Does the World Still Want Superman?
Things are looking up indeed! After a week of build-up, the highly anticipated trailer for James Gunn’s Superman finally arrived, and all eyes are on the sky. As the first live-action installment of the DCU, a lot is riding on Superman. Not only is an entire cinematic universe dependent on the success of this film, but Gunn must also cut through the world’s cynicism and deliver a take on the character whose cinematic depiction, for many audiences, hasn’t resonated since 1978.
But the teaser trailer makes it clear that Superman ’25 is not Superman ’78. Composer John Murphy’s guitar riff on John Williams’ classic theme breathes new life into Superman as a hero and symbol, suggesting that Superman, while hanging onto the core themes associated with the character, is a living and evolving concept, an electric current through the world.
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There are several key takeaways from the trailer. First, it’s not all sunshine and rainbows. Despite Warner Bros. Discovery’s press synopsis emphasizing hope, and Gunn’s desire to bring optimism back to Superman, the teaser trailer shows a keen awareness of the reality of the world. Surprisingly, the teaser does not open with an iconic shot of a smiling Superman. Instead, it opens with Superman (David Corenswet) plummeting from the sky, and landing in the Arctic, near his Fortress of Solitude. He’s bloody, beaten, wheezing, and unable to make his way home without the help of Krypto.
There is something uncomfortable, but not at all unwelcome, in hearing Superman struggle to breathe. The moment grounds us in the fact that Superman feels pain. One of the frequent complaints about Superman from non-comic reading general audiences (and those who missed out on Superman: The Animated Series and other various media adaptations) is that he’s overpowered and rarely faces hard physical challenges. This teaser nips that in the bud right away, showing that Superman is very much physically fallible.
Not only do we see Superman physically beaten, but emotionally beaten as well. He walks through an angry crowd that throws bottles and cans at him as he’s escorted into Stagg Industries by the police, where he stands with a sense of the weight of the world on his shoulders. It’s clear that Superman is not universally beloved, and, as a reflection of contemporary America, we see him at his lowest. While there looks to be significant tonal departures from previous Superman films in both style and the comic book elements introduced, it’s ironic that after a decade of complaints about a non-smiling Superman and his controversial perception on the global stage, these themes remain present in Gunn’s take.
This begs the question, of whether these themes have become essential to establishing any contemporary film version of Superman. In 2006, Superman Returns tackled “Why the World Doesn’t Need a Superman” and in 2016, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice asked, “Must There Be a Superman?” The respective answers were that the world does need a Superman and “there is.” What Gunn appears to be grappling with isn’t the need for a Superman or the resigned acceptance that there is one, but the question of “how do we make the world want a Superman?” And this question not only applies to the world of the film, but to audiences as well. With all the superhero movies out there, what makes us want another Superman movie?
Despite the realities of a bruised and beaten Superman, there is also a desire for fantasy, for imagining the world as it could be. Now more than ever. Based on the glimpses we see in the trailer, Superman saving a little girl, and Superman’s symbol being used as a flag in the fictional country of Boravia (which appeared in Superman No. 2 in 1939, though it appears the location has been changed from Europe to the Middle East) there is the suggestion that hope resides in younger generations.
There is something compelling about a character who was created for an audience of children appealing to children again, especially as Superman movies of the millennium have shifted toward older audiences. The tagline for Superman, “Look Up” encourages the same kind of wonder and childlike innocence as ‘78’s “You’ll Believe A Man Can Fly.”
Gunn’s Superman is also a world featuring a myriad of other wonders as the teaser showcases. While the film feels packed with characters, enough to create some trepidation on whether it can retain focus on Clark, they definitely give the film a distinct comic book flavor we haven’t seen in previous Superman films.
The teaser shows quick glimpses of superheroes Guy Gardner (Nathan Fillion), Hawkgirl (Isabela Merced), Mister Terrific (Edi Gathegi), and Metamorpho (Anthony Carrigan). Our first look at the film’s villains includes a brief glimpse of a mysterious, black-clad behemoth in a face mask, and the ever-devious Lex Luthor (Nicholas Hoult) who appears to be brimming with emotion. There’s also a giant monster, that may be connected to the giant purple and green orb in the sky – colors associated with a villain Superman fans have been waiting for decades to see onscreen – Brainiac.
As exciting as those building blocks and prospective battles look to be, what felt most compelling about the trailer was Corenswet’s Clark, whose depiction takes a page from Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely’s All-Star Superman, which saw Clark dressed in oversized clothes, and defined by a slouched posture and messy hair. We see Clark share a tearful moment with his father, Jonathan (Pruitt Taylor Vince), and have numerous interactions with Lois Lane (Rachel Brosnahan). Their chemistry is immediately apparent.
For all the big ideas, questions, and hopes for the future that the teaser circles, the defining takeaway from our first look at James Gunn’s Superman is that he’s just a guy with a dog, managing two jobs, and a romantic relationship as he has good days and bad, some that leave him physically and emotionally beaten down, some that leave him tearful, and others that may count among the best days of his life. Why do we want a Superman? He’s what we are and what we could be – the man of tomorrow, today.
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