On July 11th, the first chapter in the new DCU flew into theaters with Superman, starring David Corenswet as the title character. It had been 12 full years since DC released a solo film about the blue boy scout, giving this film large shoes to fill. Firstly, it had to show that the public still cared about the world’s first superhero, and be a solid start to this new DC regime under James Gunn. Let’s take a look at the film to see if it accomplishes that and see where DC can go after this film.

Firstly, the film itself. Personally, I thought the film was a very enjoyable experience. It was clearly targeted to those who had fallen in love with the character through the comics or comic media. For what it was trying to do, like show people that Superman is still a cool character, and make a really good Superman film that takes more bold choices with its story,  I’d say it succeeded in doing this. First off, the performances, many of the leads in the film put their heart and souls into their respective roles. David Corenswet embodied what the character truly stands for, being a symbol of hope and doing the right thing, regardless of limitations, and he pulled off that cartoonish kid-like charm very well. Saying phrases like “What the hey?” or “Golly.” Next is Rachel Brosnahan as Lois Lane, she was pitch perfect for the role, showing off great chemistry with David’s Superman. Her determined reporter personality stood out to me in how  she interviewed Superman without bias despite knowing his true identity. She did not hold back on her questions like a good reporter, so that I really liked. The main standout was Nicholas Hoult as Lex Luthor, Superman’s ultimate villain. He was absolutely phenomenal, it helps that Nicholas originally auditioned for the part of Superman, but he saw that David looked much better for the part so he knew he wasn’t going to play him, but he ended up playing Lex Luthor instead. He had many ridiculous schemes and went forth for the sake of killing Superman, his hate for Superman was undeniable, definitely one of the best superhero movie villain performances of all time. The side characters were all delightful additions as well.

When it comes to other parts of the film, the musical score pays tribute to John Williams’ iconic score from 1978 adding an electric spin and offering a sense of hope throughout the picture. The film can feel overstuffed at times with the amount of plot points and plans Lex Luthor has to destroy Superman, and the amount of characters featured in the movie, but when you can fully immerse yourself in the experience it no longer becomes an issue. The bright and more silly comic book elements give a breath of fresh air to show that the people behind the film care about the source material and it’s more out of this world elements. This might be one of the more bold super hero films and the most comic booky comic book film of all time. So with all that said, I think it’s a very strong start for the DCU under James Gunn and I would give it a rating of 8.5/10.

Now let’s look at what's next for this DCU. After Superman, the next season of Peacemaker starring John Cena has premiered on HBO Max. Next year we have 2 films and 1 show. Early 2026 we will be getting Lanterns, a show about the Green Lantern corps starring Aaron Pierre and Kyle Chandler. Then on July 10th, the next chapter in the Superman side of the DCU releases with Supergirl, starring Milly Alcock and Jason Momoa as Lobo, a role he has dreamed of Then on September 11th, 2026, an interesting low budget horror film releases, diving into the iconic world of Gotham City for the first time, called Clayface. This will be the first time the character appears on screen, starring Tom Rhys Harries as the title role. This film in particular interests me because it’ll provide commentary on film usage of AI and deep fake technology, topics that most films refuse to delve into with their stories. This will be an important film to watch. Finally, David Corenswet and Nicholas Hoult will return as Superman and Lex Luthor in a film called Man Of Tomorrow, releasing July 9th, 2027. Where Lex and Supes will team up to deal with another major villain that threatens the state of the planet.

In order to get most of these films, Superman needed success at the box office. It raked in over $615 million worldwide, with estimated $125 million in total profits. It’s safe to say that DC is in a good spot right now, finally able to conquer the global juggernaut that is Marvel. Since Marvel is coming to an end, DC has taken over with a saga that has just begun.