What's Inside?
- James Gunn shocks fans by revealing Earth X, a Nazi-controlled alternate reality, as Peacemaker confronts the darkest twist yet.
- Nicholas Hoult’s Lex Luthor cameo in Peacemaker sets up crucial storylines directly connecting to Superman: Man of Tomorrow’s upcoming narrative.
- David Corenswet felt “really upset” after being excluded from Peacemaker, as Gunn insisted Superman’s presence didn’t fit the show’s direction.
When James Gunn pulls the strings in the DC Universe, the results are never straightforward. The latest twist in Peacemaker Season 2 has shaken fans and left even Superman himself, David Corenswet, a little frustrated. While Nicholas Hoult’s Lex Luthor has claimed the spotlight in a shocking cameo, Corenswet was left out of the HBO Max hit — and according to Gunn, he wasn’t exactly thrilled about it.
James Gunn explains Lex Luthor’s Role in Peacemaker and Earth X’s Shocking Reveal
Episode 6 of Peacemaker Season 2, titled Ignorance Is Chris, dropped fans into one of the darkest twists yet in James Gunn’s reimagined DCU. At first glance, the alternate world where John Cena’s Christopher Smith (aka Peacemaker) fled seemed like paradise. His brother Keith (David Denman) was alive, his father Auggie (Robert Patrick) wasn’t a monster, and his romance with Emilia Harcourt (Jennifer Holland) seemed perfect. But as the story unraveled, viewers began to sense something sinister beneath the surface.
That horror fully arrived when Harcourt noticed the absence of people of color, and Adebayo (Danielle Brooks) was violently chased by Nazi Americans. The final blow came when Peacemaker discovered swastikas replacing stars on the American flag. Gunn confirmed what many sharp-eyed fans suspected: this was Earth X, a world where Nazi Germany won World War II.
The director guarded the twist carefully, refusing to provide screeners in advance. “No one noticed at all,” Gunn told Variety. “And that was people of color, too, by the way. It wasn’t just, you know, the whites.” Still, the internet being the internet, some had pieced together the puzzle before the big reveal.
But Earth X wasn’t the only surprise of the episode. In a pivotal sequence, Rick Flag Sr. (Frank Grillo) visited Lex Luthor (Nicholas Hoult) in Belle Reve prison, forming a dangerous alliance. This cameo, Gunn stressed, was more than fan service — it laid the groundwork for Superman: Man of Tomorrow (2027).
David Corenswet Left Sidelined as Superman Sits Out Peacemaker Cameo
Naturally, the appearance of Lex Luthor immediately sparked speculation about whether David Corenswet’s Superman would also step into Peacemaker. After all, Corenswet’s debut as the Man of Steel had already electrified audiences, and with both productions filming around the same time, fans thought it was inevitable. Gunn, however, shut down the idea.
James Gunn confirms Superman doesn’t appear in ‘Peacemaker’ S2
“David Corenswet was very upset that Nicholas Hoult got to be on the show, and he didn’t. It just didn’t work”
(via @Variety) pic.twitter.com/GhTBWMkllP
— Culture Crave 🍿 (@CultureCrave) September 26, 2025
“No. In fact, David was very upset that Nick got to be on the show, and he didn’t,” Gunn admitted.
“It just didn’t work. I needed Lex in the show to serve a specific purpose. And actually, what Lex and Rick Flag are up to affects very much what happens in an aspect of Man of Tomorrow. So all of that is connected. But this relationship between Rick Flag and Lex Luthor is a potentially negative thing for Superman and all meta-humans.”
That candid revelation adds a layer of tension behind the scenes. While Corenswet’s absence disappointed both fans and the actor himself, Gunn insists it was a calculated creative choice. Superman’s story, he hinted, belongs on the big screen rather than in Peacemaker’s gritty television world.
For viewers, the trade-off is bittersweet. They miss out on seeing Superman interact with John Cena’s Peacemaker, but they gain a Lex Luthor plotline that ties directly into the future of the DCU. Hoult’s return as Luthor not only continues his menacing arc but also plants seeds for his uneasy alliance with Superman in Man of Tomorrow.
As Gunn put it, the cameo wasn’t filler, it was a “really important moment” for the DCU. While Superman fans will have to wait until July 2027 for Corenswet to soar again, Peacemaker Season 2 proves that this universe is being built with long-term vision — even if that means bruised egos along the way.
