Movies

New ‘Superman’ Video Reveals New DC Heroes

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Today marks Superman Day, commemorating the initial release of Action Comics on April 18, 1938. In celebration, a fresh promo video has emerged for director and screenwriter James Gunn’s forthcoming Superman movie this summer.

Instead of being a traditional movie trailer, this video functions more like a behind-the-scenes look at the production process. It features director James Gunn working alongside actors David Corenswet as Superman, Rachel Brosnahan as Lois Lane, and Nicholas Hoult as Lex Luthor, among others. The footage also includes glimpses of various DC Comics characters who appear in the film, such as Isabela Merced’s Hawkgirl and Anthony Carrigan’s Metamorpho, who bears a striking resemblance to his comic book counterpart. However, it seems strange that he appears to be wearing gym shorts instead of the usual attire for Metamorpho, which consists of black briefs with a non-functional belt bearing the letter “M.

Additionally, you’ll find interviews with various cast members, offering a closer look at some of the realistic set pieces. Here’s hoping I can give a friendly high-five to one of those Fortress of Solitude robots!

You can watch the Superman Day Superman featurette below:

Here is the new Superman’s official synopsis:

This summer, get ready for ‘Superman,’ the initial big-screen release from DC Studios, to fly into cinemas worldwide. Directed by James Gunn, this new take on the classic superhero within the DC universe combines grand action, humor, and emotion. The Superman portrayed in this film is motivated by compassion and a deep trust in humanity’s goodness.

James Gunn’s Superman is set to open in theaters on July 11.

The Biggest DC Movie Bombs

1. Black Adam

Initial Reported Budget: $260 million
Total Earnings at Box Office: $393 million
Earning almost $400 million against an initial budget of $260 million may not seem terrible, but it’s important to note that the production costs don’t include Warner Bros.’ significant marketing expenses for ‘Black Adam’, which can reach hundreds of millions of dollars for big-scale productions. The film’s success or failure was a subject of debate in various publications, with some suggesting ‘Black Adam’ could potentially cost Warner Bros. around $100 million, while others argued it would yield a $50 million profit. Despite the varying estimates, it’s clear that the film did not meet expectations to the extent that a sequel can be guaranteed based on its performance.

2. The Flash

In the months following the release of Black Adam, The Flash hit the screens with comparable financial figures – an astronomical budget and a less-than-satisfactory box office earnings. Despite numerous appearances by characters from the extensive DC film and television universe, as well as the hype that it would pave the way for a new DC Universe, this underwhelming performance seems to have derailed another potential franchise.

After Black Adam, The Flash came out with a big budget but less money earned at the box office. Even though it had many characters from the long history of DC movies and TV shows, and was supposed to set up a new DC Universe, it didn’t do well enough to start another series.

3. Green Lantern

Title Budget: $200 million

Movie Earnings at Box Office: $220 million

For the past 12 years, “Green Lantern” has been mostly associated with flops at the box office. Its lead actor, Ryan Reynolds, even pokes fun at it in his movies such as the “Deadpool” series. This isn’t usually a good indication of success.

4. Shazam! Fury of the Gods

Projected Budget: $125 million
Total Earnings: $133 million
This time around, Fury of the Gods didn’t perform as well as the original Shazam! did financially. Interestingly, it had a larger budget, based on online reports. Consequently, if past performance is any indication, you might not see Shazam making a comeback in the new DC Universe overseen by James Gunn and Peter Safran.

5. Catwoman

In contrast to creating another film featuring Michelle Pfeiffer’s Catwoman from “Batman Returns”, Warner Bros. opted for a standalone movie about an entirely new cat-themed heroine they developed, portrayed by Halle Berry. Unfortunately, this decision led to poor reviews and low box office earnings. Meow.

6. Supergirl

In the late 1970s and early 1980s, the Superman movie franchise played a significant role in establishing comic-book movies as a genre. However, its box office performance began to decline rapidly. By the time the first spinoff, Supergirl (released in 1984), was made, it seemed that the series had already reached its end. Despite making nearly $15 million at the box office, this total wasn’t impressive for a superhero film. As a result, Supergirl didn’t receive any sequels or further big-screen appearances – until 2023’s The Flash.

7. Jonah Hex

Presented Budget: $47 million
Total Earnings at Box Office: $11 million

This DC film adaptation seems to have been plagued with misfortune. The original directors left prior to production, only to be followed by their replacement during a series of extensive reshoots. Remarkably, this occurred while Josh Brolin was filming an astounding 66 pages of script in mere days – quite impressive given that the final cut was just 80 minutes long.

The original budget for this DC adaptation was $47 million and it earned $11 million at the box office. The production faced numerous challenges, with the original directors leaving before filming began, followed by their replacement during an extensive reshoot phase. Actor Josh Brolin filmed 66 pages of script in a short span of time for this film that was only 80 minutes long.)

8. Batman: Mask of the Phantasm

Earnings Comparison: Film Budget vs. Box Office Gross

Here’s an interesting observation to ponder if you ever question the correlation between a film’s box-office success and its quality. Take, for instance, the movie “Batman: Mask of the Phantasm”. Many Batman enthusiasts consider it one of the best Batman films out there, placing it second on ScreenCrush’s own Batman film ranking. However, despite its critical acclaim, it only managed to gross about $5.6 million at the box office, a stark contrast to some less-appreciated DC movies that have raked in significantly more.

It is said that Warner Bros. made a last-minute decision to release “Phantasm” in theaters instead of on home video. Whether this was the reason or not, it’s important to note that the film was essentially a big-screen adaptation of a TV series that viewers could enjoy for free five times a week at home.

9. Steel

25 years ago, the budget for the movie “Steel,” starring Shaquille O’Neal, was significantly lower at just under $20 million. Thankfully, this was beneficial as the film only managed to earn less than 10% of its production cost in box office sales. Comparatively, both “Steel” and “Batman & Robin,” released in 1997, are considered some of the lowest points in superhero movie history due to their poor box office performance.

In 1997, the superhero film “Steel” starring Shaquille O’Neal had a production budget of less than $20 million. Unfortunately, despite this relatively low cost, the movie only grossed a meager fraction – less than 10% – in theaters compared to its budget. When paired with another disappointing superhero film from that year, “Batman & Robin,” 1997 is often regarded as a low point in the history of superhero cinema.

10. The Return of Swamp Thing

The sequel to Wes Craven’s Swamp Thing took seven years to materialize and, when it finally did, it had morphed from a gritty horror film into a cheesy spectacle. The end product, “Return of Swamp Thing,” managed to earn only about a quarter of a million dollars at the box office. Since then, Swamp Thing has appeared on TV shows but hasn’t returned to theaters again.

In this version, I tried to maintain the original tone and structure while using simpler language and making it more conversational.

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2025-04-18 20:25

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