10 Reasons to Get Excited About Superman’s Big-Screen Comeback in 2025

James Gunn’s Superman is one of the most anticipated movies of 2025. After a tough year for superhero films in 2024 and DC’s 2023 slate underperforming or downright bombing at the box office, a lot is riding on this new Superman movie. Warner Bros. and DC are looking at it as the cornerstone of the next decade of films and television series as the new DC Universe begins. So far, director James Gunn has been selective of what has been teased about the upcoming movie, but the marketing should soon pick up as the holiday season approaches.

Superman has released ten live-action theatrical movies, not counting cameos or animated film appearances. After so many films, one would think there isn’t much more left to do with the character that has not been done. After all, Quentin Tarantino said he wouldn’t watch Denis Villenueve’s Dune movies because he has already seen the David Lynch version, and why would he see the same story twice? There have been only two attempts at Dune; what does it say about doing ANOTHER Superman movie?

Yet director and DC Studios co-president James Gunn has nearly 86 years of publication to draw from; there is a lot of untapped potential in the last son of Krypton. Here are ten reasons to be excited about Superman, a movie that could be unlike any DC film before and do what Black Adam couldn’t by changing the hierarchy of power in the DC Universe forever.

10 The First “True” Superman Movie in 12 Years

By the time Superman opens in theaters, it will have been 12 years since the release of Man of Steel. While Superman certainly hasn’t been absent from the big screen since then, having appeared in Batman V. Superman: Dawn of Justice, Justice League, and a cameo in Black Adam, this is the first time that the character has been given the true spotlight without having to share it with another character.

For context, the time difference between the release of Man of Steel and Superman is greater than the seven-year gap between Superman Returns and Man of Steel, but not as long as the 19-year gap between Superman IV: The Quest for Peace and Superman Returns.

Spotlight on Superman

In the 12-year span since Superman last got the spotlight as the star of his own feature film, there have been three Venom movies, three Ant-Man films, the entire DCEU concluded, and Superman’s own director James Gunn began and concluded The Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy. Due to his status as a pop culture icon who has endured for generations, the arrival of a new Superman-led movie is always a big deal and this case is no exception. After years of DC treating Superman as second to Batman, the superhero that built DC Comics as a brand is finally getting the spotlight shined on him again.

Warner Bros. has given Superman a high-profile summer release date. Set to be released on July 11, 2025, Warner Bros. is confident that Superman will be able to hold its own against Jurassic World: Rebirth and The Fantastic Four: First Steps that same month. While they did not give it the Fourth of July weekend slot due to Jurassic World: Rebirth having claimed it, Warner Bros. is positioning it in their big July release slot that they have previously saved for The Dark Knight, Barbie, and four Harry Potter films.

Warner Bros. Rolling Out All the Stops

There are already reports that Warner Bros. is looking to give Superman a marketing blitz similar to the one they gave Barbie and are currently rolling out for Wicked. While Marvel Studios might start the summer movie craze with Thunderbolts*, there is a good chance Superman will be the movie on everyone’s mind. With Superman also arriving before San Diego Comic-Con 2025, that means that Warner Bros. and DC Studios might have something special planned following the film’s release.

8 Rehabilitating Superman’s Image

The 2010s were a rough time for Superman and his fans. At the start of the decade, Batman was DC’s top hero, and the grim dark aesthetic of The Dark Knight and the Arkham video game series bled its way into every corner of the DC Universe, specifically Superman. Writers struggled to find a way to make Superman relevant to modern audiences, so they often imagined the character as a darker figure.

The “evil” Superman troupe exploded in popularity during the 2010s thanks to the Injustice video game series and Zack Snyder’s take on Superman in Man of Steel, Batman V. Superman: Dawn of Justice, and his plans for the Justice League sequels. It appeared the only way to make Superman “cool” was to imagine him as evil. James Gunn’s Superman not only needs to relaunch Superman as a film franchise but also re-establish the character’s status as a hopeful figure for both a new generation and those who have prior knowledge of the character.

The Superman You Know and Love

Superman certainly won’t be the first piece of media to show the big blue boy scout as his traditional optimistic self. The beginning of the 2020s has seen Superman & Lois and My Adventures with Superman return the hero to the core qualities of what fans love about him, being a symbol of good who struggles with real-world problems. The bright, colorful tone that James Gunn has been teasing for his feature film seems to move away from the grim, dark aesthetic that has been the default for so long and signals the return to the ideals that audiences associate with Superman. A new generation of kids will have a Superman to look up to again.

7 Exciting Cast

Superman has assembled one of the most exciting casts for an upcoming blockbuster. David Corenswet was already a fan-favorite pick before he landed the role of Clark Kent/Superman, but now, with 2024’s Twisters under his belt, he seems like he is primed to become the next big Hollywood star. Rachel Brosnahan has earned critical acclaim for her role in The Marvelous Ms. Maisel and seems perfect for bringing to life the snappy, fast-talking reporter version of Lois Lane that has never truly been depicted on screen before. Nicholas Hoult as Lex Luthor is a great actor in an iconic role, one fans are excited to see.

All-Star Superman Gets An All-Star Cast

The fascinating thing about Superman‘s cast is how James Gunn has eschewed “star power” in favor of casting the best actors for these roles. Superman: The Movie itself was famous for popularizing the idea of casting an unknown in the hero role, filling the supporting cast with big-name stars as they did with Marlon Brando as Jor-El and Gene Hackman as Lex Luthor.

This is a formula Marvel Studios followed, like casting Anthony Hopkins and Natalie Portman when they invested in then-unknown Chris Hemsworth and Tom Hiddleston as Thor and Loki, respectively. The cast of Superman is filled with great character actors like Anthony Carrigan and Wendell Pierce, fan favorites like Nathan Fillion as Mikaela Hoover, and rising talent like Isabella Merced and Skyler Gisondo.

They might not be household names, but they are well-respected actors. Combine that with potentially big breakout stars like María Gabriela de Faría and Sara Sampaio, Gunn has clearly focused on casting the right people, knowing the star power comes from the characters.

6 James Gunn’s Track Record

With James Gunn at the helm of Superman, it feels almost like a guarantee the movie will be good. Gunn’s work on Guardians of the Galaxy took D-list heroes and made them household names. He managed to make movies that were irreverent but filled with heart and emotional depth. Then his work on The Suicide Squad and Peacemaker for DC ramped up the violence and gore but brought nuance out of lesser-known characters. It is no wonder Warner Bros. asked Gunn to be the new co-president of DC Studios.

Superman Will Be Different From Anything Gunn Has Done Before

Superman is a fascinating character for Gunn because, despite his track record, he is very much outside his wheelhouse. Gunn’s work in the superhero genre tends to focus on anti-heroes or morally complex, damaged characters. Superman is none of those things.

With Superman, he is tackling the hero often considered to be the most morally upright. Superman is still a complex character, but in a different way from the heroes Gunn typically writes. There is a thrilling prospect that Superman is so different from Gunn’s previous work in the superhero genre because while his track record shows the movie will likely be excellent, the question on everyone’s mind is how he will adjust to Superman. It is both clear-cut and uncertain, which is exciting.

5 We Don’t Know Much, and That’s Exciting

Superman is only nine months away, yet, interestingly, fans don’t know what the movie is about. Part of this is because no teaser trailer was released during Comic-Con a year before the film came out, but also, even based on the set images, it is difficult to guess what the plot will be.

When Superman Returns went into development, fans knew that it was a sequel to Superman: The Movie and Superman II, while Man of Steel was clearly going to retell the origin story with General Zod as the villain. Superman‘s plot remains a mystery. Is Lex Luthor the main villain? If so, what was that giant sphere that attacked Metropolis in that first-look photo? Why are there other Justice League members involved? All of these questions remain unanswered, and that is exciting.

Don’t Spoil It

A common criticism of modern Hollywood is how audiences know too much about a movie going in. Jurassic World: Rebirth‘splot synopsis is already available, and that opens a week before Superman. For most superhero movies, audiences have a general idea of what to expect due to it being an origin story or who the villain is. That’s not the case here.

4 The Kick-Off of the DCU

While James Gunn’s DCU will get a soft launch with Creature Commandos, Superman will be the true start of his new shared universe plan. With news that Peacemaker Season 2 will debut one month after Superman opens in theaters, 2025 will see the birth of a new cinematic universe. This puts a lot of expectations on Superman, but this is fitting for the character as he has often been a trendsetter. Superman: The Movie was the first big-budget superhero movie back in 1978, kicking off the genre the same way that Superman’s debut in the comics ushered in the age of the superhero. Meanwhile, Man of Steel kicked off the DCEU back in 2013, which sadly never lived up to its potential.

DCU Begins

While some moviegoers might tire of the concept of an interconnected universe, one can’t help but be curious about a new starting point. Superman is unique as it will need to stand apart from the DCEU that came before it and also the Marvel Cinematic Universe, which is still the gold standard on which all other cinematic universes are judged.

For nearly two decades, DC has been trailing behind Marvel Studios at the movies, but Superman‘s arrival could offer a shift in the dynamic. While audiences might start to become weighed down by years of continuity and stories within the MCU, Superman and the DCU will offer a new starting point for new and old fans to jump in.

3 A Superman Movie That Embraces the DC Universe

One thing that separates Superman from every other film before it is how tied the DC Universe is from the beginning. The Christopher Reeve films and Brandon Routh’s Superman Returns focused solely on the characters from Superman comics. While Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice expanded the scope, the film put much more emphasis on Batman, and apart from Batman, Alfred, and Wonder Woman, the core cast was still Superman’s supporting characters.

On the other hand, Superman is looking to capture the feeling of reading a DC Comic. Superman is still the focus, but it will also acknowledge the wider DC Universe, including representatives from the Hawk family of characters, a Green Lantern, and hints at the Justice League.

A World Unlike Any Other

Based on set photos and casting, Superman is going to drop audiences into an alternate reality closer to sci-fi or fantasy than the grounded world of Iron Man back when the Marvel Cinematic Universe began. The MCU grew more fantastical with each entry, to the point that now there are sorcerers, talking raccoons, and interdimensional travel, but that took time. Superman is going all in at the beginning, bringing audiences into a fantastical world filled with potential and offering glimpses of this rich universe and what it has to offer.

2 A Superman Movie That Is Not Afraid of Silver Age Inspiration

Despite multiple live-action films featuring Superman, the movies have only scratched the surface of the character’s rich lore. Due to much of Superman’s most iconic lore being some of the more fantastical, often silly comic book elements debuting during the Silver Age of Comics seen in the early 1950s until the late 1960s, the movies have largely ignored them to keep Superman grounded. Even much of Superman’s supporting cast at the Daily Planet has been overlooked. 2025’s

Superman looks to feature comic book staples like Cat Grant, Ron Troupe, and Steve Lombard, as well as iconic elements like Krypto and seemingly Supergirl.

Superman Will Be Fantastical

One only needs to look at the Guardians of the Galaxy movies, The Suicide Squad, and Peacemaker, to see that James Gunn certainly is not afraid to embrace the bright, colorful aesthetics of the comic books and some elements other filmmakers would consider silly. He fully embraces characters like Starro the Conqueror or Rocket Raccoon and makes general audiences accept them the way comic book fans have for years.

Gunn is making a Superman movie that isn’t ashamed of the comics and, in fact, has cited All-Star Superman as a major inspiration for the film. All-Star Superman is often regarded as one of the greatest Superman comics of all time, and part of that is how it embraces the character’s rich Silver Age history to tell a truly timeless and definitive tale about the Man of Steel. Superman has such a unique corner of the DC Universe that has often been ignored on film or parred down on television, and that might be why audiences have had a hard time connecting with him.

1 The World Needs Superman Now More Than Ever

It is no secret that the world is a rough place right now, and more often than not, the world needs Superman. When Superman burst onto the pages of DC Comics in April 1938, America was in the midst of the Great Depression. Superman’s earliest adventures did not have him fighting supervillains. Instead, he was a crusader for the common person who fought crooked landlords, men who were abusing their wives, and employers who exploited their workers. He was the original social justice warrior, fighting for a better tomorrow.

In the years since, he has become a symbol of hope and moral certainty for generations, a paragon of good who will always do the right thing. The key to making Superman relevant again might be to bring the character back to his roots as a champion of all people.

Holding Out for a Hero

Superman‘s popularity rises again amid great social, political, and economic uncertainty. There is no doubt why the character was at his most popular during the Great Depression and World War II or when Superman: The Movie opened up, and the American people were still dealing with the end of the Vietnam War and the Watergate Scandal. While the 2000s and 2010s War on Terror saw audiences gravitate towards an anti-hero like Batman, Superman is arriving at a particularly interesting point.

With global conflicts and the rising cost of living combined with the fear millions of Americans have in the upcoming President’s plans that could roll back numerous services and rights for LGBTQ+ individuals and people of color, there is a hopeless feeling in the air. Superman is a fictional character; these problems aren’t just going to go away because of a movie. Yet Superman‘s release in 2025 likely will tap into the cultural zeitgeist the same way Wonder Woman did in 2017 or Black Panther in 2018. Superman might not be real, but the hope and good he inspires can be real and something the world needs more of.