Edi Gathegi, DC’s Mister Terrific, First Believed His ‘Superman’ Role Was for Lex Luthor

When Edi Gathegi first heard about Mister Terrific, he wasn’t thinking about playing him. In fact, he didn’t even know who the character was until James Gunn, the new boss of DC Studios back in 2023, posted a picture of Mister Terrific on social media.

That picture got fans talking about who could play the role, and one of the first names people suggested was Gathegi himself.

“So my thought was, ‘Let me look him up,’” Gathegi said in an interview with Variety. After reading about the character, he was hooked. Mister Terrific, also known as Michael Holt in the comics, is a genius with fourteen PhDs, speaks multiple languages, and is an Olympic-level athlete. “Fourteen PhDs, polyglot, polymath, auto-didactic, natural aptitude for natural aptitudes, Olympic athlete — all of these characteristics,” Gathegi explained.

But the character isn’t just about brains and strength. Holt also has a tragic backstory, losing his wife before deciding to become Mister Terrific.

At first, Gathegi thought the buzz around him playing Mister Terrific wouldn’t lead to anything. Fan casting soon shifted to other actors like John Boyega, Daniel Kaluuya, and Michael B. Jordan. “I just let it go and forgot about it,” he said.

He’d already been part of a superhero movie before. Back in 2011, he played Darwin in “X-Men: First Class.” That role left a bitter taste, as his character was the only major person of color and got killed off quickly, without doing much.

This time, though, things were different. When James Gunn finally gave him the role of Mister Terrific in the upcoming movie “Superman,” Gathegi knew he was getting a real chance.

His character isn’t just part of the background. In the movie, Mister Terrific joins the Justice Gang along with characters like Guy Gardner and Hawkgirl. And when Superman gets trapped by Lex Luthor, Mister Terrific teams up with Lois Lane to save him. He even gets a big action scene using his high-tech T-Spheres to fight Lex’s goons, all while Lois watches in shock.

Interestingly, Gathegi didn’t realize he was auditioning for Mister Terrific at first. When he sent in his audition tape, the character was named “Apex Lex,” leading him to believe he was trying out for a version of Lex Luthor. “I thought it was for Lex Luthor,” he admitted. Only later did he find out he was actually auditioning to play Mister Terrific.

Talking about what drew him to the character, Gathegi said it was Mister Terrific’s mind and mission that stood out. “Mister Terrific does want to fight crime, but he’s actually trying to change the entire world in tangible ways,” he said. For Gathegi, Mister Terrific is a character that can work on any scale, from street fights to cosmic adventures.

In the film, Mister Terrific sports a unique T-shaped mask, straight from the comics. Gathegi shared that the mask was molded to fit his face and designed to be flexible, so it wouldn’t block his expressions during filming.

It wasn’t always comfortable, though. “Like an hour, hour and a half,” is how long it took to put on, he said. Eating while wearing it wasn’t easy either. “We had to do touch ups after lunch because the lips were painted as well.”

When he first saw the mask in the comics, he didn’t quite get it. “I didn’t really get the design, to be honest with you,” Gathegi said. But over time, he grew to appreciate it. “Everything that that guy does, including wearing a whimsical jacket with ‘Fairplay’ on the sleeve, is going to be cool.”

As for Mister Terrific’s emotional backstory, fans won’t see much of it in the “Superman” film. Gathegi said the movie focuses on Superman’s story and doesn’t dive deep into Mister Terrific’s past. But he hopes that will change in future projects. “I feel like we’ve only scratched the surface,” he said.

Gunn is reportedly considering a show focused on Mr. Terrific, however.

Gathegi has signed a multi-project deal with DC, though he doesn’t know what those projects will be yet. He explained that James Gunn and his team aren’t rushing to make movies without solid scripts in place. “So even whatever they do have planned for my characters is irrelevant until the draft comes in and it’s shootable,” he said. For now, he’s waiting to see what happens, but he’s hoping to stay in the DC Universe for a long time.

As for whether fans will see him in the upcoming “Lanterns” show on HBO Max, Gathegi made it clear. “Oh, no, I can tell you that I’m not,” he said.

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