The Real Reason Michael Rosenbaum Refused To Return As Lex Luthor After Smallville

"Smallville" star Michael Rosenbaum's portrayal of Lex Luthor remains lauded to this day, with actor Nicholas Hoult, who played the villain in 2025's "Superman" film, even calling the performance "the best" version of the character. But despite being fondly remembered for his role in The CW's first superhero drama, Rosenbaum — unlike co-stars Tom Welling and Erica Durance, who returned as Superman and Lois Lane in the Arrowverse's 2019 "Crisis on Infinite Earths" event — has refused to take on the part again after "Smallville" concluded, even when the opportunity presented itself.

Explaining why he turned down a cameo in the "Crisis" live-action event, Rosenbaum said he only saw room for one Lex and didn't want to be with other multiversal versions of the character. Additionally, the talented actor recalls a lack of script and money being offered as part of the reason he declined the chance to revisit the DC character. 

"I didn't really love the idea of having my Lex and other Lexes, it just wasn't something that interested me," Rosenbaum told Screen Rant. "I believe that the reason I didn't do it was because they pretty much said, 'Hey, we're shooting this next whatever. We don't have a script. This is what we're getting you. Are you in or out?' I'm like, 'I'm out.' [There was] no money, no script, not telling me what's going on."

Marc Guggenheim, creator of "Arrow" and "Legends of Tomorrow" and one of the key players behind the Arrowverse, wanted Michael Rosenbaum to return as Lex Luthor during the "Crisis on Infinite Earths" crossover. The showrunner revealed how he planned on bringing Rosenbaum's Luthor back, writing on his Substack that he tried to fit the character into the story but had to work around scheduling issues: "By the time we'd engaged with Michael about appearing in 'Crisis' — thanks in huge part to Stephen Amell's efforts — we'd already shot the 'Smallville' reunion scene in Hour 2. Nevertheless, I was eager to get Michael's Lex into the story if I could, so my brain started working on options that could be fit into the episodes that we were still shooting."

In his conversation with Screen Rant, Rosenbaum also revealed that he declined the chance to play Luthor in another unnamed DC show. However, he said that while he was honored to get the offer, he didn't want to commit to the role and have to shave his head and be in makeup for a prolonged period of time.

"I can't really say what it was," the actor said, "but I just said, 'No thanks. I'm not doing this for a show.' For a movie, you [would] consider something! That's the thing, if you're playing Lex Luthor for two or three months for a movie, big deal, shave your head! It's a little different shaving your head for seven years." Considering Rosenbaum hadn't appeared as Luthor since 2011, after spending a decade in the role, it's not entirely surprising he didn't want to commit to more time as the character, even if it would have been fun for the fans to see him return.