James Gunn's Superman movie: release date, trailer, confirmed cast, plot synopsis, and more news on the first DCU Chapter One film

Happy Superman release year, everyone! The legendary DC superhero is set to take flight in theaters once more on July 11, so there's no time like the present to learn more about one of 2025's most exciting new movies.

In this guide, I've rounded up the biggest news and rumors about the Man of Steel's return. That includes the DC Cinematic Universe (DCU) film's first trailer, confirmed cast, story specifics, and how it might impact and/or set up future DCU Chapter One projects. Potential cast and plot spoilers follow, so proceed with caution if you're avoiding them ahead of release.

Superman release date

Superman will fly onto a screen near you on July 11. Its official launch date was revealed in January 2023 when Gunn confirmed the DCU Chapter One's full movie and TV show line-up.

With filming wrapping last July, its post-production phase is in full swing. And, while its final cut hasn't been finalized, Gunn told ComicBook.com that its current runtime is around two and a half hours.

Superman trailer

Superman | Official Teaser Trailer - YouTube

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Superman's first trailer made its debut in December 2024 and, while it teased plenty, the teaser's inclusion of Krypto the Superdog was the one thing I obsessed over for days after its unveiling.

The arrival of Superman's official teaser wasn't unexpected. Indeed, Gunn confirmed Superman's first footage would arrive on the previously mentioned date three days before its release. We were also treated to a 30-second teaser for Superman that made us believe that a man could really fly before it was, too.

Superman cast: confirmed and rumored

Potential spoilers follow for 2025's Superman film.

Here's the lengthy confirmed cast list for Superman so far:

• David Corenswet as Clark Kent/Superman
• Rachel Brosnahan as Lois Lane
• Nicholas Hoult as Lex Luthor
• Nathan Fillion as Guy Gardner/Green Lantern
• Isabela Merced as Hawkgirl
• Edi Gathegi as Michael Holt/Mister Terrific
• Anthony Carrigan as Rex Mason/Metamorpho
• Maria Gabriela de Faria as Angela Spica/The Engineer
• Sara Sampaio as Eve Teschmacher
• Pruitt Taylor Vince as Jonatan 'Pa' Kent
• Neva Howell as Martha 'Ma' Kent
• Sean Gunn as Maxwell Lord
• Skyler Gisondo as Jimmy Olsen
• Wendell Pierce as Perry White
• Beck Bennett as Steve Lombard
• Mikaela Hoover as Cat Grant
• Christopher McDonald as Ron Troupe
• Frank Grillo as Rick Flag Sr.
• Terence Rosemore as Otis

Corenswet is the latest actor tasked with bringing Clark Kent/Krypton's most famous son to life in a live-action project. Brosnahan will play Kent's perpetual love interest and fellow Daily Planet reporter Lois Lane.

Hoult, who reportedly accepted the role of Lex Luthor in November 2023 before his official casting was announced days later, will play Luthor, one of Superman's most iconic adversaries. Despite Superman's first-look image teasing the potential appearance of another big villain, Gunn confirmed (via Threads) that Luthor will be the film's Big Bad. He'll be joined on antagonistic duties by Teschmacher (Sampaio), aka Luthor's assistant and love interest in the comics, and a henchman named Otis (Rosemore).

Pierce has reportedly been cast as Perry White, the Daily Planet's tough but fair editor-in-chief. Gisondo is on board as Jimmy Olsen, the Daily Planet's photographer and friend to Kent and Lane. Bennett, Hoover, and McDonald round out the Daily Planet's roster as self-serving sports reporter Lombard, gossip columnist Grant, and general journalist Troupe respectively.

Ordinarily a Wonder Woman villain, Maxwell Lord will also make a brief appearance. Sean Gunn, James' brother and frequent collaborator playing him, but he won't be based on previous live-action iterations of the character (per The Wrap). Lastly on the non-superhero front, Vince and Howell will play Clarke's surrogate parents Jonathan and Martha Kent.

As for other superheroes who'll appear in one of the DCU Chapter One's most exciting movies, leaked images from an outdoors set showed us costumed versions of Corenswet's Man of Steel and Gathegi's Mister Terrific. The latter portrays this wealthy scientist-turned-superhero who uses floating orbs – known as T-spheres – to imbue himself with superhuman abilities.

Last July, more leaked photographs revealed first looks at Hawkgirl and Guy Gardner/Green Lantern, who'll be played by Merced and Fillion. Hawkgirl is a Justice League of America member who's a near-identical character to Black Adam's Hawkman. She can fly, uses various weapons, and comes equipped with the usual superhuman abilities. Gunn has also confirmed (via Threads) that her wings will be organic, rather than mechanical. Gardner is one of many DC characters to assume the Green Lantern alias – individuals bestowed with a green ring that grants various abilities to its wielder.

Elsewhere, Carrigan is playing Metamorpho, an archaeologist who can alter his body's atoms to change shape and consistency. De Faria is playing Spica/The Engineer, a member of The Authority. This DC Comics super team – one unafraid to resort to extreme measures to save the day – is getting a standalone movie, too, so expect Superman to set up some story strands for The Authority. Another Superman movie leak suggested Mr. Terrific would encounter Superman's loyal canine friend in Krypto the Superdog, whose appearance has since been confirmed by the movie's first trailer.

Superman will feature other heroes/anti-heroes, too. More leaked snaps confirmed Grillo's Flag Sr., who was part of Creature Commandos season 1, will feature. Another villain could join Luthor on antagonistic duties, too, with some eagle-eyed viewers thinking either Ultraman or Bizarro is the individual escorting a handcuffed Supes in the video above.

As for other potential inclusions, Supergirl, who'll be played by Milly Alcock in the DCU, is rumored to make a brief cameo. She was one of two finalists Gunn was considering for Supergirl, aka Kara Zor-El, before her casting was confirmed in January 2024. However, Gunn wrote (via Thread) that Supergirl isn't in Superman, so this rumor might not be true.

One individual who is confirmed to cameo is none other than Will Reeve, the son of former Superman star Christopher Reeve, with DCU Film News claiming he'll play a reporter. Finally, Alan Tudyk, who voiced Doctor Phosphorus and Clayface in Creature Commandos, is reportedly involved (so says Deadline, anyway). Could be play a live-action version of one of these characters?

Superman story synopsis and rumors

Here's Superman's plot synopsis: "James Gunn takes on the original superhero in the newly imagined DC universe with a singular blend of epic action, humor and heart, delivering a Superman who’s driven by compassion and an inherent belief in the goodness of humankind."

That's not much to go on, but we know it won't be another film that tells the Man of Tomorrow's origins story. Via Threads, Gunn said it'll begin with Kal-El/Clark Kent already living on Earth, so we won't have to sit through another version of him adopting his superhero alias.

When Gunn teased the DC superhero's new suit last March, it all but confirmed that this film will be influenced by 'Kingdom Come'. A 1996 Elseworlds miniseries, Mark Waid and Alex Ross' four-issue run showed a world-weary Kent come out of retirement (alongside other Justice League members) to put a bunch of new, morally complex, and violent superheroes in their place.

Superman won't be a direct adaptation of these comics. In 'Kingdom Come', Kent is much older than Corenswet's iteration, who's reportedly in his mid-20s. Gunn's movie isn't expected to see Supes battle his fellow metahumans, either. Some fans, though, think we'll get a reverse-engineered version of that comic book story, with Corenswet's youthful and enthusiastic superpowered individual potentially helping some of Earth's world-weary superhumans rediscover their heroism.

Superman Soundtrack (2025) | Theme from Superman (Trailer Version) - John Murphy | WaterTower Music - YouTube

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Before Kent potentially embarks on a quest to re-energize his fellow heroes' commitment to protecting Earth, he'll need to deal with his own demons – chief among those being his sense of isolation.

To that end, Kent will spend time at his iconic Fortress of Solitude, with Norwegian outlet vg.no carried quotes from Gunn saying the movie will show Kent "fleeing" to his Arctic base at some point, which the trailer also teased. His personal arc will center on feelings of alienation, too, before he finds the courage to move past his trauma and sense of being an outcast – again, the first trailer plays this up, as there are various shots of humanity not taking too kindly to Supes' presence.

Superman will also focus on Clark being employed as a roving Daily Planet reporter – Metropolis' news outlet – which is where he works alongside Lois Lane and company. Despite what the teaser showed, we're unsure how much of Kent's civilian life we'll actually see.

Fans can also expect other Superman comics, themes, and imagery to be woven into the narrative. According to The Direct's David Thompson, Corenswet said it'll cherry pick elements from Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale's 'Superman: For All Seasons' miniseries, and Grant Morrison, Frank Quitely, and Jamie Grant's 'All-Star Superman' comics. Phillip Kennedy Johnson's 'Superman: The Warworld Saga', Tom King's 'Superman: Up In The Sky', and the character's Golden Age comics are all big influences, too (per Gunn on Threads). Richard Donner's Christopher Reeve-starring Superman movies, particularly the first two, have also impacted its development, as evidenced by composer John Murphy's retooling that film series' instantly recognizable musical theme.

Where to watch every Superman movie to date

Want to know where to stream every live-action Superman movie (or films that he features in) to date? Read on to see where you can watch them:

• Superman (1978) – Max (US), Sky/Now TV (UK), iView (Australia)
• Superman II (1981) – Max (US), Sky/Now TV (UK), iView (Australia)
• Superman III (1983) – Max (US), Sky/Now TV (UK), iView (Australia)
• Superman IV: The Quest For Peace (1987) – Max (US), Sky/Now TV (UK), iView (Australia)
• Superman Returns (2006) – Max (US), Sky/Now TV (UK), only available to rent or buy (Australia)
• Man of Steel (2013) – Max (US), Sky/Now TV (UK), Netflix/Binge (Australia)
• Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016) – Max (UK), only available to rent or buy (UK), Netflix/Binge (Australia)
• Justice League (2017) – Max/TNT (US), Sky/Now TV (UK), Netflix/Binge (Australia)
• Zack Snyder's Justice League (2021) – Max (US), only available to rent or buy (UK), Foxtel (Australia)

How will Superman set up other DCU movies and TV shows?

We don't know how Superman's ending will set up other DCU projects, but it'll act as a jumping-off point for four of them: Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow, The Authority, Lanterns, and Peacemaker season 2.

The first of those, whose first image teased a location that'll be familiar to DC comic book fans, is inspired by Tom King's literary series of the same name. In November 2023, a bunch of new Supergirl movie updates were revealed, including that Ana Nogueira is penning its script and Krypto would appear. If Kara shows up in Superman, her cameo may lay the foundations for her first standalone film since 1984's Supergirl, which starred Helen Slater.

As for The Authority, very little is known about it. De Faria's The Engineer should show up, so she'll be the connective tissue between her team's first big-screen team-up and Superman. Matthew Vaughn has tentatively been linked as its director.

On the TV front, Lanterns, an HBO series that's been described as a superhero version of True Detective, may pick up plot threads from Superman. Its chief creative team was revealed in May 2024, with King, Damon Lindelof, and Chris Mundy leading the charge. Last October, Aaron Pierre and Kyle Chandler were confirmed as its leads in John Stewart and Hal Jordan. Gunn suggested (via Threads) that Fillion's Gardner will also appear, so it's plausible Superman will act as a precursor to this show.

Lastly, Peacemaker's sophomore season includes Grillo's Flag Sr. as a major character. Given he'll show up in Supes' latest feature film first, it'll inform what happens in that TV show, as Gunn confirmed to ComicBook.com.

For more DC-based coverage, find out how to watch the DC movies in order. Alternatively, see which DCEU films made it onto our best Max movies list, or learn more about Creature Commandos season 2 and/or The Batman Part II, the latter of which sits independent of the DCU.