It’s a Bird, It’s a Plane, It’s (Everything We Know About James Gunn’s) Superman

James Gunn is making yet another superhero movie, and he’s found his Pa Kent. Per Deadline, Pruitt Taylor Vince will play Clark Kent’s father on Earth, Jonathan Kent. David Corenswet and Rachel Brosnahan will report to work as Clark Kent and Lois Lane at The Daily Planet, headed by editor-in-chief Perry White (The Wire’s Wendell Pierce). They’ll likely run into the Dust Bowl-esque Skyler Gisondo, who is playing boyish cub photographer Jimmy Olsen. The addition of the burdened-but-beautiful Gisondo to Gunn’s Superman revamp and the Daily Planet’s darkroom may unintentionally bring more memes to Metropolis; however, Gunn does come from a comedic background. He did movies like Guardians of the Galaxy, so maybe his Superman will be more of an action rom-com and less of a slow-burn superhero noir with jazz music in the background (Corenswet is a Ryan Murphy alum, after all). Here’s everything we know about the film, which was previously titled Superman: Legacy, so far.

Who’s in the cast?

David Corenswet, a double Ryan Murphy collaborator who famously played Ben Platt’s character’s boyfriend in The Politician, is Clark Kent, while Mrs. Maisel herself steps into Lois Lane’s shoes, per The Hollywood Reporter. The casting decision is quite interesting given their vibes … I mean, Superman has earth-shattering, I-can-move-mountains energy, so Corenswet totally has the challenge of summoning an immense amount of muscly gravitas ahead of him that he can’t mine from a kitschy Ryan Murphy production or Pearl. Brosnahan won out over Sex Education’s Emma Mackey and Bridgerton’s Phoebe Dynevor to play Daily Planet journalist Lois Lane. Corenswet beat The Great’s Nicholas Hoult and Grantchester’s Tom Brittney for the role, making him the fourth Superman after Christopher Reeve, Brandon Routh, and Henry Cavill — a part that will also serve as his first leading role. Serious stuff (for a possibly unserious film?).

Metropolis is filling up with heroes and villians, per THR. Besides Superman, the film will star Gunn mainstay Nathan Fillion as hothead Green Lantern Guy Gardner. Barry’s Anthony Corrigan will play true weirdo Metamorpho, Isabela Merced will take up Hawkgirl’s mace, and Edi Gathegi will play Mister Terrific. Hoult made his way back into the picture as the villainous Lex Luthor. His assistant, Eve Teschmacher, joins him for some sexy but evil moves as Portuguese model Sara Sampaio has been cast.

Of course, Clark Kent has a life too, which means there are plenty of family, friends, and co-workers to cast. Per THR, Wendell Pierce will take on the role of the Daily Planet’s big boss, Perry White, while Skyler Gisondo will play photographer Jimmy Olsen. Meanwhile, Pruitt Taylor Vince will play Pa Kent (Clark Kent’s dad on Earth, Jonathan Kent). Ma will be played by Neva Howell.

Any fun Easter eggs or cameos?

Variety reports that Will Reeve, the youngest son of Christopher Reeve, will appear in the film. Christopher Reeve was CGI inserted into The Flash in 2023, which fans were not happy about. This inclusion feels much more well-considered. Reeve will be playing a TV reporter, which is his mild-mannered day job.

And it wouldn’t be a James Gunn joint if Sean Gunn wasn’t involved somehow. Per Deadline, Sean will be playing Maxwell Lord, who Pedro Pascal previously portrayed in Wonder Woman: 1984. In comics, Lord was a tech-savvy bud of the Justice League before turning heel. Pap shots of filming revealed that Lord will be sponsoring both Guy Gardner and Hawkgirl’s hero careers.

When does it come out?

The film is scheduled to fly into theaters on July 11, 2025, which also happens to be Gunn’s late father’s birthday. “He didn’t understand me as a kid, but he supported my love of comics and my love of film,” Gunn said, “and I wouldn’t be making this movie now without him.”

This post has been updated.