The DC Universe is back down to only two confirmed canon projects following DC Studios co-CEO James Gunn‘s latest update on the franchise.
Are the new Superman shorts starring Krypto canon to the DCU?
Earlier today, Gunn responded to a fan on the social media platform Threads who asked if the animated Krypto the Superdog short films were canon to the DCU.
“No. I love ’em tho,” Gunn wrote back, confirming that the recently released Krypto Saves the Day! was not part of the DCU, even though the character designs are clearly inspired by the DC head’s Superman reboot.
Krypto Saves the Day!, the first of at least four animated short films that will be released over the next year, was included on the digital release of Superman as one of its bonus features. Gunn’s canon clarification means that the only released projects so far that are part of the DCU are Creature Commandos and Superman, with the next set to be the second season of Peacemaker.
Looking further ahead, fans have Lanterns, Supergirl, and Clayface to look forward to, with all three DCU projects set to be released in 2026. Krypto the Superdog will appear in Supergirl, which will be headlined by Milly Alcock, who made her DCU debut as the Girl of Steel at the end of Superman, where she swung by the Fortress of Solitude to retrieve Krypto from her cousin Kal-El/Superman.
Next year will also see production beginning on Gunn’s Superman follow-up movie as well as a mystery show that “nobody knows about.” The Batman Part II is also expected to begin filming in early 2026, although, like Krypto Saves the Day!, the movie is not part of the DCU. Robert Pattinson will be back as Bruce Wayne/Batman for The Batman Part II, with Matt Reeves returning to the director’s chair after helming the first installment in his The Batman Epic Crime Saga.
The first Krypto short, Krypto Saves the Day!, is currently available on the digital release of Superman, but will also be included in the upcoming home video releases of the DCU movie, which arrive on September 23, 2025.
James Gunn’s Superman is gearing up for a digital release on Friday, and the director says there’s a reason behind its quick virtual arrival.
The DCU film hit theaters on July 11, with the film being out for only a little over a month before it was available to buy/rent on Friday via Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV and Fandango at Home, among other platforms. When speaking with Screen Rant, Gunn said the film had such a quick streaming turnaround due to the release of Peacemakerseason two.
“Well, it’s very complicated, but the truth is it is because of Peacemaker,” he said when asked what drove the “mindset” of releasing the film on streaming so “soon after” Superman’s theatrical release.
“I originally thought Peacemaker was going to be coming out next month,” Gunn added. “There was a lot of things that are beyond our control, so that Peacemaker is coming out now, and, at the end of the day, I wanted everyone to be able to see Superman that wanted to, even those people who couldn’t get to a theater before Peacemaker. And that’s really the reason for it.”
At the Wednesday night New York premiere of the DCU series, the showrunner told The Hollywood Reporter that his David Corenswet-led superhero movie “leads directly into Peacemaker” while the second season of the TV show will end up “setting up all of the rest of the DCU.”
“It’s a big part, definitely Superman leads directly into Peacemaker,” he explained. “It should be noted that this is for adults, not for children, but Superman leads into this show and then we have the setting up of all of the rest of the DCU in this season of Peacemaker, it’s incredibly important.”
Of what to expect in season two, Gunn added, “Lots of guest stars coming up, lots of characters that are showing up that we’ve already met in Superman. I don’t think there’s anything that I’ve ever done that I love more than this season of Peacemaker, so I’m so excited for people to see it.”
John Cena, who stars in the show, reiterated Gunn’s sentiments, telling THR that season two “is about furthering the narrative. Instead of stand-alone properties, all of the DCU is now connected, as you saw Peacemaker show up in Superman. I think what you see in season two is just a forward of that narrative. That whole DCU throughline — it takes the 11th Street Kids through their next adventure, but it also has a lot to do with the DCU going forward.”
When James Gunn’s “Superman” flies into theaters in July 2025, Amy Adams will be watching. The six-time Oscar nominee, who starred as Lois Lane in several DC Extended Universe films, says she’s looking forward to seeing the “Guardians of the Galaxy” director’s new take on the beloved superhero.
“I’m just a big fan of the franchise, always,” she tells Variety in her Power of Women cover story.
Adams says she’s particularly excited to watch “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” star Rachel Brosnahan as she picks up the role of the tenacious reporter and Clark Kent’s love interest. “I love her. She’s gonna be great. Hopefully the role will be infused with her sensibility and her natural humor and strength and wit,” she says. “I’m really looking forward to it. I really like her.”
The “Nightbitch” star also confirms she was never under the impression she’d be returning for more “Superman” adventures after her final appearance as Lois in 2017’s “Justice League.” “I always understood they were moving in a more ‘Justice League’ direction,” she says.
Adams’ own Man of Steel, Henry Cavill, said in Oct. 2022 that he would return as Superman in a new Warner Bros. film, following his cameo at the end of “Black Adam.” But that return was short-lived, as Warner Bros. and DC Studios announced Gunn and Peter Safran as the latter company’s new bosses about a month later. The duo’s overhaul plans included a new Superman actor to anchor their universe. They ultimately cast David Corenswet.
Adams made a point to praise Cavill’s performance, adding, “Henry was a really brilliant Superman. I offer every Superman luck and stuff, but I think he was great. I just wanted to say that. It’s so in his spirit.”
Adams says she always knew those iconic roles would only be theirs for a fleeting moment, explaing: “Coming from theater, a role never belongs to you. You just do a take on it. That’s how I feel about that franchise.”
The longer nights, the wind, the chill – all great for Halloween.
Halloween is big in the US with 96.95% of 25 to 34 planning to celebrate in some form – this is more than the 18-24 crowd (93.18%). The holiday come to the US in the 19th century was with my traditional coming from the Irish and Scots, andCajuns. It is now a huge season and worth a record $12.2 billion in spending. This is a significant increase the $8 billion spent in 2020. It is also one of the top 5 drinking and top 10 marijuana holidays in North America.
The word “Halloween” is derived from “All Hallows’ Eve,” which refers to the evening before All Saints’ Day. As Irish immigrants brought their traditions to America in the 19th century, Halloween evolved into a community-centered holiday characterized by activities like trick-or-treating, costume parties, and pumpkin carving. Interestingly, the first jack-o’-lanterns were made from turnips, not pumpkins, as they are today. The traditional colors of black and orange with black symbolizing death while orange represents the fall harvest.
Halloween costumes were originally vampires, ghosts, skeletons, scary looking witches, and devils. Over time, the costume selection extended to include popular characters from fiction, celebrities, popular memes, ninjas and princesses. In the 1940s, Halloween retailers Ben Cooper, H. Halpern Company (Halco), and Collegeville started licensing costumes for existing characters like Superman and Donald Duck. These store bought outfits were more appealing and easier for kids and adults. You didn’t have to think, everything was all put together. The Ben Cooper company were the first to premier the very popular Richard Nixon mask in the late 1960s, which sold as equally well as its Ronald Reagan mask even in the late 1980s. The women’s lib and gay revolution introduced the sexy costume in the 70s. These cultural events made way for the normalization of sexy costumes today.
On average, children eat around 7,000 calories and three cups of sugar on Halloween, which is equivalent to almost 169 sugar cubes. Adults eats about 3.4 pounds during the time around the holiday – about 222 sugar cubes.
The most popular candy for Halloween is:
M&M’s.
Reese’s Cups.
Sour Patch Kids.
Skittles.
Starburst
At your next event, you can share these fun facts about Halloween.
Among the many laughably unrealistic images in the original Donald TrumpNFT collection, one stood out: the illustration of the former president in the classic Superman pose, ripping open his dress shirt to reveal a superhero costume underneath. Trump used this image, which was animated to show lasers shooting out of his eyes, to tease a “major announcement” on December 15, 2022 which turned out to be a collection of 45,000 digital trading cards. “America needs a superhero!” Trump proclaimed in the video posted to Truth Social.
For many, this called to mind the report that Trump wanted to wear a Superman shirt when he returned to the White House after being hospitalized for COVID-19 in November 2020. But Trump’s effort to portray himself as the Man of Steel — and encourage others to do so as well — actually goes back decades. Of course, there’s plenty of superhero imagery in politics; leaders including George H.W. Bush, Barack Obama, and Justin Trudeau have jokingly encouraged the Superman comparison. As usual, however, Trump found a way to make it weird. Here, a rundown of the last president’s odd past with the Last Son of Krypton.
Though Donald Trump does not appear to be a fan of the genre in general, he’s made nearly two dozen cameos in comic books over the past three decades. He also served as inspiration for Superman’s archnemesis Lex Luthor in an ’80s reboot of the character, as the Daily Beast reported:
In 1986, DC Comics rebooted the entire Superman mythos in part to better reflect the anxieties and preoccupations of modern America. Instead of a mad scientist, Luthor was re-envisioned as a rich and powerful businessman, an idea hatched by writer Marv Wolfman and realized in the “comics event of the century,” writer and artist John Byrne’s Man of Steel miniseries.
It was a time when anti-corporate public sentiment against real-life Wall Street villains like Michael Milken and Barry Minkow was on the rise (the film Wall Street, featuring the partly Milken-inspired Gordon Gekko, was released one year later). But unsurprisingly, one wealthy ’80s mogul in particular inspired the new Luthor: “Of course, Donald Trump was our model,” Byrne tells The Daily Beast.
Years later, other versions of businessman Lex Luthor became president of the United States — or at least campaigned for the office. In the cartoon series Justice League Unlimited, Luthor admitted to The Question, “My campaign is a farce, a small part of a much larger scheme … Do you know how much power I’d have to give up to be president? … I spent 75 million on a fake presidential campaign, all just to tick Superman off.”
Some believe Trump only ran for president in 2015 to tick off Obama after he mocked the mogul at a White House Correspondents’ Association dinner. Perhaps, similarly, Trump’s Superman fixation has its roots in being cast as the model for the Man of Steel’s greatest foe.
In a vacuum, this seems pretty innocuous. As New York Times reporter and foremost Trump chronicler Maggie Haberman recalled, Trump’s 50th-birthday party featured a Superman cake.
In an interview shortly after the party, Trump’s then-wife Marla Maples told the Times that she was initially picturing a small and intimate affair, but he wanted “a big blowout.” She put together a party at Trump Tower that featured 400 guests, a Marla-as-mermaid ice sculpture, and, per the Times, a Superman cake:
Then, as the Superman movie theme began to play, the cake was wheeled onto the stage — with all of Mr. Trump’s buildings on it, and a sugar figure of Mr. Trump, dressed like Superman with a money sign on his chest. Ms. [Eartha] Kitt sang “Happy Birthday,” and 600 gold balloons cascaded from the ceiling.
Throughout his career in presidential politics, Trump encouraged his followers to think of him as a superhero. In an October 2015 interview, CNBC’s John Harwood pushed Trump on his grand promises and lack of policy specifics, saying, “But we don’t have Superman presidents!” The mogul replied, “But we will if you have Trump. You watch.”
After Hillary Clinton fell at a 9/11 anniversary event in 2016, the Committee to Restore America super-PAC decided to publicly gloat about Trump’s ostensibly superior physical prowess. The group launched a 55-foot billboard in Times Square featuring Trump as Superman.
“When I was a kid, Superman was my idol because he stood for truth, justice, and the American way, just like Donald Trump,” said tech mogul Dr. Robert Shillman, who donated money for the ad.
During the Trump administration, memes featuring Donald as Superman became popular among the MAGA crowd with the Trump family’s encouragement. One of the weirder examples is this fake Time magazine cover Donald Trump Jr. posted to Instagram in 2017, featuring his dad as an inexplicably bearded Superman.
Ye’s appalling recent remarks have totally overshadowed his weird, rambling 2018 Oval Office soliloquy. But back then, the rapper made headlines when he gushed to Trump about his MAGA hat, “There is something about when I put this hat on that makes me feel like Superman! That’s my favorite superhero. You make a Superman cape for me.”
Trump returning to the White House after being hospitalized for COVID, whipping his mask off, and then heading into the building — though he was possibly still infectious — was one of the most memorable images of his presidency. But it could have been even more shocking, as the New York Timesreported days later:
In several phone calls last weekend from the presidential suite at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, Mr. Trump shared an idea he was considering: When he left the hospital, he wanted to appear frail at first when people saw him, according to people with knowledge of the conversations. But underneath his button-down dress shirt, he would wear a Superman T-shirt, which he would reveal as a symbol of strength when he ripped open the top layer. He ultimately did not go ahead with the stunt.
The NFT collection wasn’t the only thing keeping the Trump-as-Superman theme alive. During the 2022 midterms, Trump was spotted with a gleeful look on his face as Arizona gubernatorial candidate repeatedly called him “Superman” at a rally, and his Save America super-PAC released “Ultramaga” superhero T-shirts:
A fourth batch of Trump trading cards was released during the last week of August, but you don’t have to throw down $99 per card to see weird images of Trump dressed as Superman. On August 29, the former president posted this poorly photoshopped image of himself as the Man of Steel, with J.D. Vance, Vivek Ramaswamy, Tulsi Gabbard, and RFK Jr. rounding out the Justice League.
While Trump is literally the inspiration for Superman’s nemesis and his battles against truth, justice, and the American way are well documented, it’s no surprise that he remains invested in pretending he’s an all-powerful hero. Though, it’s possible his Superman fixation is just a cover for a darker delusion.
This piece has been updated to include Trump’s 2024 Truth Social post.
Beyond that things might be more of us seeing James Gunn doing what he does best, just over at DC Studios. In an interview with the Wrap, Creature Commandos executive producer Dean Lorey (co-creator of Harley Quinn and Kite Man: Hell Yeah!) shared an update on the show: “That’s going to be the first expression of James Gunn’s DC Universe. We’re considering that canon, and I think it expresses his perspective, tonally, on where he wants the universe to go.” Lorey went on to describe it as “nothing new;” it’s another Amanda Waller gets a new anti-hero gang together for punishment tale, but this time with monsters. Which we think we follow but also is a bit of a head-scratcher of a take.
Lorey continued, “It’s Suicide Squad. He’s done it,” he elaborated, at the risk of sounding well… not risky, which is disappointing because we love that Gunn is usually a risk-taker. The rest feels sort of like whiplash word gymnastics: “People aren’t going to be surprised by what it is, but I think they’ll be really encouraged to see how completely it’s going to inform this new version of the DCU, which I’m very excited about.” It’s quite an endorsement that both tempers expectations but sorta leaves us feeling confused about what we’re excited for.
Previously, David Harbour—who’s playing a classic monster in the series—hyped Creature Commandosto io9 as being “…very different. I mean, it’s the mind of James Gunn so it is wacky and strange, but also full of a lot of depth and complexity. The most interesting thing to me about Frankenstein’s monster in general is that he was created to be this sort of erudite, intellectual, romantic, brilliant person, and he winds up being a monster. I mean, that complexity can make for some pretty ripe comedy and also pathos—that a guy who considers himself one thing, is viewed by others as something very different.”
Harbour continued. “That’s the broadest, most mysterious way I can put it, because all I know is the scripts are really good. What we recorded is really great. I’ve seen the art, James is a genius. I think it’s going to be really fun and really exciting, and it opens up a whole new door to the DC Universe of how these characters will occupy the world. I like the concept of a live action and cartoon back and forth.”
Big superhero productions come with a litany of set photos to excite the masses, and “Superman” starring Philly native David Corenswet is the latest to go under internet scrutiny.
Throughout June and July, Corenswet and his co-stars have been spotted on the Cleveland set of the superhero movie, and the public has been able to take an unfiltered look at Corenswet’s take on the Man of Steel, critiquing his costume while also speculating on the plot.
While DC fans have already commented on Corenswet’s Superman costume after the movie’s writer and director James Gunn shared an official look at it, they’ve had mixed responses after seeing it in action in more candid photos from outlets including JustJared.
Commentators online have complimented the overall comic-book accuracy of Corenswet’s suit, such as the red trunks and the yellow crest on the back of his cape.
On the other hand, criticisms of the costume aim at its design, particularly the lines, which commentators believe are unnecessary. A fair number of comments also argue that the costume looks baggy and loose, compared to the tighter costume worn by previous Superman actor Henry Cavill.
Observers point out that the suit could look very different in the final product, with color grading, reshoots and post-production CGI touch-ups perhaps addressing concerns. Superhero movie set photos tend to look silly out of context, such as a few shots of Corenswet preparing to take flight as Superman.
Photographer Erik Drost captured a few images of Corenswet as Superman’s civilian alter ego Clark Kent. In these photos, Corenswet sports a pair of glasses and a broccoli-style haircut to distinguish himself from his secret superhero persona.
On Wednesday, the Greater Cleveland Partnership shared additional photos of Corenswet on set for a crowded scene in the fictional city of Metropolis. One curious photo shows Corenswet’s Superman literally sinking to a new low.
On Friday and Saturday, filming moved to Progressive Field, where the production is shooting what appears to be a battle sequence. Those who are extremely sensitive to potential spoilers should exercise caution if they don’t even want a hint of what’s going on in these scenes.
Earlier this week, Gunn shared an image of the Superman emblem, also giving a reminder that the film will be released next year on July 11, 2025. Corenswet can be seen next on the big screen in “Twisters,” which hits theaters July 19.
A Superman exhibit at the Cleveland Public Library
Many people are surprised that Cleveland is the home of Superman, says Cleveland filmmaker Rob Montague.
“Not a lot of people know that Jerry [Siegel] and Joe [Shuster] are from Cleveland,” he says. “I found that out when I was in my early 20s and I was just like, How inspiring to be from [Cleveland]. Especially coming from an angle of wanting to be a filmmaker, and I want to do something that’s much bigger than where I’m from.”
Siegel and Shuster were born to Jewish immigrant families. The two met in 1932 at Glenville High School, where they both attended, and shared a love for science fiction. Siegel was a writer and wrote science fiction, and Shuster was an artist and created illustrations for Siegel’s stories.
Superman’s character was originally a superhuman villain. Over time, the character morphed into a crime-fighting superhero with super strength and bulletproof skin. The duo sold other stories to comic magazine publishers, but they had trouble finding a publisher that would be interested in Superman.
“There’s something so important about being from a place that’s so assuming and having such a story that comes from [mere beginnings] and having just an idea that you never give up on was [the reason] why I never gave up on telling their story and honoring them,” he says.
Montague — a director, cinematographer and producer — spent years in the music industry, singing in bands and producing music. But he always gravitated more toward movies. After his music career started to wind down, Montague pursued filmmaking. His first feature film, Long Way to the Top, is a documentary that highlights the challenges musicians face while on the road. The 2016 film played at festivals, including the Cleveland International Film Festival and NewFilmmakers Los Angeles.
When Montague sold the film in 2016, he immediately began filming SECRET IDENTITY: The Origin of SUPERMAN. This documentary will honor Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster and bring their story to the forefront.
Montague has spent a decade attempting to create a film and like Jerry and Joe, he’s faced many obstacles and setbacks as a Cleveland filmmaker. In 2017, his best friend Eric Leiser, who was also helping him create the film, passed away from a widowmaker heart attack at the age of 36. After continuing to fundraise for the film, COVID halted the film’s production.
Now after a decade attempt and several setbacks, Montague has one final hurdle to jump before the film’s big debut.
“The biggest challenge right now is intellectual property, because Superman is technically owned by Warner Brothers [and] DC, there are roadblocks,” he says. “We have overcome so much. We have people very interested in helping finance the film. So as far as the traditional roadblocks, they’ve been great. It’s just this last one of getting more voters to at least support the use of the character.”
If it sees the light of day, the film will use, what Montague describes as, a “three-layered narrative.” Using animation and documentary-style aspects, the story of Jerry and Joe parallels Superman’s own story.
“They never [gave up], they were rejected many, many, many times. So, you know, it’s a Clevelander attitude,” he says. “We’re tough, we never give up.”
CLEVELAND (WJW) – The new Superman movie continues to disrupt traffic in its takeover of downtown Cleveland.
FOX 8 crews previously spotted signs confirming that the feature film is the newest in the Superman franchise, such as signs for The Daily Planet and Metropolis. And, if that isn’t enough even sightings of Superman himself (well, at least the actor who is playing Superman.)
Road closures will continue in downtown Cleveland through July 6.
Expect additional traffic notices as filming continues and please note that these dates may change based on weather.
Friday, June 28, 2024:
FULL ROAD CLOSURE of Chester Avenue between East 13th Street and East 17th Street
FULL ROAD CLOSURE of 1st Street between Prospect and Public Square (South Roadway)
Saturday, June 29, 2024:
FULL ROAD CLOSURE of 1st Street between Prospect and Public Square (South Roadway)
Sunday, June 30, 2024:
FULL ROAD CLOSURE of 1st Street between Prospect and Public Square (South Roadway)
Monday, July 1, 2024:
FULL ROAD CLOSURE of 1st Street between Prospect and Public Square (South Roadway)
FULL CLOSURE of Public Square (East Roadway, West Roadway, South Roadway, Rockwell Avenue)
Tuesday, July 2, 2024:
FULL ROAD CLOSURE of 1st Street between Prospect and Public Square (South Roadway)
FULL CLOSURE of Public Square (East Roadway, West Roadway, South Roadway, Rockwell Avenue)
Wednesday, July 3, 2024:
FULL CLOSURE of Public Square (East Roadway, West Roadway, South Roadway, Rockwell Avenue)
Thursday, July 4, 2024:
FULL CLOSURE of Public Square (East Roadway, West Roadway, South Roadway, Rockwell Avenue)
Friday, July 5, 2024:
FULL CLOSURE of Public Square (East Roadway, West Roadway, South Roadway, Rockwell Avenue)
Saturday, July 6, 2024:
FULL ROAD CLOSURE of Detroit-Superior Bridge between West Huron Street and W 25th Street
CLEVELAND (WJW) – While crews were hard at work Tuesday filming the new “Superman” movie in downtown Cleveland, a FOX 8 camera crews caught a first glimpse of the Man of Steel himself on set.
Superman, donning his iconic red, blue and yellow suit with a cape and an “S” emblem on his chest, was seen walking down the steps of Cleveland City Hall.
Lakeside Avenue was closed for filming on Tuesday. It was the latest of many road closures since film crews started transforming downtown streets into the fictional city of Metropolis.
The area around Lakeside Avenue should be back open Wednesday, but there will be more road closures around Public Square.
Closures are set to continue through Saturday, July 6. Find a full list of them here.
The film, starring David Corenswet as Clark Kent (aka Superman) and Rachel Brosnahan as Lois Lane, is set to release in July 2025, according to IMDB. The film is being directed by “Guardians of the Galaxy” and “The Suicide Squad” director James Gunn.
The picture was snapped by FOX 8 viewer Coleen Moskowitz who pointed out the villain-like resemblance.
This, of course, comes as Cleveland is buzzing with excitement over the filming of a feature movie production — widely believed to be the next Superman film.
There have been as many failed attempts to get Superman onto the silver screen as there are Superman movies that actually made it—but Superman: Flyby is perhaps one of the most infamous, just for the sheer capacity of what-could-have-beens with the amount of people up for the titular heroic role. Matt Bomer was the man who flew closest to Krypton—but believes that he ultimately lost out for being in the closet.
What Does James Gunn Want from His Superman Movie? | io9 Interview
“I went in on a cattle call for Superman, and then it turned into a one-month audition experience where I was auditioning again and again and again. It looked like I was the director’s choice for the role. This was a very early iteration of Superman written by J.J. Abrams, called Superman: Flyby, and it never came to light,” Bomer recently reflected on an episode of The Hollywood Reporter’s Awards Chatter podcast. At the time, the project known as Flyby was being helmed by Brett Ratner, who’d been hired by Warner to make the movie in 2002. Ratner saw Bomer as his perfect choice for Clark Kent, with the actor noting that he ultimately had signed a three-picture deal. Things fell apart, and Ratner went on to leave the project himself shortly thereafter—but Bomer believes that his sexuality played a part in why the studio was suddenly disinterested in him being the new Man of Steel.
“That was a time in the industry when something like that could still really be weaponized against you,” Bomer, who publicly came out as gay in 2012, continued. “How, and why, and who, I don’t know, but yeah, that’s my understanding.” Ratner departed Flyby in 2003 and was replaced by McG, who rebuilt Flyby from the ground up, including casting, only to eventually leave as well—setting the stage for Bryan Singer’s eventual reboot of the project as Superman Returns, now starring Brandon Routh, in 2006.
This isn’t the first time it’s been suggested that Bomer missed out on Superman because of his sexuality—after Bomer publicly came out in 2012, author Jackie Collins stated in an interview with Gaydar Radio that being closeted cost Bomer the role years prior. But studio sources pushed back on the allegation at the time, citing that Bomer’s deal for Flyby and potential sequels fell through due to Ratner exiting the project.
Whatever the reason, Bomer himself still at least believes that being outed to studio executives at least played a role even today—but even if he didn’t make it into Flyby, he got to proverbially don the blue-and-red supersuit, playing Superman in the 2013 DCAU animated movie, Superman: Unbound. At the very least, Bomer would go on to play a part in in the DC Universe that actually got to reflect his experience as a gay man, playing the closeted test pilot Larry Trainor, a.k.a. Negative Man, in the excellent Doom Patrol TV series.
Hosts: Charles Holmes, Van Lathan, Jomi Adeniran, and Steve Ahlman Senior Producer: Steve Ahlman Additional Production Support: Arjuna Ramgopal Social: Jomi Adeniran
James Gunn is shutting down a fan conspiracy theory that he always planned to remove Henry Cavill from the DCEU.
Amid the shooting of the new Superman film and the second season of Peacemaker, Gunn finds time to answer fan inquiries on social media.
A fan shared a quote from Nathan Fillion about how he found out he was cast as Green Lantern in the new DC film, which will be released in 2025.
“We were actually at the premiere party after Suicide Squad and he [Gunn] was in a huge crowd of people,” Fillion said in an interview with Collider. “…He goes, ‘Hey, did Peter [Safran] tell you what we’ve got for you next?’ I said, ‘No, he hasn’t said.’ He looked around like someone was gonna be listening. We were in a throng of people, but he leaned over and said, ‘You’re gonna be Guy Gardner.’”
DC fans took Fillion’s words as Gunn already working on the reboot of the DCEU since the release of The Suicide Squad in 2021, more than a year before he and Peter Safran were named co-CEOs of DC Studios in October 2022.
However, Gunn clarified on Threads that Fillion misspoke, which meant he found out about his Green Lantern casting during the Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 premiere party.
Gunn went on to clarify the rumor that he always intended to replace Cavill as Superman since he helmed The Suicide Squad.
“I don’t quite understand how that fits,” he shared on Threads. “Aside from the fact I had no interest in running DC until Peter decided to do it with me so he could do the exec stuff & I could focus on creative, when I was hired to write Superman it was always intended as & pitched as a new Superman story, so why would I lie about not planning that at the Squad premiere which would have amounted to the same thing at the end of the day? How does this particular conspiracy theory make sense?”
Amid the DC Studios executive shakeup, Cavill reprised his role as Superman in an end credits scene from 2022’s Black Adam. However, when Gunn and Safran took over DC and planned to reboot the universe, they announced they would be recasting Superman.
David Corenswet was cast as the new Superman, with filming already underway. The film also stars Rachel Brosnahan as Lois Lane, Nicholas Hoult as Lex Luthor and María Gabriela de Faría as The Engineer. The ensemble includes Skyler Gisondo, Sara Sampaio, Sean Gunn, Edi Gathegi, Anthony Carrigan, Isabel Merced and Fillion.
The record-setting copy was purchased by an anonymous buyer. Courtesy Heritage Auctions
There’s a new comic book record in town. Action Comics No. 1, which introduced the character of Superman to the world in 1938, has sold for a record-breaking $6 million at Dallas-based Heritage Auctions. The staggering sale surpasses the previous comic book auction record held by a copy of Spider-Man’s Amazing Fantasy No. 15, which sold for $3.6 million in 2021, and the private sale record of $5.3 million established in 2022 with a copy of Superman No. 1.
Created by writer Jerry Siegel and illustrator Joe Shuster, Action Comics No. 1 details Superman’s origin story and his initial journey to Earth in a spaceship from a distant planet, in addition to debuting the character of Lois Lane. It was originally sold for just ten cents, which is about $2 today adjusting for inflation. Only 100 issues are estimated to have survived out of 200,000 copies printed.
“This has been the most sought-after comic book ever since people started collecting, because it’s the first appearance of Superman,” Barry Sandoval, vice president of Heritage Auctions, tells Observer. Its success “enabled the whole comic book craze that followed, and which still echoes today.”
The pioneering issue has also attracted famous fans like the actor Nicolas Cage, who had a copy stolen from his Los Angeles home in 2000. The pilfered comic book was found in a storage unit 11 years later, in a recovery Cage described as an act of “divine providence.”
Now the most valuable comic book in the world, the edition sold by Heritage Auctions was acquired by an anonymous buyer. It wasn’t the only notable item offered up by Heritage earlier this month during its four-day Comics & Comic Art Signature Auction. A restored copy of Action Comics No. 1 fetched $576,000, setting an all-time high for any restored comic book.
The auction house also sold a historic 1934 letter written by Siegel that outlined the concept of Superman to comic illustrator Russell Keaton and sold for $264,000. And it set another record with its auction of a copy of the 1963 The Avengers #1, which realized $432,000 and established a new benchmark price for the title.
Positive indicators for the collectibles market
The entire auction was a record-breaking event, bringing in a total of $28.2 million and becoming the most lucrative comic book and comic art auction, according to Heritage. Such impressive results for the early Superman comic and other sales “are gratifying because in comics, like in so many collectibles, things got a little crazy in the post-pandemic years,” says Sandoval.
Pandemic lockdowns led to an unprecedented spike in the collectibles market, with 2021 standing out as an especially lucrative year for auction houses like Heritage. While prices have since fallen, auction results like these indicate that the collectibles and comic markets are still strong, according to Sandoval. “While it’s true that the market has settled down since then, it’s nice to see new records being set to confirm that people are still very interested.”
Adult Swim’s My Adventures with Supermanwas a pleasant surprise when dropped in last year, and one of DC’s best animated outings in some time. Audiences really seemed to get on board with the romcom antics of Superman and Lois Lane, and DC’s taking advantage of that momentum by giving it its own comic miniseries.
What Does James Gunn Want from His Superman Movie? | io9 Interview
Revealed earlier in the week, the similarly titled comic will be set after the finale of season one and the premiere of the eventual second season. Written by show co-creator Josie Campbell and drawn by Pablo Moreno Collar (Rogues), the comic sees Clark, Lois, and Jimmy in Metropolis during the holidays investigating a sewer creature able to absorb whatever it touches. Per Campbell, the story was something originally planned for season one, but had to be cut for time. Still, Campbell—who previously wrote The New Shazam for DC, along with several Wonder Woman issues and tie-ins to events like Knight Terrors and Lazarus Planet—said the comic would have the same qualities of the show.
“Being the producer of My Adventures with Superman and bringing Clark Kent to TV screens around the world has been nothing but a dream come true for me,” she wrote. “So I’m absolutely thrilled that Pablo and I get to bring fans even more adventures with Superman, this time in comic book form! Get ready for romance, comedy, super-powers, Jimmy Olsen talking a lot about how he’s super-rich now, and all the goodness of the show bundled into this action-packed miniseries.”
Image: DC Comics
“I was completely in love with Adventures the minute I saw the announcement of the series,” added Collar, “and I jumped at the chance to work with Josie on the comic. Superman has always been the reference and the symbol of all that’s good in us, and being part of something like this is a dream come true, and the whole team will give it our best.”
My Adventures with Superman (the comic) debuts with its first issue on June 4. As for season two of the show? No ETA at time of writing, but its first season is still over on Max.
The actor stopped by the Inside of You with Michael Rosenbaum podcast to chat about his acting career, including the highly-anticipated movie, which began production last week, per the director.
Hoult looked back at his time auditioning for the classic villain, saying Gunn has an “ability to keep things fun and alive and try things in the moment and be like, just shouting out from the monitors, ‘Say this line. Do this! Do that!’ And that’s something that I really enjoy. … That’s the whole process of prep for me is like, be prepared as possible so when you get there you can throw it all away and do whatever you want in the moment.”
As for the weeks leading up to filming, the Renfield actor also told the host that he began working out to play Lex.
“There’s that bit in All-Star Superman [comic book series] where he talks about his muscles being real and hard work and all that,” Hoult said. “I kind of took that as a little bit of fuel for the fire.” But he also noted that he doesn’t think the villain will have any shirtless scenes in the film.
Earlier in the podcast, Hoult revealed to Rosenbaum, who played a younger version of Lex on Smallville, that his iteration of the villain was the first time he saw Lex on screen.
“The first ever Lex I saw was you. Yeah, I grew up, Smallville was on,” the Warm Bodies actor said. “That was the show I would watch and see my first iterations of Superman and Lex and all those stories. I’ve since seen Richard Donner’s movies and all the other ones and kind of seen some of the other performances but you’re like the one. … It’s the best.”
At the end of February, Gunn shared a photo of the cast all together for the first time, noting that the image was taken after the first table read. Hoult appeared to be sporting a shaved head, gearing up to play Lex.
Gunn’s Superman, also starring David Corenswet as Clark Kent/Superman and Rachel Brosnahan as Lois Lane, is set to be released on July 11, 2025.
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — It’s a bird! It’s a plane! It’s Superman! A new movie on the comic book hero is filming in Ohio this year and has been awarded about $11 million in tax credits, with plans to hire more than 3,000 locals.
The DC Studios movie titled simply “Superman” is filming in Cincinnati and Cleveland this spring and summer and will receive $11,091,686 in tax credits, according to an Ohio Motion Picture Tax Credit application filed under the project’s code name, “Genesis.” The film is expected to hire 3,254 Ohio residents to take part in the production.
A special edition of “Superman: Last Son of Krypton,” released in celebration of National Free Comic Book Day. (Associated Press)
DC’s Ohio-related expenses are projected to exceed $36 million, which makes up about 10% of the movie’s total budget of more than $363 million. The film is directed and written by American filmmaker James Gunn and started filming on Feb. 29, with cameras to start rolling in Ohio on April 1.
The last possible production date in Ohio is marked for Aug. 23, according to the film’s tax credit application. Broken down, the application says the production in Ohio accounts for 133 days for preparation, 37 for shooting and 31 for wrap. That means 25% of Gunn’s movie is being filmed in Ohio.
While the application does not specify where exactly filming will take place, the iconic character is connected to both Cincinnati and Cleveland. Writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster created Superman while attending Cleveland’s Glenville High School in 1933, according to Case Western Reserve University’s Encyclopedia of Cleveland History.
Union Terminal in Cincinnati was the inspiration for the Justice League’s headquarters, the Hall of Justice, featured in the 1970s animated “Super Friends” series, the Cincinnati Museum Center boasts. Artist Al Gmuer drew the Hall of Justice and based his creation off of the façade of Union Terminal, earning the building a permanent place in popular culture.
Gunn, also the director of Marvel’s “Guardians of the Galaxy” trilogy, is relaunching DC’s cinematic franchise with American actor David Corenswet as Clark Kent, replacing British actor Henry Cavill who first starred as Superman in 2013’s “Man of Steel.” Rachel Brosnahan from “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” as Lois Lane and Nicholas Hoult from “The Great” as Lex Luthor rounds out Gunn’s cast.
David Corenswet attends the “Pearl” Premiere during the 2022 Toronto International Film Festival at Royal Alexandra Theatre on Sept. 12, 2022, in Toronto, Ontario. (Photo by Jemal Countess/Getty Images)
Rachel Brosnahan attends the 29th Annual Critics Choice Awards at Barker Hangar on Jan. 14, 2024, in Santa Monica, California. (Photo by Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/Getty Images)
Nicholas Hoult attends the Loewe Menswear Fall/Winter 2024-2025 show as part of Paris Fashion Week on Jan. 20, 2024, in Paris, France. (Photo by Arnold Jerocki/Getty Images)
“Superman” is one of 23 movies and TV shows filming in Ohio in 2024, that together have been given more than $44 million in tax credits. Ohio’s movie tax credit program provides a refundable tax credit of 30% on cast and crew wages and other spending for feature-length films, documentaries, pre-Broadway productions, video games, and music videos.
“Investing in these productions fuels the vibrant creativity that’s alive in Ohio’s communities and serves as a powerful catalyst for economic growth,” said Lydia Mihalik, director of the Ohio Department of Development. “These projects celebrate and showcase our diverse landscapes, generate jobs, stimulate local businesses, and create a lasting legacy for the arts in Ohio.”
The 23 projects total nearly $503 million in production expenses and are expected to create 530 full-time jobs. Other projects include a movie rolling in Cincinnati awarded $6,052,988 in tax credits under the code name “Epiphany,” and a film in Columbus given $385,853 named “Down to the Felt.”
Applications for Ohio’s movie tax credit program are reviewed in two rounds each year, with $50 million awarded annually between the two rounds. Projects are awarded first to TV shows, then to all others, based on the positive economic impact in Ohio and the effect on developing a permanent workforce in motion picture or theatrical production industries in the state.
“Superman” is scheduled to be released in theaters on July 11, 2025.
It’s March, and we’ve got our first big movie for 2024 in Warner Bros. and Legendary’s Dune: Part Two. Even as its release date shifted around a few times, there’s been a palpable excitement in the air for the second half of Denis Villeneuve’s adaptation of Frank Herbert’s novel, and that was before it was getting high marks from nearly everyone. Financially, it’s starting off on the right foot and doing better than originally projected.
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Per the Hollywood Reporter, Dune has shored up $178.5 million in its starting weekend. $97 million of this came internationally; in regions like France and South Korea, it released a few days ahead of its March 1 date in North America. For North America, it netted $81.5 million, double the opening take of Dune: Part One back in 2021 and also the highest-grossing movie of 2024 to date. The film was initially tracked to be in the $150-$175 million range, but its small surpassing of that suggests it may have a long tail ahead of it.
Beyond its collective star power and heavy marketing, folks seemed to groove with Part One in the years since its release, if they weren’t already into it. It also helps that there’s nothing else quite on this level in terms of blockbuster scale, and it looks like something worth going out to see in the theaters: per Deadline, $32.2 million of its global take came from IMAX screenings, and it’s now the second-biggest global weekend for an IMAX film behind Batman v Superman in 2016.
Tentpole-wise, the month of March has some other big films on the horizon: Kung Fu Panda 4 drops next week for the kids, along with Blumhouse’s Imaginary. Then we’ve got Ghostbusters: Frozen Empiretowards the end of the month on March 22, concluding with WB and Legendary’s own Godzilla x Kong: The New Empireon the 29th. At the moment, Dune has word of mouth on its side, ditto a desire to see this all come to a close with an eventual adaptation of Dune Messiah and those popcorn buckets, so time will tell how those movies fare against it.
The CW’s Arrowverse was once the talk of the superhero town, and arguably DC’s more successful live-action venture in the 2010s. But in recent years, the network’s superhero outings have all been shuttered, with Superman & Lois standing as the last Arrowverse hurrah for one more season.
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In a recent interview with TheWrap, CW’s entertainment president Brad Schwartz and overall company president Dennis Miller talked about keeping some shows from the old regime. Superman & Lois has apparently performed quite well in previous seasons, but it was allegedly Warner Bros.’ call to cap it at four seasons. “They don’t want a competing Superman product in the marketplace,” Schwartz explained, effectively laying the blame for the show’s end at 2025’s Superman: Legacyfrom James Gunn.
This isn’t the first time the Arrowverse has been put in this position: WB asked Arrow’s creators to put in several Suicide Squad regulars like Deadshot and Amanda Waller in its show to get audiences used to them before their silver screen debut. The show was also apparently keen to do something with Harley Quinn, but those plans had to be junked once she was a principal lead in the film. Both Deadshot and Waller, along with Katana, were killed off or disappeared. The same was true of Deathstroke, who was a recurring character on the show: when it seemed like he’d be getting a solo movie (or be the villain in a planned solo movie for Ben Affleck’s Batman), Arrow’s Deathstroke had to walk into the mist, never to be seen again.
It’s a weird situation DC has put the Arrowverse in, least of all because it let Grant Gustin’s version of the Flash stick around for Ezra Miller’s (possible) entire tenure as the Flash in the movies. Batman’s also been fairly exempt from this rule, since Gotham was on during Affleck’s Bat-tenure, and Robert Pattinson’s version is getting to co-exist with the evental Bats who’ll headline The Brave & the Bold.
However, it’s also worth noting that the new CW regime is about saving (and eventually making) money lost by the old bosses. Schwartz even admitted when he and Miller came onboard, the network had “lost a lot of money.” And like WB Discovery, it’s in a penny-pinching move: Superman & Loishas had to dump several longtime series regulars and writers for its final season, and the episode count has been slimmed down from a standard 13-15 range to just 10. Schwartz similarly told TheWrap other veteran shows like All American and Walker will stick around on the network…as long as their budgets stay relatively the same.
Either way, four seasons is a solid run for any show, and getting too long in the tooth has long been an issue with the medium (especially ones on this network). It’s not ideal, but at least Superman & Lois gets to go out on its own terms and deliver as much of an ending as it can.
