prison hellbent on revenge against Superman. Luthor funds his criminal operations by seducing a wealthy, elderly benefactor named Gertrude Vanderworth (portrayed by Noel Neill). Luthor's machinations once again concern real estate, as they did in the first two films. This time, he is assisted by his sidekick wealthy heiress Kitty Kowalski (portrayed by Parker Posey). He spends most of the film bald, only wearing a wig in his opening scene.
A
as the primary antagonist
R
supporting one
secondary antagonist
A
as one of the three villains
R
ignoring the
Lex Luthor returns once again as the main antagonist (now portrayed by Kevin Spacey). Ignoring the
R
Luthor has been paroled from prison bent
Returns sees Luthor on parole from prison hellbent