We’ve recognized a Superman reboot has been coming since December, with its official title, Superman: Legacy, being revealed as a part of the DC Universe Chapter One slate unveiling in late January, adopted by affirmation in March that James Gunn is directing the reboot on prime of writing the script. Nevertheless, the previous few weeks have been particularly eventful for Legacy, with the newest information on this entrance being that different superheroes from completely different corners of DC lore will seem within the upcoming DC film alongside the Man of Metal, who’s being performed by David Corenswet.
As each a longtime Superman fan and somebody who’s loved all of Gunn’s superhero media motion pictures to date (together with Peacemaker and The Guardians of the Galaxy Vacation Particular), I’m excited for Superman: Legacy’s arrival in summer time 2025 to assist kick off the movie facet of the DC Universe franchise following the discharge of the Creature Commandos animated sequence on Max. Nevertheless, these casting updates have me nervous that the reboot will repeat a harmful DC mistake, particularly one which plagued Batman v Superman: Daybreak of Justice: overcrowding.
Which DC Superheroes Are Showing in Superman: Legacy
In case you’re out of the loop, it was first introduced earlier this week that Superman: Legacy will characteristic Nathan Fillion because the Man Gardner model of Inexperienced Lantern, Isabela Merced as Hawkgirl and Edi Gathegi as Mr. Terrific. A day later, phrase got here in that Barry and Gotham’s Anthony Carrigan will seem as Metamorpho. On prime of those 4 confirmed appearances, it’s additionally been reported that members of The Authority will present up in Legacy forward of their very own film, although that has but to be formally confirmed.
So for these preserving monitor, Superman: Legacy will now characteristic 4 different superheroes moreover The Final Son from Krypton, and it’s potential extra shall be introduced within the coming weeks/months. At the moment, it hasn’t been clarified if these heroes will all seem collectively or will see them in separate scenes with David Corenswet’s Kat-El/Clark Kent. If it’s the previous, I’m additionally questioning in the event that they’re formally affiliated with each other via the Justice League or another officially-formed crew, or if it’s extra of a free collect that comes collectively immediately. Both manner, this may mark the live-action theatrical debuts of Man Gardner, Hawkgirl, Mr. Terrific and Metamorpho, so naturally followers of these characters shall be delighted by their presence. Nonetheless, I fear that having so many superheroes round will show detrimental to the story.
Why I’m Anxious About All These Appearances
Though Batman v Superman: Daybreak of Justice naturally centered on the battle and eventual becoming a member of of forces between Henry Cavill’s Man of Metal and Ben Affleck’s Darkish Knight, the 2016 film definitely wasn’t shy about planting seeds for Justice League both. Together with Gal Gadot’s Marvel Lady enjoying a supporting position, we additionally received cameo appearances from Jason Momoa’s Aquaman, Ezra Miller’s Flash and Ray Fisher’s Cyborg, and that’s on prime of the foreshadowing of Steppenwolf’s arrival from Bruce Wayne and Lex Luthor. No matter how you are feeling about Batman v Superman, there’s no denying it did loads of legwork to construct out the broader DC Prolonged Universe.
Personally, I really feel this was a mistake. Whereas I’m not considered one of Batman v Superman’s detractors, and definitely really feel that that the Final Version was a giant enchancment over the theatrical reduce, I do suppose useful runtime was wasted utilizing this film as a springboard to develop this universe. I perceive Warner Bros. and DC had been making an attempt to catch as much as the place the Marvel Cinematic Universe was at that stage, however by way of pure high quality, Batman v Superman would have been a extra gratifying expertise had it narrowed its whole focus strictly on these two heroes with out drawing consideration to different corners of DC lore. Okay, possibly Marvel Lady might have been stored too, however the level being is that there was already sufficient to entertain moviegoers by having Batman and Superman, two of popular culture’s most well-known superheroes, coming collectively in a live-action film for the primary time.
Regardless that Superman: Legacy is the second DC Universe mission (although Xolo Maridueña’s Blue Beetle is confirmed to be the franchise’s first character), James Gunn and Peter Safran, who co-run DC Studios, have stated they take into account this film to be the “true starting” of this new shared continuity. It’s additionally now abundantly clear that when the DC Universe kicks off, superheroes are already plentiful. Nonetheless, will having Inexperienced Lantern, Hawkgirl, Mr. Terrific, Metamorpho and probably Authority members ship the identical overcrowding concern that Batman v Superman had? Say what you’ll about Man of Metal, however not less than when it began the DCEU, it was nonetheless delivering a narrative mainly revolving round Superman lore; arguably the one deeper DC tie was a satellite tv for pc bearing the Wayne Industries brand.
It’s additionally a bit regarding that these superhero castings are being introduced earlier than we all know who will play key characters from the Superman mythos, like Jimmy Olsen and Lex Luthor (although brothers Alexander and Invoice Skarsgård are rumored to be contenders for the latter). To be truthful although, casting is an intricate course of, and maybe merely extra time has been wanted to pick actors for these roles in comparison with how lengthy it took to usher in David Corenswet as Superman and Rachel Brosnahan as Lois Lane (which is an ideal casting alternative, by the way in which). In any case, now with my considerations out of the way in which, let’s speak about why I could also be worrying an excessive amount of about all this.
Why I’m Hopeful James Gunn Can Pull It Off
As I discussed earlier, James Gunn has not but dissatisfied me with any of his superhero motion pictures, all of which have been ensemble-focused. So I do know he can stability a big solid of characters; the trick is ensuring that Superman: Legacy doesn’t lose sight of its fundamental protagonist. Thankfully, it doesn’t sound like this shall be a difficulty, as in a couple of Threads posts, he informed followers that whereas these additional superheroes “match the story” he’s telling, “[t]he main story most undoubtedly revolves round Superman and Lois.” Gunn additionally stated that “the characters are there as a result of they may help inform Superman’s story higher, not so we will arrange separate initiatives within the franchise.” Maybe which means Inexperienced Lantern, Hawkgirl, Mr. Terrific and Metamorpho will solely be round for a scene or two in Legacy quite than be essential supporting characters, and their transient appearances will assist push the Superman-centric story alongside.
That’s nonetheless rather a lot to ask for from the primary film in a brand new shared continuity, and I’d be mendacity if I stated I wasn’t curious about seeing how a extra self-contained Superman film may need accomplished launching the DC Universe. Nonetheless, so long as Gunn understands that Superman: Legacy isn’t just like the Guardians of the Galaxy flicks and The Suicide Squad, in that we have to stroll away feeling that it is a story centered on the Man of Metal quite than him merely being the “chief” of a bunch of characters, then hopefully we’ll be all good with this facet of the reboot. That’s to not say that Legacy is assured to be a important hit, though with Gunn’s monitor file, the probabilities of that occuring are far more possible than not.
Superman: Legacy opens in theaters on July 11, 2025, and manufacturing is predicted to being in early 2024. Maintain your eyes peeled on CinemaBlend for extra casting information and different updates on its progress. In case you’re curious about watching the DC motion pictures so as or revisiting loads of previous Superman media, that may simply be completed with a Max subscription.