Rating: PG-13 | Runtime: 129 minutes
Release Date: July 11th, 2025 (USA)
Studio: DC Studios / Warner Bros.
Director(s): James Gunn
Writer(s): James Gunn / Jerry Siegel & Joe Shuster (character)

People were going to die!

We’re thrown straight into the action with Superman (David Corenswet) found face down, bloodied, and beaten in the snow nearby his Fortress of Solitude after just losing his first fight since becoming Earth’s latest savior … amongst the many metahumans who’ve been publicly visible and protective of humanity for three centuries. This is where we meet his rambunctious foster dog Krypto, find a cadre of robot servants, and learn about the volatile geopolitical crisis between Boravia and Jarhanpur at the heart of James Gunn’s Superman plot.

The former nation says it seeks to emancipate the people of the latter from their oppressive leaders, but Superman (and anyone who’s paying attention to the Russia/Ukraine parallel) knows they actually just want to invade and annex the territory after committing genocide to wipe out the Brown population struggling to survive there (see Israel/Palestine parallels also). So, Superman saves the day by threatening Boravia to stop their plans or face his punitive wrath. Is that his call to make unprovoked? Does anyone have the power to tell him, “No?”

Enter Lex Luthor (Nicholas Hoult) and his years of trying to find a way to shut this Kryptonian interloper down. With enhanced metahuman weapons at his side (Ultraman and María Gabriela de Faría’s nanite-wielding The Engineer), he’s playing puppet master behind the scenes to pit multiple nations against each other and defame Superman. With government contracts sanctioning his extreme methods (like creating a pocket universe with extinction potential), he’s also positioning himself to rule a fiefdom of his own.

His plan? To make everyone’s favorite alien into persona non grata overnight. And when the inherent political turmoil of the Kryptonian’s hero complex doesn’t quite prove enough to accomplish that result, Lex goes personal en route to uncovering an idea that Kal-El was sent to conquer Earth rather than save it. Gunn could have gone a million other directions to introduce his over-arching nature vs. nurture debate, so going full Omni-Man is a doozy of a choice that hopefully means a future narrative payoff is coming.

For now, it’s all a convoluted yet effective way to pit Superman against Lex without needing a physical altercation since the latter uses loyal intermediaries (some slaves) to sub in. The damage then becomes window dressing for a conflict of words wherein the dialogue trumps the action and ensures the larger war isn’t sacrificed for one film’s battle. Superman must survive these obstacles to debate Lex and cultivate their rivalry while Mr. Terrific (Edi Gathegi) operates in the background to figure out how to put Metropolis back together in the aftermath.

So, despite the circus of periphery characters providing the world of Superman its history, this is still an origin tale. It’s Kal-El and Lex’s initial point of combat—the one where neither party will come out pretending the other is anything but an archnemesis. Luthor spirals into full ego-driven evil and Superman reconciles how the “mission” he thought his birth parents (Bradley Cooper and Angela Sarafyan) bestowed was never why he chose to help humans. It simply reinforced Pa (Pruitt Taylor Vince) and Ma Kent’s (Neva Howell) unwavering love.

Plot therefore serves character. How does this conflict assist Kal-El in cementing his purpose? Help (or damage) Lois Lane (Rachel Brosnahan) and Clark’s relationship? Impact the Justice Gang’s (Mr. Terrific, Nathan Fillion’s Guy Gardner, and Isabela Merced’s Hawkgirl) morality and motivations? Infer upon the Daily Planet‘s journalism led by Wendell Pierce’s Perry White and including Lane, Skyler Gisondo’s Jimmy Olsen, and Mikaela Hoover’s Cat Grant? Work Eve Teschmacher (Sara Sampaio) and Rick Flag Sr. (Frank Grillo) into the action?

By using robots and an insanely efficient evacuation protocol (surely a byproduct of dealing with metas for three hundred years already), the death count is virtually non-existent (save for one very important execution). Our focus can then rest solely on Superman’s ethics and mission rather than the outside noise Lex is fabricating—a direct contrast to the Snyderverse trying to force Kal-El into becoming a monster as an avenue towards its melodrama. Gunn understands that Superman’s burden is born from his empathy. So too is his enemies’ hatred.

At the end of the day, it comes down to two men acting without oversight to save humanity. One does so with hope in his heart no matter the consequences to his own reputation. The other with hate by manipulating those consequences to serve his own selfish agenda. Even so, meaning well only works to give Superman the benefit of the doubt. It doesn’t prevent him from still needing to be questioned and/or held accountable. That’s what makes him interesting without the need to also turn him into a killer.

It’s a compelling angle because Superman’s righteous indignation is worth dissecting. Holding humanity’s best interests in mind doesn’t erase the fact he does act with impunity. So, let Lois loose and force him to confront that truth. Provide an example of journalistic integrity that operates on the facts to hold all figures in power to account no matter their goals or motivations. Show us a world that still works despite also being overrun by the same chaos, misinformation, and oligarchy as our own. Allow Superman a chance to learn and grow.

That’s the sign of a true working system. Checks and balances. It’s the difference between a vigilante (in this case Lex) and a representative of justice. Keeping that line blurry is paramount because it prevents someone as powerful as Kal-El from losing himself in the process of achieving his goals. It sends him back to the farm to connect with his Clark Kent roots rather than embrace the reality that Lex isn’t wrong to point out. Because it wouldn’t take much for Superman to go full autocrat and mold Earth into his own image—correct or not.

But still make it fun. Guy, Mr. Terrific, and Hawkgirl are a hoot in their stark contrast to Superman’s Boy Scout, but the moments that stick with me most are the situational comedy like a full-on battle with an intergalactic kaiju occurring outside a window while Lois and Superman have a serious conversation. Those sorts of juxtapositions go a long way to keeping us entertained and thus invested in the messaging we’re meant to absorb. It also sets up this world’s weirdness. Heck, Peacemaker (John Cena) pops up as a television talk show guest.

Gunn’s sensibilities are about as far from Zack Snyder’s as possible, but it was still surprising to see that color and humor injected into Superman after so many years of the opposite. Will those traits be conducive to the rest of the new DC Cinematic Universe as an overall tone? Probably not (staring at you, Batman). So, despite a lot of the forthcoming slate being written and/or directed by Gunn, I’m hoping he understands his stewardship also demands some nuance insofar as knowing every character deserves the same justice he’s now provided Kal-El.

And to that point, give Corenswet a ton of credit. His pivot from smiling doofus to frustrated petulance is effortless—especially when engaged in an impactful interview turned debate with Lois (Brosnahan excels as both a champion of her boyfriend and conscience asking him to acknowledge when he flirts with the same obstinacy as his villains). His performance always puts heart first. Even when desperate for survival opposite Anthony Carrigan’s Rex, he asks his foe to help himself first. Because Superman isn’t just a symbol. He’s an inspiration.

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DAVID CORENSWET as Superman and RACHEL BROSNAHAN as Lois Lane in DC Studios’ and Warner Bros. Pictures’ SUPERMAN, a Warner Bros. Pictures release. © 2025 Warner Bros. Ent. All Rights Reserved. TM & © DC.