James Gunn's Superhero History Proves The DCU's Superman Can Fix A 47-Year-Old Movie Problem

Superman

Summary

James Gunn’sSupermanwill likely set up a solo movie problem the Man of Steel has had sinceDC ’s first resilient - actionSupermanmovie 47 year earlier . James Gunn ’s 2025Supermanmoviewill kick off the new DC Universe alongsideCreature Commandos , and it will shew how unlike the DCU will be from the defunct DCEU , not only within its plot but also in terms of calibre and creativeness . bring with it a new root , James Gunn’sSupermancan show a more consistent flair for all succeeding DC projection to mime .

Despite his status as DC Comics ' biggest wiz , Superman has n’t had much luck on the grown screen , or at least not as much as Batman . WhileBatman has seem in thirteen live - action theatrical moviesplayed by eight actors , Superman has only starred ( and co - starred ) in nine live - action movie , played by three doer so far . Superman ’s gallery of scoundrel has gone largely unexplored as well , and only Christopher Reeve ’s version of the hoagie has go beyond his former superhero life history during his solo movies . On top of that , allSupermansolo movies released so farshare one large action problem , which James Gunn’sSupermancould finally cook in 2025 .

Superman Movies Have Been Unbalanced In Terms Of Action

Live-Action Superman Movies Have Had Too LIttle Or Too Much Action

Superman ’s immense magnate course makes any story starring the Man of Steel a lilliputian more unmanageable to craft than common . After all , Superman can technically punch his path to victory against most antagonists . Most Superman stories put special focus on the drama so as to solve this issue . However , almost every live - actionSupermanmovie has compensate , severely keep their action sequences in both scope and duration . natural process scenes in Richard Donner’sSupermanmovies were very basic due to the technical limitation of the time , andSuperman Returnshad very few activity episode because it paid court to the previousSupermanmovies .

40 + yr later , Richard Donner ’s Superman : The Movie remains the gold stock film maker front to for divine guidance when adapting the Man of Steel .

Years later , Man of Steelovercorrected with its action - pack third act , with Superman and Zod destroying most of the DCEU ’s Metropolis . The excessive destruction inMan of Steel ’s climactic fightearned the film plenty of criticism and raised questions about Superman ’s care for substantiating damage . To this solar day , Superman ’s apparent carelessness in hisMan of Steelbattles remain one of the 2013 picture ’s biggest points of disputation . It also stands out due toMan of Steel ’s rather slow and emotional first half preceding the infamous Metropolis conflict .

Superman 2025 poster

What The DCU’s Superman Can Take From James Gunn’s Filmography

James Gunn ’s Superhero Projects Have render Each Action Scene Its Due

James Gunn’sSupermancan ward off the premature Superman movies ' activeness job and deliver a well - balanced and coherent level of activity . Fortunately , Gunn has already proved his natural endowment for direct action conniption in five superhero projects before . TheGuardians of the Galaxymovies are famously lighthearted and comedic , yet their fight scenes are particularly memorable due to their innovative choreography , high - quality VFX , and prominent soundtrack . For instance , Guardians of the Galaxy Vol . 2 ’s opening sequence is a highlight of the movie , andGuardians of the Galaxy Vol . 3 ’s hallway fight raised the legal profession for high - budget , VFX - heavy long - take fight view .

Similarly , Harley Quinn ’s prison escape and Peacemaker ’s fight against Rick Flag inThe Suicide Squadmake economic consumption of visually arresting extradiegetic VFX and creative camerawork , respectively . The former incorporated 2D and 3D vivification in live - legal action to represent what Harley Quinn sees in her mind while she fights , and the latter included a stab ofRick Flag and Peacemaker fighting seen on the reflexion of Peacemaker ’s helmet , which require very pernicious but challenging CGI and camera movements to enshroud the camera while showing the action . Peacemakerseason 1 also featured exciting fight scene that fitly assorted R - rated comedy with brutal force .

Henry Cavill, Christopher Reeve, and David Corenswet Dressed as Superman in DC Movies Throughout the Years

Custom Image by Nicolas Ayala

Each of James Gunn ’s activity scenes carries a well - defined significance as well . For representative , Guardians of the Galaxy ’s final battle institute a family bond in the Guardians , and Rick Flag ’s last inThe Suicide Squadstarts a quest for redemption in Peacemaker ’s journey .

Superman’s Cast Suggests The DCU Movie’s Action Will Be A Focal Point

Superman’s Supporting Characters Are Remarkably Powerful And Have Potential For Exciting Battles

Part of why previous live - actionSupermanmovies have n’t been able to balance action and drama is that Superman has had few villains to fight . Superman would obliterate any human villain like Lex Luthor if he want , and asMan of Steelproved , Superman can destroy a whole city trying to defeat his similarly - power foe with brutal force alone . It seems like James Gunn’sSupermanhas the perfect solution to this job , asSuperman ’s plaster cast boast multiple supporting metahumanswho can participate in several fight scenes aboard or against Kal El .

Whenever Lex Luthor is n’t tormenting Superman psychologically , María Gabriela de Faría ’s The Engineer can also pose a physical threat to Superman and his superhero allies . The Engineer , Hawkgirl , Mister Terrific , Metamorpho , and Guy Gardner are all DC characters who have n’t had the chance to shine on the big screen before . Therefore , any chance these supporting metahumans get to showcase their superpowers and power in James Gunn’sSupermanwill make for an exciting accompaniment to the first representative of Superman and Lex Luthor ’s battle in the DCU .