Key Takeaways From Entertainment Weekly’s Exclusive Article On James Gunn’s ‘Superman’

With the anticipation for the ‘Superman’ film at an all time high, and websites crashing within hours of ticket pre-orders , Entertainment Weekly’s article ‘Superman‘ lights the way: How Hollywood’s new Man of Steel shepherds the DC universe of tomorrow (exclusive), written by Nick Romano, has treated the fans and casual readers alike with a hefty dose of behind the scenes info for the Man of Tomorrow’s return to the silver screen. We not only get conversations with James Gunn, David Corenswet, Rachel Broshahan, and Nicholas Hoult, but we also get words from Edi Gathegi (Mr. Terrific) , Anthony Carrigan (Metamorpho) , Isabela Merced (Hawkgirl), Nathan Fillion (Guy Gardner) , Sara Sampaio (Eve Taschmacher)  and  Maria Gabriela de Faria (The Engineer). 

Right from the jump, we are greeted with a hilarious video of the entire cast playing an absurdly one-sided game of tug of war with  the playful but powerful pup, Krypto. A perfect intro that not only shows the cast and directors fun dynamic, but gives readers an unexpected surprise that will no doubt lighten their mood. 

David Corenswet, who’ll be filling the red boots as the title character, mentions how many people have compared him to a previous man of steel. “I’ve also got a lot of physical comparisons to Tom Welling, who played Superman and Clark Kent on Smallville,” Corenswet admits. “When I was growing up, he was the Superman who was on TV every week  I think, to one extent or another, all of the Superman actors…There’s some Venn diagram of our physical characteristics, which makes sense for a superhero who is classically the one who doesn’t wear a mask”. Speaking of looks, we get a beautifully shot black and white photo of David in costume, cape flapping and all. 

It’s impossible not to think of Christopher Reeve’s Superman while viewing the trailers as all the trailers and tv spots that we’ve seen so far, have had a rock n’ roll re-energized cover of the iconic John Williams theme. David Corenswet’s touches on how Reeve’s time in the trunks helped him navigate how to play the character in a believable way and addressing the challenges of entering that type of role as an actor. “”I’ve listened to Christopher Reeve talk about how he felt going from theater and classical training to wearing tights on screen,” he says. “It’s harder in some ways to play Superman and then to do a great play or a dramatic film, because as an actor, you feel like the seriousness of the work somehow supports you. It allows the whole thing to feel more grounded. There is a unique challenge to playing a guy who wears his underwear on the outside and can fly. I think I had the great fortune of getting a little bit of both. I was definitely on team trunks-on-the-outside for this iteration of Superman, but I certainly felt James took the work very seriously.”

One of the most memorable sequences from the first official trailer, was the scene of Clark unwittingly walking into the moral minefield of questions when being interviewed by his girlfriend/rival journalist, Lois Lane.  The slow build up of the cutesy couple quickly growing defensive towards each other was a major highlight for fans, and has already started countless conversations on how that all went down. Rachel Broshahan, the actor portraying Lois, gives a breakdown on the context of where they are in their relationship, saying “”It’s a combination of them both clicking into, in some ways, their super alter egos,” she explains, “but that’s also juxtaposed with their great love for each other… I don’t know if she would call it that quite yet, but they care about each other. When you start doing an interview, this is Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Lois Lane, and he’s Superman, who’s also the subject of this interview. They both feel very strongly about the stance that they’re taking in that scene. It’s one of the things that I love about their love story. While they have totally opposite worldviews, they complete each other, and they kind of need each other.” She continues “This isn’t like the interview in the Donner movie where Lois doesn’t know that he’s Clark,” Corenswet says, referring to a scene from the Reeve-led classic with Margot Kidder. “Lois knows everything about him, so he’s in a very vulnerable position. He’s madly in love with this woman and desperately wants her to understand him and appreciate him and love him back.”

Clark Kent is a man from two worlds. He’s an immigrant from a world and culture that no longer exists, and because of this, he has many layers to his personality, and not only does he have to wrestle with his extraterrestrial heritage, but also maintain a social life  Corenswet explains some of the intricacies of his character saying “ “I had the same ideas about Superman, that he’s quite reserved and has ultimate control over his emotions and his reactions to things,” Corenswet says. “I was very excited when James said all of that is true about Superman, but we get to meet him in this moment where those things are least true. That’s where he’s a little bit of Superman, he’s a little bit of Clark — because the only other person in the room knows who he is and holds all the cards.” The complexity doesn’t end there however.  “We also had this third character, of who Clark is when he’s in a room with somebody who knows both sides of him. He’s not really playing the character of Superman, but he’s also not really playing the role of Clark, either. It’s a personality that only comes out with his parents [Pruitt Taylor Vince and Neva Howell play Jonathan and Martha Kent and with Lois, once she really gets to know everything about him.” 

Speaking of Superman, below is a photo of him, looking up from where I can only assume is the pocket dimension Lex uses as a junk drawer for those he may view as a threat. A nice little touch you may have noticed in the latest trailer, is that each time big blue uses his heat vision, there seems to be an irritation around the eyes. Makes one think of how a gun may overheat after multiple rounds of fire, making for a nice touch of realism in an otherwise outlandish world. 

Lois Lane’s as a character has persisted for just as long as the Man of Steel, first appearing in 1938’s Issue #1 of Action Comics. And ever since that first issue, she’s always gone above and beyond to find the truth, no matter the odds. Back even before technicolor, Lo was getting into all sorts of wild situations, whether it was confronting sleazy, shady businessmen or distracting a destructive dino. With nearly a hundred years worth of longboxes of appearances in the comic books and numerous live action appearances, it can be hard for a newly casted actor to bear the weight of such an iconic character. Brosnahan, however, much like Lois herself, found her in. Brosnahan saw the script as “a road map,” but then she went off to interview journalists covering different fields to get more specifics. She spoke to them a lot about vices. In the source material, Lois is historically a smoker, which the team chose not to depict in this film. This apartment scene offers more clues to what the actress discovered instead. Keen eyes will note an abundance of instant ramen noodles, nutrition bars, and candy strewn about the space. 

“I wanted her apartment to be filled with grab-and-go snacks,” Brosnahan says. “I think she’s somebody who’s always so preoccupied with work that I’m not sure she ever sits down and eats a full meal.” Another tip she picked up from real-world press: pens. Lois always has multiple pens on her in case one should fail in her moment of diligent note-taking.” It wasn’t a conscious choice, but this Lois became a pen chewer,” she says. “There’s probably an unfortunate amount of pen-chewing in this movie.” 

James Gunn and co have been very vocal about Grant Morrison’s iconic run on the character “All-Star Superman” being a massive influence on their film, and Hoult touches on how one specific panel from that run gave him the insight he needed. Hoult points to a specific panel from that arc that helped define the particular shades of his Luthor. Superman, as Clark, visits the mastermind in jail, where he’s spent all his time bulking up in the gym. “Feel that, Kent?” Luthor asks on the page. “Real muscles. Not like his…. It’s easy to be strong when you just happen to have come from the planet Krypton! This takes hard work.”

“That kind of captures, in my mind, the element of Lex,” Hoult says. “He’s worked hard and diligently for so many years for all these things, to be admired and to be adored. Then suddenly Superman’s turned up and he’s all the things that he aims to be himself in some ways, but he doesn’t have to work hard for it. So I’m like, What if this Lex is someone who is physically strong and is an alpha, or seemingly in that sense? Instantly, even in the prep phase, it was like, “I’m going to get in the gym and I’m going to be as strong as I possibly ever can be by the time we start shooting.”

The world can be a complicated and often confusing place. And while some audiences may have the bias of believing comic book films are watered down, simplistic, and rushed entertainment, James Gunn, known for his heavy subject matter in his work, is not phoning it in with the story and themes. “There are some characters that are really almost saintly, like Superman,” he elaborates. “There are some characters who are almost pretty terrible, like Lex Luthor. But I don’t think Lex is all bad, and I don’t think Superman is all good. All those people in between, the Guy Gardners and the Jimmy Olsens of the world, are even more complex in their moralities and what they think is okay.”

Nathan Fillion plays the bothersome bowl-cutted bully himself, Guy Gardner in his first live action debut (no, I’m not counting the 1997 JL film). Nathan describes what makes his GL different from the other lanterns. “I love the idea that if you have an emergency and you need a Green Lantern — there’s thousands of them out there in the galaxy — this is the last one you want,” Fillion, who’s voiced multiple animated Lanterns throughout his career, says of this iteration. “What is very true about Guy Gardner, and what James understands very well, is you don’t have to be good and pure of heart to be a Green Lantern. You just have to be fearless. You just have to have the will. And Guy Gardner thinks he can take on Superman. That’s how fearless he is. No, you can’t take on Superman, dude.” 

Another valuable member of the Justice Gang, is none other than Mr. Terrific, played by Edi Gathegi. Edi walks us through what motivates this version of the character.” He’s an atheist who believes in justice,” Gathegi describes his character. “He loses his wife, and he found meaning in knowledge. He saw that, while the universe might be cruel, intelligence, science, and innovation could make it better. He chose to become hope rather than succumbing to the despair of losing his wife.” And while the other cast members have talked in depth about what to expect from their roles in the film, Isabela Merced, who plays the high-powered helmet wearing Hawkgirl, is staying tight-lipped about her role in the film. “You don’t really get to know her that well, and I think that’s good,” Merced says. “James isn’t showing all of his cards. He’s saving a lot of that.” 

And now, to address the ten year plan in the room. With this film and Creature Commandos serving as the kicking off point for the DCU, fans have anxiously speculated over what is in store for the greater universe of Gods and Monsters. We are aware of Supergirl, Lanterns, and now a Wonder Woman film script being written as I type, but what should fans expect when it comes to the future for the Man of Tomorrow? James Gunn has the answer. Let’s start with Superman. The film hits theaters this July 11, and when asked if he’s already thinking of a sequel, Gunn replies, “What I’m working on is in some way…I mean, yes, yes, yes, yes. But is it a straight-up Superman sequel? I would not say necessarily.” A very intriguing answer that could lead down several paths. Whether that means it’s a World Finest flick with Batman and Superman, a Supergirl/Superman film, or even a Legion of Superheroes team up, the only way we’ll know for sure is if the Summer of Superman pays off. Speaking of future plans, if Superman were to explode in popularity and of course correct DC films, is there the possibility for the Justice League to unite? Gunn reminds us to hold our super-horses. “Of course, of course,” he responds. “But there is no Justice League in this world… not yet.” Is it fair to say the Justice League relates to Gunn’s larger plans for the Gods and Monsters phase of the DCU? Again, he offers a sly reply: “Sure.”

The team at Warner Bros have quite the task. After a ten year run of Snyder at the helm of DC films, those versions of the characters have become the standard in some ways with how people visualize these characters. And many other folks out there may view the character as “dated” or “irrelevant” but Gunn doubles down on the character’s significance and the film itself.  “To make a Superman movie is a lot,” Gunn says. “I think, in some ways, he can be seen as a little old-fashioned, but I think that old-fashioned is something that’s really beautiful and, in its own way, the most rebellious thing about that character.” I happen to agree. The character of Superman, from his very inception, has always been there to counter the rampant cynicism and corruption in the world, and help show us a better way forward. To remind us to look up. (Speaking of looking up, I got to see how many days till this thing comes out, I can’t take it anymore! I need it in my retinas immediately, July can’t come fast enough). 

For those interested in reading the entire article this is based on, here’s the link, either to enjoy on its own, or to see the sections I didn’t touch on. Have a super day or night!