James Gunn is gearing up to direct Superman: Legacy with a release date planned for July 11th, 2025. It might seem like a long way off, but fans are already speculating what conflict the Man of Steel might come up against in this new iteration of the Clark Kent story. There are rumors circling of numerous villains entering the fray for the upcoming blockbuster, but nothing has been confirmed yet.
Regardless of who Superman comes up against in the fight to save the world, the biggest conflict of all is likely to come from within. Clark Kent will once again have to balance his life as a journalist for The Daily Planet, with his alter ego who must save the world from the many threats it faces. David Corenswet will replace Henry Cavill as the iconic superhero for Superman: Legacy, so expect to see a younger Clark Kent coming to terms with his dual life and his great responsibility to the world.
James Gunn Is Right To Include Other Heroes In Superman: Legacy
Superman: Legacy might seem overstuffed with the announcement of other superheroes joining the cast, but James Gunn has a good reason to include them.
Superman: Legacy's Main Conflict
Clark Kent has always felt split between his human life, and his origins on Krypton, and the same goes for the character moving forward in James Gunn's DCU universe. The Superman: Legacy story is rumored to revolve around a conflict in the Middle East, which will feature the fictional country of Bialya, often mentioned in the DC universe. Lex Luthor is confirmed to return and will likely be involved in this conflict, but he isn't expected to be one of the main villains.
But for this movie to work, Superman's main conflict has to be with himself, and his dual personalities. On one side of the coin, he is a journalist trying to get the scoop, and on the other side of things, he is a superhero who must protect the world from the many threats it faces.
James Gunn is the ideal director to explore this particular conflict, after being at the helm of the Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy, which saw Peter Quill battle with his alter ego, Star Lord, balancing the human side of his character, with his inter galactic superhero persona. Star Lord doesn't have superpowers like Superman, but the alter ego element is still relevant as Gunn will have to deal with this in his upcoming movie.
Superman: Legacy is not going to be an origin story, but it will focus on a much younger Superman, who is trying to reconcile his Kryptonian heritage with the human family he has in Smallville, Kansas.
How Have Other Superman Movies Explored This Conflict
There have been six solo Superman movies in total, starting with Richard Donner's original in 1978, starring Christopher Reeve as the Man of Steel. Reeve would play the character four times with his last appearance in 1987's Superman 4: The Quest for Peace. Donner's first movie depicted the origin of the superhero, which included his infancy as Kal-El in Krypton, and his early childhood in Smallville, Kansas. It deals with the conflict Clark felt trying to hide his true powers growing up in a small town, and moved onto him trying to hide his superpowers from fellow reporter, Lois Lane as he developed a romance with her. A lot of these conflicts were brought out as he battled Lex Luthor.
Superman 2 deals with questions over Clark Kent's secret identity, and Lois suspecting that he is also Superman. The sequel sees Clark Kent face up to the truth, and tells Lois about his alter ego, which leads to more conflict as the movie progresses. The next two sequels take the focus off Superman's inner conflicts in favor of dealing with the villains Superman must defeat.
There was a significantly large gap before the next version of the Man of Steel, with Brandon Routh taking on the iconic role in Superman Returns in 2006. The movie was considered to be a sequel of sorts to Superman and Superman 2, ignoring the events of the last two sequels. Superman has been missing for five years, and the big conflict arises from everyone he was close to moving on from him. The love of his life, Lois Lane, is now engaged with a five-year-old son, and he struggles to come to terms with this.
Christopher Nolan got involved in the next reboot of Superman, producing Man of Steel, and giving the superhero the Batman Begins treatment. It really delved into the human side of the character, and the conflicts that have arisen from having his extraordinary powers. Batman v Superman and Justice League took the focus off his inner conflicts, as it had to contend with other major players in the universe. It's a shame Man of Steel never got a proper sequel, as it could've explored Superman's inner turmoil in more depth. Here's hoping James Gunn's Superman: Legacy can learn from past Superman movies, and peel off the layers of the Clark Kent/Superman dual personality, giving fans the ultimate iteration of the iconic DC character.