A new Superman bounds onto the big screen

LOS ANGELES — Actor David Corenswet feels a connection with the classic DC comic book character Superman that he portrays in the 2025 James Gunn-directed film Superman.

The character Superman is known in the comic books for his identity problems, namely his double life as both a powerful superhero while also being an awkward reporter named Clark Kent who works at the Daily Planet.

Mr. Corenswet is the latest actor to don the blue and red suit on the big screen, and he is still processing the weight of his new identity as the superhero.

“As far as the moments of it hitting me that I’m playing Superman, I think saying the sentence out loud is the closest I get,” he told Reuters.

“But it still just sounds so ridiculous to me to say it out loud that, you know, it doesn’t quite compute,” he added.

Superman, which has already rolled out internationally and arrives in US movie theaters on Friday, follows Superman as he gets drawn into international politics as well as crossing swords with his billionaire nemesis Lex Luthor, played by Nicholas Hoult, monsters, and other superpowered beings.

The film has received high acclaim from early reviews on review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes with an 88% rating.

“What’s best about Gunn’s movie is its laser-focused on relatable characters. This is no puzzle piece in a universe or a loud series of action set pieces,” Johnny Oleksinski of the New York Post wrote.

GUNN REMAKES THE HERO
James Gunn, writer and director of the off-kilter Guardians of the Galaxy films, tussled with various ideas on how to deliver a new take on Superman to the big screen.

Mr. Gunn said he was aware of the many ways the noble hero had been approached since his 1938 debut, initially in comic books and then radio serials, television shows and movies.

The challenge was to deliver something fresh that would appeal to a new generation of moviegoers and reinvigorate Warner Bros. Discovery’s DC Studios.

In the opening scene, Superman, played for the first time by David Corenswet, is seen bloodied after a fight, an unusual portrayal for the Man of Steel.

“I wanted to take the character of Superman and just focus on a piece of him that we haven’t necessarily seen before,” Mr. Gunn said.

Mr. Gunn surrounded Superman with elements that enthralled him from the comics as a child. Superman lives in a world, Mr. Gunn said, with “superhero friends and giant monsters and flying dogs, robots and all this magical stuff.”

The new film includes Superman’s four-legged sidekick, a superpowered dog named Krypto first introduced in a 1955 comic. The latest version is based on Mr. Gunn’s real-life, misbehaving rescue mutt.

THE CAPE
There was something special in Superman’s wardrobe that brought Mr. Corenswet closer to the character.

“The cape is the feeling that sort of pulls the whole thing together,” he said.

“When you walk in to the soundstage and you feel the cape billowing behind you, or you come to a stop in the cape, sort of twirls around you a little bit, you see your shadow on the wall and the silhouette of the cape, that’s the sort of like,” Mr. Corenswet said.

“And I don’t know whether it’s because I always wanted to be a Jedi growing up, but man, I can’t recommend the cape enough,” he added.

For Wendell Pierce, who plays the Daily Planet editor Perry White, the movie goes past its fantastical elements and reminds people that Superman is still relatable.

“That’s the thing that we learned from Superman, that his true superpower is humanity,” he said, emphasizing Clark Kent’s life as a working journalist.

Superman is the first film of the new Warner Bros. and DC Universe partnership, led by Mr. Gunn. Warner Bros. is counting on Superman to start a new era at DC Studios, which has failed to match the superhero success of Walt Disney-owned Marvel. Mr. Gunn, who made the Guardians movies for Marvel, was named co-chief executive officer of DC Studios, alongside producer Peter Safran, in 2022.

The pair have plotted a long-term slate that features a Supergirl movie for June 2026, a film based on Swamp Thing and TV shows for HBO Max. Wonder Woman and Batman also are expected to return to cinemas.

Mr. Gunn said the aesthetic that audiences see in Superman will not necessarily foreshadow future DC Studios endeavors.

“I want to be really certain that every project has its own unique flavor,” Mr. Gunn said.

“We’re doing Clayface, and that doesn’t feel like this movie. It’s an R-rated horror movie. We’re doing Lanterns, which is an HBO show, which feels very much like an HBO show, very grounded, very kind of brutal. We have Peacemaker, which is an adult show with a lot of emotion and a lot of comedy.”

Mr. Gunn admitted he has felt the weight of responsibility to produce a hit.

“I’ve felt pressure all along,” Mr. Gunn said. “That’s been difficult.”

But as he started to see initial reaction to the film, “I’m feeling pretty good,” he said. “It’s pretty fun. I’m seeing the effect the movie has on people.” — Reuters