‘Superman’ Sequel In The Works? Sort Of, Says James Gunn

James Gunn confirmed a sequel to his own Superman reboot is the works. Sort of.

Superman Scores Blockbuster Box Office

The writer-director of the hit DC film (and also co-CEO of DC Studios with Peter Safran) took to social media to express his excitement at writing a DCU sequel, and then clarified he meant a sequel to Superman, then clarified he meant a non-sequel follow-up to Superman.

Superman is doing blockbuster business, headed past $550 million worldwide this weekend and with enough power to eventually leap $600 million in a single bound. The film has already topped $300 million to become the biggest domestic grosser starring the Big Blue Boy Scout.

The popularity of Gunn’s rebooted Superman relied first and foremost on David Corenswet’s stellar performance in the lead role, embodying everything fans and audiences love about the character (even if some fans currently have selective memory about what Superman is supposed to represent and how he behaves). And Corenswet’s chemistry with Rachel Brosnahan as Lois Lane is another great selling point.

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But as I explain in detail in my recent article about why Fantastic Four struggles but Superman soars, the latter film had to have the right story and right approach, or it would suffer the same fate as the previous nine DC shared-world films in a row, which all failed to reach even $450 million, most of them unable to even top $400 million.

It was Superman’s A- audience grade and overwhelmingly positive critical reviews (83% “Fresh” at Rotten Tomatoes), courtesy of the family-friendly all-ages approach to the story and inclusion of Krypto the super-dog that I feel added the ingredients making Superman a blockbuster hit. Which all stem from the mind of James Gunn, and the comic writers who inspired him.

Superman Sequel Talk

The success of Superman makes it no surprise a follow-up is already in the works, although the exact nature of the project led to some confusion at first. James Gunn previously said there would be a film starring Superman but which was not a direct sequel per se, and now that he’s working on the script and clarified it’s a follow-up to Superman that won’t be a literal sequel, it sort of inherently tells us it’s going to be some sort of either more official team-up or something that changes the perspective a bit.

I wouldn’t be surprised to find out Gunn is penning a Krypto live-action movie co-starring Superman and Supergirl, or that his script is some sort of team-up between the extended super-family, of which I presume the Superman’s Pal Jimmy Olsen series will be a part (come on, that would be the best title, right?). And if he’s not making a Krypto live-action movie, I hope someone at DC pitches one to him because there are too many wonderful ways that could work on film to not do it, even with the Krypto animated shorts coming out.

With Superman and the upcoming Milly Alcock-starring Supergirl as the first two films for the DCU and Krypto having such an important role, the notion of a film putting them all together (and maybe giving Krypto even bigger billing? please?) makes a lot of sense if Supergirl is as good and successful as Superman. With that “team" the villainous threat would need to be elevate considerably, and Brainiac does have some history with Kryptonians, so…

Alternately, if he’s decided “go big or go home” then perhaps Gunn is penning a full-scale Super Friends movie (there’s got to be decent odds they wind up calling themselves the Super Friends, as the consensus choice over the Justice Gang) to make an even bigger statement of intent about his DCU. It fits the tone and the message Superman sends, and the message he’s trying to encourage other heroes to send as well.

But I could also imagine Gunn paying off the upcoming Lanterns HBO/Max series with a big Sinestro Corps Wars adaptation as the alternative to attempting another Justice League, in which case I don’t expect Superman to be a main character nor do I expect Gunn to write it.

There’s been speculation (including by me) that Gunn seems particularly suited to write a film version of The Authority, and so that was the first thing some of us thought he might be up to.

But if that project is shelved as the filmmaker seemingly implied (albeit not as outright as some suggest, Gunn is careful not to violate his promise not to lie to fans and the public, so his silence and laughter leave wiggle room), then perhaps the Superman not-exactly-sequel project Gunn mentioned is a loose adaptation of Superman and the Authority, with the Man of Steel assembling the team of anti-hero types to try to make them more heroic (again, Superman taking the lead on something he feels strongly about regarding how superhumans represent themselves and their role in society) while taking down a threat Superman can’t handle alone.

That’s certainly a more unexpected approach to a Superman sequel, but in this context the reversal of certain aspects of the source material (Superman being older, the Authority existing previously, maybe the primary villain and plotting details) work to the advantage of Gunn’s DCU and the setup in Superman. The idea of Superman helping create the Authority, which would inevitably evolve into something far different than he intended, and the fact he does so at an earlier stage as part of his efforts to inspire and lead other superheroes to be their best selves, would fit sweetly into a sequel at this point, in my opinion.

Despite the changes involved, Gunn’s irreverent sensibilities and love for the source material combined with his determination to make a DCU that invites all ages to join the fun and isn’t afraid to wear its earnest heart on its sleeve could easily make it work.

It’s more likely, however, that The Authority just wasn’t working out to Gunn’s liking and wound up shelved in favor of other projects that had momentum. That’s the simplest answer, and conforms most to everything we’ve heard with the least speculation necessary. And if so, then I doubt James Gunn jumped to just include them into a follow-up to Superman if recently the plan was for a whole separate Authority introduction on film.

Unless, that is, the cancellation suddenly left the Authority available, and since they weren’t being used he decided to incorporate them into his own story – which becomes even more viable as a theory if original planned Authority film were some adaptation of the Superman and the Authority comic already. But again, doubtful and the simpler solution is Gunn’s new script doesn’t involve the Authority.

Whatever Superman sequel or follow-up we get, if it’s got the heart and soul of the first film, then DC Studios will have another hit on their hands, and audiences will have even more reason to love the Man of Steel again.