Superman: 15 Biggest Things We Learned From James Gunn On The Set Of The 2025 DC Movie

Our conversation with James Gunn and other journalists on the set of 2025"s Superman revealed exciting new information about the first new DC Universe movie. Alongside a hopeful new Superman poster, plenty of details about the film have recently been made available, giving insight into the story, characters, and the shape of the universe being constructed. Some of these reveals were expected, while others were shocking. All of them, however, contribute to an incredible new vision for DC"s Man of Steel.
ScreenRant’s Rob Keyes attended a Superman set visit during production in Cleveland, Ohio in June, where they discussed the Superman movie and the wider DCU release schedule with James Gunn. This interview revealed much about how the movie would draw from the rest of the Superman movie roster, and also how it already clearly differs. Following this, much of what Gunn shared at this event helps to shed light on the new iteration of the DC hero, his supporting cast, and his world, which will hopefully continue to matter for many years.
15 James Gunn's Superman Starts In The Middle Of Things And Takes Place Over A Short Amount Of Time Gunn Emphasized How Much Has Already Occurred Before The Start Of The Film Close James Gunn confirmed that the film takes place with many of its pieces already set up. Superman is already Superman in the film, and several of his relationships have already been established. This has been vaguely known, but what is important here is that, referring to the film, James Gunn said, "It takes place over a short amount of time."
Gunn explains that "We start right in the middle of the action" with the film, suggesting it begins at an exciting point of the story and keeps the pace from there. Much of this suggests a fast-paced tone for the film, with tensions and relationships already set up. This is a significant contrast to releases like Christopher Reeve"s first film, which took a long, sprawling, and epic approach to the story of the Man of Steel. Instead, Superman will begin in medias res, starting likely at a point sure to grab viewers to ensure they"re invested from the first moments of the movie.
Read More: James Gunn Addresses Where Superman"s Story Starts In His 2025 Movie
14 Superman Is Less Of A Comedy Than The Suicide Squad And Guardians The Film Will Deviate From Gunn's Usual Style Close One of the biggest concerns raised about James Gunn"s taking on Superman had to do with the director"s tone. While Gunn has made some of the most acclaimed superhero films of the current era, those films, including Guardians of the Galaxy and The Suicide Squad, have had a distinctly irreverent and comedic tone. Many have worried that Gunn would bring that same brand of style and humor to Superman, a character who has not traditionally been portrayed this way in the past.
Gunn addressed this, comparing Superman to his previous work, saying that "t"s humorous, but it"s certainly as comic or as much of a comedy." While The Suicide Squad"s funniest characters added a great dimension to that film, it seems that humor will be more restrained here. This will likely allow Superman to have more gravitas and room to grow the entire universe around itself.
13 Superman's Casting Process Gave James Gunn One Of His "Greatest Moments In Filmmaking" Gunn Was Compelled By The Chemistry Between David Corenswet And Rachel Brosnahan Close Casting has been an important part of the new Superman film, and Gunn shared several details about a few of the performers. A number of people read for the main roles, and Gunn was quick to express that he loved Rachel Brosnahan as Lois and David Corenswet as Clark, saying "it was both of them as individuals" that drew him to their casting.
From there, however, the director moved into chemistry readings together before finalizing the casting. Among the contenders for the Superman actors, the cast was mixed and matched in a way Gunn had not done on previous projects. When Corenswet and Brosnahan were put together, Gunn described seeing the chemistry between them as "something magic", and "one of [his] greatest moments in filmmaking."
Read More: James Gunn Addresses Casting David Corenswet As Superman And Rachel Brosnahan As Lois Lane
12 Lois And Clark Already Know Each Other When Superman Begins Their Relationship, However, Is Not Entirely Clear Close In explaining how the film starts in the middle of all the action, and that much of the world already exists at the start of the film, Gunn mentions that "Lois and Clark already know each other" when the film begins. This is an important contrast to other Superman stories, including Superman and Man of Steel, which saw the two characters meeting for the first time. With that said, it is unclear exactly how well the two know one another when Superman begins.
On the relationship between the two, Gunn didn"t provide many concrete details. However, he did address the effectiveness of their relationship on-screen, stating: "I don"t think it"s something we"ve ever seen [in] any superhero movie ever." Considering some of his casting notes, and the chemistry between the stars, it seems the film may offer a special and unique look at the relationship between Clark and Lois.
Read More: What To Expect From Clark Kent And Lois Lane"s Relationship In Superman
11 Lex Already Hates Superman At The Start Of The Film Nicholas Hoult Plays Lex Luthor In The Film Close There have been many excellent Lex Luthor actors, and each of these has brought something special to the role. It appears Nicholas Hoult"s iteration will be no different in this regard based on some comments from Gunn. Most important, however, is the acknowledgment that Hoult"s hatred of Superman will already be established in the world. Departing from stories like the DCEU and even the Christopher Reeve films, this conflict will already exist in some capacity.
Gunn explained this by saying: "Lex hates Superman"s guts from the beginning, although they don"t know each other personally." Setting up this conflict with the idea of Superman will be important to Hoult"s take on Luthor. Based on some of the other known details regarding Superman"s Luthor, it seems the movie is primed to have a fascinating new look at the age-old rivalry.
10 Gunn Credits DC's Entire Past, Including Zack Snyder, As An Influence Understanding The Past And The Legacy Of Superman Is Important To The New Film Close The new film has several influences, with Gunn explaining that much of the character"s DC history was important to this iteration. He acknowledged the Richard Donner Superman and the DC animated universe as influences before revealing his greatest influence: "All-Star Superman, that influenced me more than anything." This is important, but what is also important is what the filmmaker said about the Zack Snyder films.
Gunn also let the press know that the Zack Snyder films were also an inspiration for this new take. While there is still some lingering disappointment that Snyder"s Justice League trilogy and Man of Steel 2 were never made, it is fortunate that Snyder"s work will also serve as one of the many inspirations for this new version. Seeing how that plays out - and to what degree these influences are evident in the movie - is an exciting prospect.
Read More: How Christopher Reeve And Henry Cavill"s Superman Movies Influenced James Gunn"s 2025 DC Film
9 The Movie Has A Few Songs But Will Be Mostly Score James Gunn Tends To Use Music In A Prominent Way Close The first tease of Superman"s music has been made with the poster reveal, and the new film has been confirmed to contain mostly score for the music. While James Gunn"s needle drops and use of music are an important stamp for the director, including his incredible opening theme for Peacemaker, it seems that will be less prominent in Superman. "It"s much, much more of a score film," Gunn explained.
Gunn clarified that there will still be songs, but that "it"s not a soundtrack" in the ways that his previous projects have been. Paired with Gunn"s comments about humor and comedy, it seems that Superman will be something of a stylistic departure from the rest of the director"s work. It will be interesting to see whether Superman feels notably different compared to other James Gunn films with these characteristic differences.
8 Superman Draws From Sci-Fi & Fantasy For Its Approach Gunn Admitted Some Surprising Inspirations And Details Close In addition to pulling from the enormous history of DC media, both onscreen and off, Gunn made a few comparisons to other projects as inspiration. Speaking of the DCU as a whole, Gunn said that "it"s fantasy, it"s taking from other things like Game of Thrones." This is a world where superheroes exist, and constructing how those different facets fit into the world and society is an enormous task.
In addition, Gunn spoke of the sci-fi gadgets pulled from Silver Age comic book inspiration. On Lex and his use of these tools, Gunn said "I think of him as like a sorcerer." With these influences in mind, it seems clear that Gunn"s new universe is set to contend with enormous science fiction and fantasy details and influences in a way that feels sustainable and true to its own world.
7 Future DCU Plans Heavily Depend On The Success Of The Film The DCU Has Many Plans, But It Is Still Finding Its Shape Close Gunn was asked about how much future plans for DCU are dependent on the success of Superman, to which he answered: "A lot. I mean, we"re not just going to keep making movies." The shape of the universe, and its next projects, will clearly be directed by the success of the film. Hopefully, Superman will resonate with audiences and find commercial and critical success. If it does not, however, there may be other alterations made to the shape of the DCU.
The DCU"s Justice League and other overarching story elements have likely found some shape behind closed doors, but little of that has been shared with the world. As Gunn and Peter Safran find the direction of their universe, and as audiences respond to the projects that are released, it seems that some changes may be made to what the future holds. How big those changes might be, and their impact on future projects, remains to be seen.
6 Top Gun: Maverick Influenced How Flight Scenes Were Shot Flight Scenes Are Important To Superman Close One of the most important parts of any Superman story is capturing the feel and tone of flight. This is one of Superman"s most important powers, and it can be used to contribute to all kinds of scenes, both in battle and in the larger story. From Gunn"s description, it sounds like this was important to the film, especially in action and fight scenes, noting that "being able to shoot stuff in the sky like that is really hard."
The filmmaker employed the use of drones in crafting these scenes, admitting that they took a lot of influence from Top Gun: Maverick. The Tom Cruise-starring 2022 hit resonated with audiences for its story and tone, but the craft of how it used flight and aerial combat contributed to the immersive feel of the film. Superman looks to use several of the same filmmaking tools to replicate that success.
5 Superman's Bright Costume Is Supposed To Make The Hero Look Less Frightening, Especially To Children Gunn Spoke About The Trunks And The Colors On The Suit Close Notably, the Superman costume is different from Batman"s, and much of this comes from the fundamental purpose of that costume. Batman"s suit is supposed to strike fear into the hearts of evildoers, but conversations surrounding Superman"s trunks in the new movie came to a far different conclusion. Gunn reflected on this, saying "one of the things David said is that Superman wants kids not to be afraid of him."
Superman"s bright costume is not supposed to instill fear but is supposed to represent hope. People should not see Superman on the street and feel the need to run in the opposite direction. This is important to the hero and his perception, and much of this is communicated through the bright colors and even the use of trunks on his superhero outfit.
Read More: James Gunn"s Deeply Insightful Reason For Why David Corenswet"s Man of Steel Costume Includes Trunks​​​​​​​
4 None Of This Movie Is Dedicated To Setting Up Anyone Outside The Core Cast Superman, Lois, And Lex Matter The Most To This Film Close When asked by our own Rob Keyes about how much of the movie was for setting up additional characters and threads, Gunn was succinct in his answer: "Zero." This may be a bit of a surprise considering how much Marvel, the template for a shared universe, works at balancing universe expansion with telling individual stories inside the same project. Instead, it appears that Gunn has narrowed the focus for this film to the core cast.
Gunn continued with a little bit more detail, saying "If something"s there just to set up something else, f*** it." This is a refreshing approach, especially after so many MCU post-credits scenes and even the DCEU post-credits scenes in Black Adam and Shazam! Fury of the Gods have not been fulfilled in their universes. It is therefore important that the new film understand its own focus, and it appears that Gunn is doing exactly that with Superman.
Read More: James Gunn Explains How Much Of Superman Is Spent Setting Up Future DC Universe Releases​​​​​​​
3 Of The Supporting Heroes, Mister Terrific Has The Biggest Role Edi Gathegi Plays The Superhero Role Close Edi Gathegi plays Mister Terrific in the film, and Gunn acknowledged that he will be the most important of the supporting cast of superheroes. Alongside Isabela Merced as Hawkgirl and Nathan Fillion as Guy Gardener, this is a significant reveal. When talking about this topic, Gunn explained "They"re not just cameos, these are the characters... but Mister Terrific is the main character of those characters."
While theories about Hawkgirl and Green Lantern have been shared, Gunn here makes it clear that all these superheroes are important to the plot of the film. That said, it seems Mister Terrific will have a larger role in the film, with Gunn revealing that "he actually has a big part of the plot." Regardless, all these memorable heroes are there for a reason, not just to set things up for the future.
Read More: Who Is Mister Terrific? Origin, Powers & DC Universe Future Explained​​​​​​​
2 The Title Was Changed From Superman Legacy Because It Suggested Looking Back When The Movie Is About Looking Forward The Film Was Changed To Being Titled Only Superman Close While series like Superman & Lois were able to take an approach that examines the history and past of Superman, the new film is much more about looking forward. With a limited lens and an ending in sight, this looking back worked well for Superman & Lois, although it is clear that the intent of the new film is entirely different. Gunn acknowledged this when discussing the former title Superman Legacy, saying "it felt too looking back."
Gunn explained that "when you see this movie, you"ll understand where Legacy comes from," emphasizing that some of those elements are still important to the story. Based on Clark"s relationships with others, and the history of the characters, it appears that a more forward-facing idea of legacy will be explored in the film. How this is done remains to be seen, but Gunn seems adamant that the former Superman Legacy title makes sense with the film"s plot and script.
Read More: James Gunn Explains Superman"s Title Change And Why Legacy Was Dropped
1 Gunn Emphasized That Neither Clark Nor Superman Are The Man of Steel's Real Identity, But Rather Both Are Duality Is An Important Part Of Many Different Superhero Stories Close James Gunn was asked about David Corenswet"s casting, where he remarked on the importance of being able to play both Clark and Superman in the film. "It"s not just Clark. It"s not just Superman. It"s Clark/Superman," Gunn said. Reflecting on this, it was important to find a performer who was able to embody both sides of the role. This was something Corenswet did well, which made him right for the part.
Gunn continued, reflecting on how few people know the Man of Steel"s identity in the film, saying "People said all sorts of different things. They said "Clark"s the real one." They said "Superman"s the real one and Clark"s the secret identity." But I don"t, and it says in my script on the second page - I don"t believe either of those things. I don"t think anybody knows Superman unless they know both of him." The explanation suggests that this duality will be explored in Superman, ensuring audiences themselves know both Clark and Superman by the end of the film.
Read More: James Gunn"s Explanation Of Superman"s Identity Shows He Truly Understands The Character​​​​​​​


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