'Superman' - James Gunn's Biggest Advantage Will Be Lowered Expectations
Opening in theaters one year from today, DC Studios' Man of Steel reboot will arrive with the superhero industrial complex on the defensive culturally and commercially.
Presuming it doesn’t change release dates. July 11, 2025, will see Warner Bros. Discovery launch its latest attempt to create an interconnected cinematic universe from DC Comics properties. Like last time, in June 2013, the universe will begin with a new Superman. Even presuming the new film, starring David Corenswet, Rachel Brosnahan and Nicholas Hoult, will be a crowd-pleasing critical triumph, is the Last Son of Krypton is closer in popularity to King Arthur and Tarzan (just because audiences have heard of them doesn’t mean they’ll flock to a movie about them) than Spider-Man or Batman? There’s a substantial difference between the first attempt at a DC Comics cinematic universe, featuring the first movies centered on Wonder Woman and Aquaman, and the second time trying such a thing. However, one key advantage Superman (previously titled Superman: Legacy) will have is opening amid severely diminished expectations for itself and the DC/Marvel superhero industrial complex.