Action Comics#1 in 1938 saw the debut ofSuperman, and with that, the modern idea of the superhero was born. The character has been an institution, an icon known the world over. Like his comic book debut,Superman: The Moviein 1978 was the first big-budget attempt at a comic book film and set the template for superhero movies going forward.
After the franchise died down in 1987 with the release of the critical and box office disaster ofSuperman IV: The Quest for Peace, various attempts were made to restart the franchise including a failed attempt from director Tim Burton, writer Kevin Smith, and star Nicolas Cage. In 2006,Superman Returnshit the big screen but failed to live up to expectations, and another attempt to relaunch the series was released with 2013’sMan of Steel,which also kicked offthe DCU movies.
However, a directMan of Steelsequel was scrapped in favor ofBatman V Superman: Dawn of Justice, and after 2017’sJustice Leaguethe character has not been seen in the film apart from a faceless cameo inShazam!and animated appearances inTeen Titans Go! To The Movies.
Update February 3rd, 2023: This article has been updated following all the recent news regarding the DCU, including Henry Cavill no longer being cast as Superman and the recent news of James Gunn’s plans for the franchise including the title and release date forSuperman: Legacy.
Now Warner Bros. is moving forward with a new reboot of the Superman franchise. As part of James Gunn’s plans for the DCU titled Chapter 1 “Gods and Monsters”, the franchise will introduce a new Superman with a new actor replacing Henry Cavill. The film is titledSuperman: Legacyand is tentatively set for release on July 16, 2025. While not much is known about the film it is said it will focus on Superman that is about 25 during the early days of his career, highlight his career as a journalist, and also see Superman try and balance his life alien heritage with his human upbringing.James Gunn is penning the scriptbut it is unclear if he will also direct the movie.
Warner Bros. and DC need to approachSuperman: Legacythe same way they have approached hiring Batmandirectors like Tim Burton, Christopher Nolan, and Matt Reeves, by going after the best directors working with strong creative visions and whose body of work can fit within the themes of the character. Superman is one of the greatest fictional characters of all time, and he deserves to be given the best treatment. These are nine directors that Warner Bros. needs to consider to directSuperman: Legacy.
James Gunn
Given that he’s writing the screenplay forSuperman: Legacyand the project is being pitched as the true start to the DCU, it makes sense forJames Gunnto direct the film. He certainly has the experience as seen with his work on theGuardians of the Galaxyfilms andThe Suicide Squad. Peter Safran has hopes that Gunn will direct the new Superman movie.
The real question is if Gunn will have the time. As co-president of DC Studios, he will have many other responsibilities, and one has to wonder if he will have time to undertake a massive film likeSuperman: Legacyalongside his other responsibilities. Even with Peter Safran as co-head to help run the studio, directing would take up a lot of Gunn’s time. There is a chance he may direct the film, but there is also a strong chance he will only write the script and pass it on to another director. With that in mind here are some other potential filmmakers who could direct Gunn’s script.
Richard Linklater
Richard Linklater’s filmography is vast and it reads like a resume for an ideal Superman director.School of Rockand his remake ofBad News Bearsshows a filmmaker who can make a mass appeal populist entertainment. His rotoscope animated films likeA Scanner DarklyandApollo 10+1⁄2: A Space Age Childhoodcould be used as a blueprint for an animatedSupermanfilm in the vein of the iconic Fleischer Studios Superman shorts.
Related:Superman Movies in Order: How To Watch Chronologically and By Release Date
Yet while many would imagine aSupermanmovie being big, Linklater could possibly bring in an angle to go smaller with the character, observing the details of more human moments with the character. As seen in hisBeforeTrilogy andBoyhood, Linklater has a special eye for looking at the micro and making it feel large, fitting the idea that this massive larger-than-life hero is still just a man from Kansas trying to do the right thing.Dazed and ConfusedandEverybody Wants Some(which featuresSuperman & Loisstar Tyler Hoechlin) have a laid-back vibe to them, a hangout easy-breezy energy that feels like the perfect tone for a Superman movie, similar to how Grant Morrison saw the character when writingAll-Star Superman. Morrison said
“He looked totally relaxed… and I suddenly realized this was how Superman would sit. He wouldn’t puff out his chest or posture heroically, he would be totally chilled. If nothing can hurt you, you can afford to be cool. A man like Superman would never have to tense against the cold; never have to flinch in the face of a blow. He would be completely laid back, un-tense.”
This quote is the perfect one to matchLinklater’s filmmaking style. James Gunn has already hinted that Morrison’sAll-Star Supermanwill serve as a creative basis for the upcomingSuperman: Legacy. Linklater could provide a much more human portrait of the hero, showing a Superman movie that in contrast withMan of Steel, highlights the character’s human nature over his alien origin.
Rian Johnson
Rian Johnson’s work inStar Warsmight be controversial in the corpus ofeveryStar Warsmovie, but it was bold and what the franchises needed in terms of breaking away from the established mold it had gotten itself into.Star Wars: The Last Jediis aStar Warsfilm unlike any before or after it, and theSupermanfranchise is in need of something similar. The character is over 80 years old and countless stories have been told, and the film side tends to stick with some similar conventions.
Yet it isn’t just Johnson’s trick of subverting expectations that makes him an exciting pick, but how empathic his projects are. Notably, in his mystery projects likeKnives Out,Glass Onion,and the recent Peacock seriesPoker Face, Johnsons' work features moral characters operating against a cynical world and maintaining their own sense of goodness. That is a classic Superman story and the director would be a great pick to relaunch the franchise. However, the director might be too busy given he is already working on a thirdKnives Outmovie and the status of hisStar Warstrilogy is still up in the air.
Matthew Vaughn
Matthew Vaughnis no stranger to the superhero genre, having directed bothKick-AssandX-Men: First Class,and one element commonly associated with the director is his vibrant color pallet which is an element of the Superman comics that has been missing from the films as of late. His history withtheKingsmanfranchiseand kinetic over-the-top action would deliver on the action depart. The director hasexpressed interest in directing a Supermanmovie before, and the director successfully relaunched theX-Menfranchise, so he could always do the same for Superman.
Dee Rees' filmMudboundwas one of the best films of 2017, and it is a film that should have warranted every studio ringing her agent up to secure a big new film. The director has two other films under her belt, 2011’sPariahand 2020’sThe Last Thing He Wanted, and has directed a number of episodes for series likeEmpire,When We Rise, andSpace Force. This is a director who is waiting for the next big film, and any studio would be lucky to secure talent, and Rees being attached toSuperman: Legacycould provide a much-needed change of pace for the character who has only been seen through the eyes of white male directors.
Related:Here’s a List of Women Directors Who Should Have Been Nominated For the Best Director Oscar
Through Rees' eyes, Superman could return to his Golden Age Comic roots where he was a social crusader, a champion of the people fighting for the rights of those who had less. Rees' films are deeply personal and what she could bring to theSupermanproperty is something unlike anything seen in aSupermanfilm or really any superhero film.
David Lowery
David Lowery’s films often examine some elements of myth and folklore, from using the image of a simple white sheet inGhost Story, the folk legends of bank robbers inThe Old Man & The Gun, tothe Arthurian legendsinThe Green Knight. Comic book superheroes are very much the quintessential modern myths, and Superman’s story has always drawn parallels from Moses to Hercules to Jesus Christ.
The director has already played in the big-budget studio sandbox, having directed 2016’sPete’s Dragonfor Disney, and is currently directing the remake ofPeter PantitledPeter Pan & Wendyfor Disney+ so the director would be at home working on a big project like Superman. Those two Disney films also could hint at a Superman movie Lowery would make, one seeing the character through the hopeful optimistic eyes of a child, which might be the best way to view Superman as an aspirational figure who inspires hope.
Paul Kingdirected bothPaddingtonandPaddington 2, and those movies feel very much like proto-Superman setups. Both Paddington and Superman are sweet figures who inspire the people in their life to be better.
Gunn already hinted thatSuperman: Legacywill be a four-quadrant film meant to appeal to everyone, and given thewarm reaction thePaddingtonfilms have generatedfrom audiences both young and old he would be right at home directing Superman. It’s worth noting that Paul King is already working with Warner Bros. on the Willy Wonka prequel filmWonka, establishing a working relationship between the director and the studio.
Marielle Heller
Originally a performer,Marielle Heller’s two films as a director,Can You Ever Forgive Me?andA Beautiful Day In The Neighborhoodare two sweet and empathic movies. While films likeSuperman Returnsexamined Superman in the metatextual nature of what he means in a modern world, withMan of Steelfavoring big spectacle action to make the character relevant, one side that has been sadly ignored is Superman as a kind loving figure. Superman is often referred to as the Big Blue Boy Scout, and while some people would think that is hookey, with the state of the world being what it is, the idea of a Superman who is nice and does it because it is the right thing might be just what audiences are looking for.
Mr. Rogers is very much a Superman-like figure, a paragon of hopeful optimism even in dark times that shines a light and makes people feel better about themselves and inspires them. Seeing what Heller brought toA Beautiful Day In The Neighborhoodand how shehandled Mr. Rogers, that is more than enough to prove that the director gets Superman as a character and a concept and would make for an exciting choice to helmSuperman: Legacy.
Paul Thomas Anderson
One of the most acclaimed directors working today,Paul Thomas Andersonhas directed such films asThere Will Be Blood,Magnolia,Boogie Nights, and most recentlyLicorice Pizza,which was nominated for Best Picture at the 94th Academy Awards. Anderson’s name is not one many would associate with a superhero film, but the director has spoken openly about hislove of the superhero genreand his interest in populist films and even left film school when a professor talked badly aboutTerminator 2: Judgement Day.
Many themes in Anderson’s films fit in with the largerSupermanfranchise.There Will Be BloodandMagnoliaare both epic films, while films likeBoogie Nights,Punch Drunk Love, andThe Masterfeature very lonely people looking for a sense of found family. With Superman being the last of his kind, that is an element Anderson could key in on, but also highlights how he has found purpose on Earth by being with people like Lois Lane.
The other big aspect that Anderson would bring to aSupermanmovie is what the film would look like visually. SincePhantom Thread,the director has acted as his own cinematographer and his films have had a slightly blown-out look to them, evoking a nostalgic glow that gives off a sense of warmth, one that would fit the nature of Superman. A strong visual style would help a Superman movie stand apart not just from past Superman films, but other superhero movies in general. A great sense of style helped makeThe Batmanstand out from the pack, andSupermandeserves similar treatment. Superman is the first mainstream superhero to remain today and is arguably one of the best, so he deserves one of the best and most critically acclaimed filmmakers working on his film.
