The upcoming film also stars Russell Crowe, Dave Bautista, Karen Gillan, and Djimon Hounsou.

Jeremy Irons.Credit: Gilbert Flores/Variety via Getty

At last, the showdown we’ve all been waiting for: Alfred vs. Superman. Sort of.

Jeremy Irons is set to join fellow DC alum Henry Cavill in Highlander, the upcoming reboot movie from Amazon MGM, Entertainment Weekly has learned. According to the Hollywood Reporter, which broke the news, Irons will play one of the film’s antagonists, the leader of a secret order called the Watchers who keep an eye on immortals, viewing them as a threat to humanity.

Meanwhile, Cavill leads the film as Medieval Scottish Highlander Connor MacLeod, an immortal warrior who must battle other immortals across several centuries because, as the 1986 movie famously declared, “There can be only one.”

Irons, who has a triple crown of acting under his belt — an Oscar for Reversal of Fortune, an Emmy for Elizabeth I, and a Tony for The Real Thing — is also known for roles in The Mission, Betrayal, House of Gucci, and The Beekeeper.

Jeremy Irons and Henry Cavill.Vittorio Zunino Celotto/Getty; Gabe Ginsberg/Getty

Along with Cavill and Irons, the film will also star previously announced cast members Russell Crowe, Dave Bautista, Karen Gillan, Djimon Hounsou, and Industry‘s Marisa Abela. Crowe will play a swordsman who mentors Cavill’s Highlander, and Bautista will play an antagonistic immortal known as The Kurgen, while Gillan will star as Connor’s very mortal wife. Hounsou will play another immortal warrior and Abela a love interest for Cavill.

The original Highlander movie starred Christopher Lambert and Clancy Brown as the opposing immortals, who fought to be the last one standing. Sean Connery served as the mentor figure. An epic story told across centuries, the film inspired several sequels and a TV series that aired for six seasons in the ’90s.

Dave Bautista, Karen Gillan, and Russell Crowe to star in ‘Highlander’.Craig Barritt/Getty; Monica Schipper/GA/The Hollywood Reporter via Getty; Marilla Sicilia/Archivio Marilla Sicilia/Mondadori Portfolio via Getty

Hailing from Amazon MGM’s United Artists banner, the Highlander reboot will be helmed by John Wick director Chad Stahelski. Back in 2019, the filmmaker told EW that he saw the property as one that could “actually sustain a good universe, meaning a TV show or something,” as long as he didn’t “f— it up to the point where you cannot continue this story.” He added, “We love it so much, we’re trying to treat it with a lot of care.”

Highlander was originally set to begin production in late September, but was delayed after Cavill sustained an injury during pre-production. It will now begin filming in early 2026,