Superman Movie: Handling Side Characters a Major Focus

The Man of Steel is back, and the excitement is palpable with the latest trailer for James Gunn's upcoming film, Superman, set to launch in July. Starring David Corenswet as the iconic hero and showcasing the impressive abilities of Superman's beloved dog Krypto, the trailer promises a thrilling experience. However, what's capturing fans' attention most is the sheer volume of content packed into the film, raising questions about how it will cohesively weave its narrative.

One Redditor commented on the r/Superman subreddit, "Strong start to the trailer, but then practically every shot was another new character and I started worrying how the movie was going to tell a coherent story." Another fan echoed this sentiment, stating, "I'm gonna love it, he looks great as Superman, he looks great as Clark Kent, but the movie looks like it might be a bit busy, there's a lot going on here."

Amidst the concerns, there's also excitement about the diverse cast of characters. A fan expressed, "Now this, I love this trailer. From someone who never really liked the dark DC vibe, I’m excited to experience a true comic superhero movie. But am I the only one who is worried for all the cameos that are in the trailer? Like I swear I was counting like 8 friends and foes in this movie. I know they want to set up James Gunn’s DCU with this, but I would prefer it to be less heavy on cameo fodder and take more time to develop the characters that are needed to tell the story that they’re trying to tell."

The trailer indeed showcases a wide array of characters, from Clark Kent's Earth parents and love interest Lois Lane (Rachel Brosnahan) to central antagonist Lex Luthor (Nicholas Hoult) and various other villains and allies. While some fans worry about the film being overly ambitious, others are thrilled at the prospect of these character introductions.

Here's a list of all the characters revealed so far in Superman:

• Superman
• Lois Lane
• Lex Luthor
• Mister Terrific
• Guy Gardner
• Hawkgirl
• Metamorpho
• The Engineer
• The Hammer of Boravia
• Ultraman
• Rick Flag Sr.
• Supergirl
• Maxwell Lord
• Kryptonian robots, including Kelex
• Krypto
• Jonathan Kent
• Martha Kent
• Perry White
• Jimmy Olsen
• Steve Lombard
• Cat Grant
• Ron Troupe
• Eve Teschmacher
• Otis

Some fans are supportive of the film's direction. One user wrote, "I'm glad there's a lot going on. We've seen him fight Lex & Zod countless times at this point, I want to see him completely overwhelmed and emerge as a symbol of hope," while another commented, "It’s side characters, less cameos. Like Iron Man had several side characters." A third fan pointed out, "I don't feel like it's such a big deal honestly. Movies usually need secondary/side characters. Gunn here is just filling in those spots with rather big names, but I doubt he'll give them more than what they need."

Superman: Behind the Scenes Cast and Character Images

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While the concern about the film being overstuffed persists, it hasn't dampened the overall anticipation. One user noted, "It looks good but wondering how they’re going to shoehorn so many different characters into one movie," to which another fan replied, "It's not any more characters than the average comic book movie. It's fine." A third user even quipped, "Kinda like Guardians of the Galaxy…?"

James Gunn has reassured fans that the film is not an ensemble piece, stating during an Instagram Live session at the beginning of 2025, "At the middle of everything is Clark, Lois, and Lex. It’s about these three characters." How he plans to balance this focus with the extensive cast remains to be seen.

Superman flies into theaters on July 11, 2025.