The teaser trailer for James Gunn’s Superman was initially shown to the public more than five months ago. Additionally, a lot of the subsequent content was centered around Superman’s dog, Krypto. “What is this movie about?” was the question that fans were left to ask. “When will we be able to see more?”
When DC and Warner Bros. unveiled the complete trailer for the much-awaited July 11 movie on Wednesday, the second question was answered. Numerous new locations, characters, scenes, and even tidbits of plot are included. Only two views of Krypto are included, along with interesting locales, relationships, and introductions we love! However, we’re happy that we can now see more of what Gunn has planned for the summer.
Watch the trailer below:
The video has been watched over 85 million times on YouTube. But there’s still plenty you haven’t noticed. Let’s break it down.
1. LordTech Logo
Lane starts a voice recorder and there’s a logo for LordTech on it. LordTech is a Metropolis-based business owned and operated by Maxwell Lord. This isn’t the only time we see this (more on that later).
2. Superman Interview
The trailer’s opening segment centers on an interview between Lois Lane (Rachel Brosnahan) and Clark Kent/Superman (David Corenswet) over Clark’s involvement in a foreign conflict. Kent yells, “People were going to die,” in the end. This is notable for several things.
First, it confirms that Lois knows Kent is Superman. This was long suspected but a departure from the comics. In the comics, Lois Lane was oblivious to knowing his identity. This is one of the more controversial elements of their relationship and it’s been taken out. Second, it shows that she knows his identity before the foreign battle takes place presumably early in the film. Third, it’s yet another callback to the first movie when Lois (Margot Kidder) interviews Superman.
In the interview, Lois questions Clark—or, more accurately, Superman—about whether he stopped a war and about his unlawful entry into another nation. To demonstrate that the two will not be flawless throughout the movie, Clark asks Lois whether this is how she will feel about it. Given that many people criticize Superman for having a flawless character anyhow, this is very refreshing. It’s good to see that he and Lois behave like a couple when their relationship is the main focus, particularly when it comes to Lois’ work.
3. Superman’s Voice
While Clark Kent’s voice is light and friendly Kent switches to his more authoritative voice as Superman.
4. Superman’s Goodness
James Gunn described Superman as a movie about a man who values kindness in a society that considers it to be outdated ever since it was revealed. One phrase in the Superman trailer, in which Clark informs Lois that his deeds as Superman do not represent any one nation, serves as evidence of this.
Clark states, “I wasn’t representing anybody except for me, and doing good!” The fact that Clark’s line is backed by images of him rescuing a little girl from a truck accident demonstrates just how effectively Gunn will portray Superman’s virtues.
5. Mysterious Spaceship
We’ve seen it before but this is our first look at the ship owned by Mr. Terrific. Not only does this explain the ship’s relatively small size, but it means the Justice League International member will likely arrive at The Daily Planet to help fend off whoever might be attacking Metropolis. We’d bet on him being joined by the movie’s other heroes as well.
6. Can Reaction
The first Superman trailer was criticized for causing Superman to blink when hit by a can, a detail that fans felt was unnecessary. The latest trailer has made Superman react without blinking, possibly due to a different take or invisible special effects.
This change is seen as a direct response to the trailer and may be included in the movie’s final version as finishing touches are added.
8. Rick Flag Sr.
Intriguingly, the Secretary of Defense is mentioned in the Superman trailer because it indicates that Rick Flag Sr. has this position. As the father of Rick Flag from The Suicide Squad, Flag Sr. made an appearance in Creature Commandos, the first official DCU production. Flag appears to have advanced globally from a commander to the Secretary of Defense, who is currently investigating Superman’s acts as an unchecked hero.
9. Ultraman
Superman has been linked to several villains since the movie’s announcement. While some have subsequently been refuted, the Superman teaser verified others, such as Ultraman and The Engineer. Although the official trailer reveals that these two villains are employed by Rick Flag Sr. and the US government, it is unclear how exactly they will fit into Superman’s larger plot.
They are seen marching with Flag and capturing Superman in one scene, and a later part of the trailer might reveal their conflicting allegiances. While the last teaser didn’t show much of him Ultraman is front and center of this new trailer. According to tradition, Ultraman starts on Earth-3. He is the head of the Crime Syndicate, the evil equivalent of the Justice League, in his reality.
Justice League of America #29 from 1964 was the first comic to feature the villain. Ultraman was developed by writer Gardner Fox, who also co-invented heroes including Hawkman and Zatanna, and artist Mike Sekowsky, who contributed to some of the first Captain America issues in the 1940s
The Ultraman featured by director James Gunn in Superman is probably not from another earth. Adding multiversal tales to the nascent DCU seems a little premature.
However, Ultraman does appear in the movie, and he is serious. It’s possible that Lex made a Superman clone to battle his adversary in a stand-in capacity.
10. Hammer of Boravia
In the teaser, Superman battles The Hammer of Boravia, a massively armored villain with flying ability and an ocular laser attack. Promotional materials for the movie that were released last year included this character—an original James Gunn creation—on the Daily Planet’s home page for the first time.
The newspaper article claimed that Downtown Metropolis was attacked by The Hammer of Boravia as “retribution for the recent political interventions in Boravia by Superman.” In addition to causing more than $20 million in property damage, the attack hospitalized 22 residents of Metropolis. The preview for today and the full trailer for tomorrow appear to depict Superman against this “superpowered mystery man.” According to the newspaper story, which was written by Clark Kent himself: “Boravia has been the source of numerous headlines worldwide in recent weeks as it invaded its neighboring country Jarhanpur, only for the brief war to be swiftly ended by the Superman. The President of Boravia, Vasil Glarkos, maintains the Hammer of Boravia is not a representative of the national government, but rather an independent vigilante…”
11. Superman Supporters
While there are scenes of Superman being attacked by pedestrians we also see him being helped. We see snippets of that battle as well as one that appears to take place in Metropolis, as Superman is rescued from a crater and a building collapses. (He is helped out of the hole by an ordinary guy, which is reminiscent of Sam Raimi’s first two “Spider-Man” films, in which New Yorkers helped our amiable neighborhood wall-crawler.)
12. Justice League International
Superman distracts the Hammer for a moment and flies into the sky. As he passes the top of the building the LordTech logo is shown alongside a logo for the JLI. Since Maxwell Lord’s LordTech emblem appears on the chest piece of both Guy Gardner’s and Mister Terrific’s outfits, there is a fan theory that LordTech may be supporting Justice League International in James Gunn’s 2025 “Superman” film.
The LordTech logo has an I in the center and resembles a J and L. It looks like Maxwell Lord will provide all of the funding for Justice League International in James Gunn’s Superman film. With Justice League #1, Justice League International debuted in comic books in 1987. Following the Justice League of America Annual #2 in 1984, when the original Justice League disbanded and Justice League Detroit was established.
13. The Engineer (Angie Spica)
Angie Spica is shown attacking Superman’s robots. In the comics, she’s the second person nicknamed the Engineer. She’s a member of The Authority. Because of the nanites in her blood, she possesses a liquid body. She is capable of producing solid items with this metal alloy.
Based on the DC Comics superhero squad of the same name, The Authority is an upcoming superhero movie. “Chapter One: Gods and Monsters” in the DC Universe will be covered in this installment. Gunn previously explained on social media that The Authority is one of his passion projects saying, “This is a big movie and I don’t know how many of you know are familiar with The Authority.”
“The Authority is a very different kind of superhero story,” Gunn told Deadline. “They are basically good intention, but they think that the world is completely broken and the only way to fix it is to take things into their own hands, whether that means killing people, destroying heads of state, changing governments, whatever they want to do to make the world better. And we’ll see how that journey goes for them. But as I said earlier, there’s morally gray characters of which these are.”
In Superman’s trailer, the latter is seen storming the Fortress of Solitude with Lex Luthor, hinting at the previously revealed multiple allegiances of Ultraman and The Engineer. The Engineer is seen slicing down Superman’s robot assistants before Clark’s dog, Krypto, attacks him. Although it’s unclear how this will play out in the movie, the action appears to be really good, and subsequent shots suggest that Krypto assists Superman in getting to the Kent property.
14. Lex Luthor Back in the Fortress of Solitude
Superman and the other heroes in the Superman Family reside at the Fortress of Solitude. It is typically found in one of the poles and is used to store Krypton-made weaponry and equipment.
The first Superman movie had Lex Luthor (Gene Hackman) finding the Fortress of Solitude. Kevin Spacey’s Lex plunders the Fortress in Superman Returns. It looks like this plot point is coming to the reboot.
15. Ma and Pa Kent
Speaking of the Kent farm, the official trailer for Superman featured the first appearances of Neva Howell as Martha Kent (why did you say that name?!?) and Pruitt Taylor Vince as Jonathan Kent. With nearly found-footage-style scenes of a young Clark embracing Pa Kent,
The movie appears to go into Clark’s early years as Jonathan and Martha’s adopted kid. Jonathan follows this up with a statement assuring Clark that his decisions and deeds define who he is. Ma Kent’s later statement that she cleaned Superman’s boots foreshadows the endearing familial bond that would be depicted throughout the movie.
16. JLI Fights LexCorp
Several of Lex Luthor’s goons (or robots) are guarding the glass prison and fighting Superman. Mr. Terrific launches some of his T-Ball drones to fight them.
Clark is briefly depicted in a glass jail, most likely imprisoned by Lex Luthor. Metamorpho, the DC superhero who can transform into various substances, is in the same cell as Superman. It’s still unknown how exactly Rex Mason will fit into Superman’s plot, but it’s certain that the hero, like Superman, ends up on Lex Luthor’s wrong side.
17. Lex Luthor’s Motivations
In Superman’s official trailer, Nicholas Hoult’s Lex Luthor finally explains why the character despises Superman. Naturally, Lex’s statement that “He isn’t a man” is familiar to comic book readers.
In some way, the Man of Steel has become the main topic of discussion on the planet. That is not acceptable to him. Lex is obviously agitated by Superman’s alien ancestry and is jealous of the former’s celebrity status.
18. Superman goes Home
We see Superman lying in bed with his mother and father taking care of him. Lois appears to have gone to Smallville to help.
A lot of people complain that Superman is boring because he’s indestructible. Gunn is leaning into the idea that his Man of Steel is not all-powerful.
19. Metamorpho
Rex Mason aka Metamorpho, played by Anthony Carrigan (“Barry”), can change his body into different elements. In the comics, Mason can change into liquids or gases, stretch like rubber, and become as strong as a rock.
Carrigan previously portrayed Mr. Zsasz, the antagonist from Batman, in the television series Gotham. We see him turning his body into various liquid chemicals in Luthor’s glass prison.
21. Metropolis Meteors
Based in Metropolis, the Metropolis Meteors are a professional baseball team. LordTech Field is the home field of the Meteors.
The team first appeared in Strange Sports Stories #1 (1973) and was created by Frank Robbins and Curt Swan. They were prominently featured in the Smallville TV show.
22. Big Belly Burger
In the DC Comics universe, “Big Belly Burger” is a fictitious fast-food restaurant business. In addition to numerous appearances in other media, like television shows set in the Arrowverse, it has been featured in several comic book titles and stories.
It first appeared in The Adventures of Superman #441 back in 1988 and was created by John Byrne. As part of a promotional tie-in for Zack Snyder’s Justice League, Warner Bros. and Wonderland Restaurants collaborated to produce a real-life counterpart of “Big Belly Burger’s” namesake.
23. Jimmy Olsen
In DC Comics, Clark, Lois, and their coworker Jimmy Olsen are frequently the “Superman three.” Skyler Gisondo was chosen to play Jimmy in Superman, and the official trailer saw the first glimpse of the character in action.
This scene, which shows Clark and Jimmy dancing and joking around in the Daily Planet office, foreshadows the close connection that will develop between them. In the comics, Olsen is significantly younger than Clark. But the 28-year-old actor is only a few years younger than Corenswet. This may or may not change the dynamic between the two.
Plus, you can tell Jimmy is a big fan of Superman with the photo on his desk and the action figure on the board.
24. Eve Teschmacher Takes a Selfie
Eve Teschmacher is Lex Luthor’s love interest and assistant. The character first appeared in the 1975 Superman film. Regarding a more comprehensive Superman reveal, one image from the official trailer indicates that James Gunn’s signature comedy will appear in the movie to some extent.
At the end of the trailer, The Hammer of Boravia is shown demolishing a building in the background as a woman takes a selfie out of a high-rise window. According to Gunn, Superman will be a little less humorous than shows like Guardians of the Galaxy or The Suicide Squad, but this scene from the teaser suggests it will be included in some capacity.
25. Smallville Giants
At the end of the trailer, Lois asks, “You have a dog?” We then see Clark in his old room. His faithful dog Krypto is lying on top of him.
Several notable items are in his childhood room. The first is a pennant of Clark’s Smallville High School football team called the “Smallville Giants.”
The team was created by John Byrne for The Man of Steel #1. The team colors are orange and yellow.
26. The Mighty Crabjoys
The second Easter egg is a poster for the fictitious punk band “The Mighty Crabjoys,” which has made three appearances in the developing DCU. In Gunn’s animated series Creature Commandos, the David Harbour-voiced Frankenstein was spotted sporting a “Mighty Crabjoys” band t-shirt.
Previews for Peacemaker season 2 (also written and produced by Gunn) feature a billboard promoting the punk rock group.
27. Weed Bong
The background they were looking at was the poster for a fake band named Mighty Crab Joys. Does Clark Kent have a bong in his room?
A fan posted on Threads, “James, I need to prove some friends wrong, is that a weed bong underneath the Mighty Crabjoys poster?” Gunn laughed it off and said, “Haha, it’s not.” No more explanation.
28. Waid Street
When the defense department is arresting Superman they pass a street sign named “Waid St.”
Mark Waid, an American comic book writer, is known for his work on DC Comics titles like The Flash, Kingdom Come, Superman: Birthright, Captain America, Fantastic Four, and Daredevil.
What have we discovered, then? Not everyone understands Superman’s noble intentions. He is the target of Lex Luthor. There are other DC heroes involved. Superman sustains far more injuries than we typically see. How does all of that make sense? When Superman opens in theaters on July 11, we’ll find out.
What do you think of the upcoming Superman film? Let us know in the comments below!
(Via Deadline)
