We have a new Superman! Actor David Corenswet has been announced as the lead in the upcoming Superman: Legacy. This film will be the first major DCU film under James Gunn’s guidance and is being met with quite a bit of anticipation.
That being said, Superman has been done before. He’s been done well, and he’s been done…well… and it is time for us to really get into what James Gunn needs to do to avoid the pitfalls and make a great Superman movie.
What James Gunn Promised
James Gunn has said quite a few promising things about his version of Superman. “Superman represents truth, justice, and the American way. He is kind in a world that thinks of kindness as old-fashioned [and] he is a farm boy from Kansas who is very idealistic. His greatest weakness is that he’ll never kill anybody, [and] doesn’t want to hurt a living soul. And I like that sort of innate goodness about Superman as his defining characteristic.”
These statements are completely in line with how many people see DCs most well-known character. However, it is not how the previous DCEU portrayed him. In Zack Snyder’s version, Superman was unhappy, angry, and even killed someone. This dark version was interesting to some, but a complete 180 from the more bright and shining example that people love so much.
There Is a Legacy
Due to the fact that Superman has been around for so long and in so many different types of media, he comes with a lot of baggage. He’s been young, old, cloned, dead, and even pure energy for a while. The storylines are endless, and the ideas about him have shifted over time.
The fact is that there are just as many great storylines as there are bad ones. Writers and directors want to forget certain portrayals, such as Superman 3 (featuring Richard Pryor) and Superman IV: The Quest For Peace. In both of these movies, Superman was a joke and wasn’t in on it. The problem is that people make him a bumbling moron when he’s just a good-hearted guy.
Therein lies the problem, how to balance a good person with a down-home heart and still allow him to be the strongest protector of the planet? James Gunn is going to have to look at this paragon of virtue and figure out the do’s and dont’s.
The Big Mistake
The biggest mistake James Gunn could start with is giving us a lengthy look at Superman’s origin story. We have seen it over… and over… and over. It is one of the most well-known origin stories in the history of film, comics, and pop culture.
The Christopher Reeves movies gave us the very late 70s version of Krypton with its abundance of crystals and a Marlon Brando appearance. It was shiny and crystally, and it gave us the entire visual for the Fortress of Solitude in the later movies.
Then came Zack Snyder, who decided to spend the first twenty minutes of Man of Steel giving us even more lore about Suprman’s backstory. Later, he would revisit the planet and take even more time to explain his origins. Not to mention the fact that in the Snyder movies, Krypton seems to be made of carved bronze (clothing included). It also swapped out Brando for Russell Crowe.
These origins take time. They take the time that could be spent jumping right into the story and giving people something new and exciting. Backstories remain the same, and unless they are changed significantly, they are completely unnecessary.
James Gunn seems to understand his characters and his universe. The odds are that he will avoid this mistake and seek to find other ways for Superman to explore his heritage. And that is the difference. Talking about Krypton and explaining Kryptonian lore, it’s all fine. It is Kal-El’s heritage. But there is no need to start everything with such a clean slate that everyone pretends we’ve never heard of Superman, Clark Kent, or Kal-El before.
How to Avoid This Mistake
To avoid this mistake, James Gunn needs to trust his audience. It’s as simple as that. When Gunn starts to talk about other heroes, it will be fun to see an origin story or two. But with Superman and Batman, there is no reason for him to retread this oft-trod ground.
We have not been given the details about Superman: Legacy quite yet, but we do know that it will delve deeper into the Superman mythos. This is great news. He is a layered character who found a woman he loves and does the job nobody else can do. We also know that he is part of a larger universe, and therefore, unlike Zack Snyder’s universe, these characters don’t need to act as though the others never existed.
Gunn is not here to make one movie. He is here to build out a universe. Starting with Superman is a smart move and one that every other director has tried. In this case, there is far more relying on Superman: Legacy’s success than just a Superman movie. It will be a proving ground for Gunn and will be poked at by every critic and fanboy. He needs to make a solid film and avoid the pitfall of his predecessors.
This story originally appeared on Movieweb
