During an interview with Playboy, Jesse Eisenberg offered more details about his Batman v Superman character. He took the opportunity to explain why the character looks so theatrical (and cheesy) at times, why he acts as he does against Superman, as well as to describe his working relationship with Henry Cavill and Ben Affleck.

Talking about the different versions of Lex Luthor who have appeared in movies, TV series, or otherwise, Eisenberg said that each of them brought something new and different to the game. In the same way, his version will also be unique. The main criticism about his casting in the role was that he is too thin, making him a bad fit for the role of a villainous mastermind. When the second trailer dropped, even more fans said that it was obvious that he had no place in such a movie.

But there is a reason why Jesse Eisenberg and Zack Snyder decided to go in this direction with this character. According to the actor, his version of Lex Luthor is a more theatrical one, which means that the character uses big words in order to express hefty ideas and themes - he does seem to be too cartoonish, doesn't he? Well, he explains even further, saying that this theatricality can also work as a smokescreen to hide the character's true intentions, which might as well be the ones he actually states.

So, in a way, the theatricality both hides and reveals Lex Luthor's motivations.

Eisenberg also talked about the reason why Luthor is so keen on destroying Superman. According to him, this isn't necessarily a struggle for more power, a struggle to be on top of everybody else (the whole good vs. evil thing). Instead, this version of Lex Luthor is a modern one, a realistic one, especially if we place Batman v Superman in the mindset of a post 9/11 world (in the DCEU, this would be the Battle of Metropolis).

So Lex Luthor is a highly relatable character who sees Superman as a potential threat. Sure, the Man of Steel has proven himself as a hero. But his levels of power are so big that one cannot not take into consideration the possibility that he may turn evil. Basically, can the world be safe with such a powerful character walking the streets?

And this is exactly the reasoning behind the entire Batman vs. Superman thing - from this point of view, Batman and Lex Luthor are basically the same. The difference is made by what each character thinks needs to happen after the Man of Steel is defeated.

For more from Jesse Eisenberg, check out the full interview here!

Source for the featured image: Hollywood Reporter