Jesse Eisenberg says winning a Razzie for his role as Lex Luthor in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice made it harder for him to land studio roles. The experience pushed him toward writing and directing.
Jesse Eisenberg says his Razzie win for Lex Luthor cost him studio roles and pushed him toward directing
During the BFI London Film Festival, Jesse Eisenberg shared what pushed him toward writing and directing.
He said, “Listen, a lot of it just came from fear. I couldn’t get into movie studio parts anymore because I had won a Raspberry Award from [being in the] ‘Batman’ movie … and I saw the trajectory. If you’re an actor, you’re constantly panicked about ‘Am I on an upslope or a downslope?’”
Eisenberg described acting as an unstable industry, where artists constantly worry about their careers. He added that, as a paranoid person, he anticipates things early.
He said, “So I was like, I’ve got to direct movies. That’s why I started writing them, just to kind of keep my career afloat, really” (via Variety).
Eisenberg said Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice’s reception affected his acting career. Despite earning $424.1 million globally in its opening weekend, the film received four Razzie Awards, including Worst Screenplay, Worst Sequel, and Worst Screen Combo for Cavill and Affleck.
Eisenberg said the experience taught him that the industry did not want him in superhero films. He said, “The industry tells you what they want from you. The industry did not want me to be in a superhero movie, and if you’re smart and self-aware, you learn that quickly. And you know, it’s the unsuccessful actor that goes, ‘No, I want to be in more of those.’” He added that they didn’t want him there, as it was an award for bad acting (via Just Jared).
He earned recognition for his Oscar-nominated role as tech giant Mark Zuckerberg in The Social Network. However, he did not return for its sequel, The Social Reckoning. Jesse Eisenberg has said he did not want to return as an actor. He walked the red carpet at the 2026 BFI London Film Festival for the closing-night gala of The Debut, which he wrote and directed.
