Shazam! in the DCU, but did you know that he was close to playing another DC character?
During his appearance in Chicago’s C2E2, Levi revealed that he once auditioned to play Superman, but the show’s producers told him to consider playing the villain.
“When it came to Smallville… I originally auditioned for Superman… Didn’t get it. Wasn’t meant to me, wasn’t meant to be. But at the audition for Superman, they go, ‘Hey listen, you did a great job. But we actually think you’re more Lex Luthor. Would you mind taking a look at these sides?’ And I was like, ‘OK.'”
The actor was so hopeful that he would have received the role after partaking in multiple studio tests and meeting David Nutter, the director of the show’s pilot. Levi also itted that he was willing to move to Vancouver just so he’d be able to work in the show, and went so far as to shave his head.
Unfortunately, he was told by the producers that he was “not really their guy,” and it was ed to Michael Rosenbaum.
“And I took a look and these things and I came back in and I read for Lex and they were like, ‘Yeah, that’s great, we’re going to have you read for producers.’ And I read for producers, and they’re like, ‘Oh my god, yeah, we’re going to send you to studio test.’ And I studio-tested, and then I went all the way to the network and David Nutter, who directed the pilot, I had work sessions with him, I was like, ‘I’m going to be Lex Luthor!’ I was convinced I was going to be cast as Lex Luthor, move to Vancouver, and shave my head. It was all happening, and then it didn’t. I went all the way to network and they were like, ‘Nah, not really our guy.'”
While Levi may think that his DC audition was terrible, it turns out that he did an amazing performance. Smallville executive producer, Miles Millar told The Hollywood Reporter back in 2021 that he was impressed with Levi’s audition, and that he wanted him to play the DC villain. However, he also claimed that the audition was “kind of a disaster,” and praised Levi for the success he has now.
“Zach Levi did an amazing audition for Lex. Incredible. We all went into The WB with Zach to be Lex. That audition was kind of a disaster. In leaving the audition, I thinking “Oh, that was the biggest chance of his life.” And then he went on to incredible success. So you just never know.”
With the pending DCU reboot on its way in 2025, there may be a chance for Levi to finally play the DC villain that he was meant to bring to life all those years ago. However, it seems like Rosenbaum also has eyes for the role, but it’s now up to James Gunn if he wants to fix the mistakes of the past and give his buddy the role he truly deserves.
Published: Apr 4, 2023 01:58 am