Superman often saves the world from villains, but in his latest film version, the hero has another important mission—to breathe new life into the stalled movie franchise universe, AFP reports.

The new film by James Gunn, Superman, which hit theaters this week, is conceived as a reboot of the so-called DC Universe—a series of superhero movies that also includes Wonder Woman and Batman.

In recent years, the efforts of Warner Bros. and DC Studios have been overshadowed by the spectacular success of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, backed by Disney—the home of Iron Man, Thor, Black Panther, and the Fantastic Four, which is also expecting its own revival this month.

“Warner Bros. is investing a lot of energy and resources to steer and refresh DC Studios, and this will be the major title that must justify those expectations,” commented analyst David A. Gross from Franchise Entertainment Research.

The responsibility falls on the shoulders of James Gunn—a screenwriter and director praised by genre fans for Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy.

The production of the film has already faced some challenges—including criticism from far-right circles over Gunn’s comments regarding Superman’s immigrant nature, as well as skepticism from fans of the previous Superman films directed by Zack Snyder.

Gunn himself is unfazed by the expectations for the film’s financial success. “Is there a stake? Yes, but it’s not as big as people think,” he shared with GQ magazine. “There are numbers floating around saying the film will only be successful if it makes 700 million dollars, but that is total and absolute nonsense.”

The excitement around the film, however, is real—even the White House published a poster with a photomontage depicting President Donald Trump as Superman, with the caption: “SYMBOL OF HOPE. TRUTH. JUSTICE. THE AMERICAN WAY. SUPERMAN TRUMP.”

“A neglected genre”

Warner Bros. hopes the new DC Universe can catch up to Marvel, which—after years of success with the Avengers series—has recently seen weaker results with Thunderbolts and Captain America: Brave New World.

According to Gross, interest in superhero films peaked before the Covid-19 pandemic, and since then, revenues and audience enthusiasm have declined. “The genre has really weakened,” he noted. Nevertheless, the analyst pointed out that early reviews for Superman are “very good.”

The lead role is played by rising star David Corenswet as the new Superman/Clark Kent, while Rachel Brosnahan (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel) plays his love interest Lois Lane. Nicholas Hoult appears as arch-villain Lex Luthor.

The story follows how the Man of Steel comes to terms with his alien origins and finds his place among humans. The cast also features other characters from DC Comics, such as the Peacemaker Green Lantern (Nathan Fillion), who will get his own film, and the mace-wielding Hawkgirl.

Gross emphasized that July is “the strongest month for movie screenings,” with projections showing over 100 million dollars in revenue for the opening weekend in North America.

“The story of America”

DC Studios, however, must overcome its reputation as a studio producing films of inconsistent quality that often fail to impress audiences.

The previous wave of films from the DC Extended Universe included the well-liked Wonder Woman (2017) with Gal Gadot, but also failures like Shazam! Fury of the Gods (2023) and the weak performance of the Aquaman sequel starring Jason Momoa.

“The results were mixed, and the studio was spending a lot of money on new spin-offs that failed to gain traction,” Gross explained, citing The Suicide Squad (2021)—also directed by Gunn—as an example.

The last Superman films starring Henry Cavill and directed by Zack Snyder enjoyed relative success, while Justice League—DC’s attempt to replicate the Avengers effect—turned out to be a major financial flop.

Fans of Snyder are spreading negative comments about the new Superman, expressing hope that the reboot will fail out of loyalty to the older films.

Criticism also intensified after far-right commentators reacted against portraying Superman as an immigrant, accusing the film of being “too progressive.”

Gunn responded to the attacks in an interview with The Times: “Superman is the story of America—about people who come from elsewhere and build the country.” He added: “I’m telling a story about someone who is uniquely good, and that’s exactly what we need right now.”

In the end, it will soon become clear whether Gunn’s vision and Corenswet’s performance will prove to be the superpower that DC Studios needs—or will become its Kryptonite. |BGNES