Maxwell Lord

A cunning businessman and secret metahuman manipulator, Maxwell Lord IV maneuvered himself into a position of power behind the newly formed Justice League International, using charm, corporate resources, and behind-the-scenes influence to shape the team to his own ends.

Few characters in DC's modern era have proven as fascinatingly mercurial as Maxwell Lord, who stepped onto the scene in the landmark 1987 debut of Justice League — a key issue by the legendary creative trio of Keith Giffen, J. M. DeMatteis, and Kevin Maguire. Over nearly four decades, he's woven himself through the fabric of the Justice League's most celebrated international era, appearing across Justice League International, Justice League America, and Justice League Europe in the company of heavy hitters like J'Onn J'Onzz, Blue Beetle, The Flash, and Bruce Wayne himself. With two collector-significant key issues to his name and 61 catalog appearances spanning 1987 all the way to 2026, Lord is no footnote — he's a cornerstone of the Copper Age League and a figure whose presence in a longbox is always worth a second look.