'Superman: Legacy' Begins Filming Reborn As 'Superman' On Character’s Celebrated Birthday
James Gunn marked the start of principal photography by unleashing the film’s crest of the House of El
Happy birthday Superman! February 29 is considered Superman’s birthday thanks to an unserious gesture taken seriously. DC editors gave a tongue in cheek explanation in comic book letter columns that Superman remained eternally youthful because he was born on Leap Day, which of course only happens every four years. 21 have happened since Superman’s 1938 debut (starting from 1940). By complete coincidence, James Gunn’s Superman film in the nascent DC Universe began principal photography today as previously planned. While sharing the first look at the crest of the House of El, he also revealed that this iteration was shedding its legacy.
On his socials, the film’s writer, director, and studio head wrote “Overjoyed to be announcing the start of principal photography on SUPERMAN today, February 29, which just so happens to be – coincidentally and unplanned – Superman’s birthday (!) #superman.” Now that utterance of just “Superman” probably didn’t alarm anyone. Surely it was just shorthand for Superman: Legacy, which it had been known by since it was announced nearly 400 days ago. As it turns out, that wasn’t the case. The film really is simply known as Superman.
As Gunn explained further “When I finished the first draft of the script, I called the film Superman: Legacy. By the time I locked the final draft, it was clear the title was SUPERMAN. Making our way to you July 2025. Happy Birthday, Clark! #UpUpAndAway”. It seems that he felt in his heart that it was okay to stop dancing around such title for an iteration after the initial four-film Superman series with Christopher Reeve.
Superman stars David Corenswet as Clark Kent, getting to wear that insignia-emblazoned suit as Superman, and Rachel Brosnahan, who gushed about the film’s early brewings at the SAG Awards, as Lois Lane. About the table read, Brosnahan said “It was pretty amazing. Some of us met for the first time. Some of us got to see each other again. It was amazing to hear the script out loud. As with all of these films, there’s a lot of action sequences and things. So to hear the pacing of the film and to get to hear these characters occupied by the actors who play them is really fun. It’s also a great group. You can’t ask for more than that when doing something like this.”
“I have always loved Lois Lane,” she added. “She’s smart, ambitious and can be funny. She knows she’s the smartest person in the room more often than not. When the opportunity came on…I’m such a fan of James Gunn from afar…we’re still finding these characters… You’ll meet the final version of them.” She also revealed she’s seen the whole of the Superman suit and said she was “blown away”
Superman also stars Skyler Gisondo as Jimmy Olsen, Isabela Merced as Hawkgirl, Edi Gathegi as Mister Terrific, Nathan Fillion as Guy Gardner Green Lantern, Anthony Carrigan as Metamorpho aka Rex Mason, María Gabriela De Faría as Angela Spica, The Engineer, and a clique of villains with Nicholas Hoult as Lex Luthor, Terence Rosemore as Otis and Sara Sampaio as Eve Teschmacher. It is the first film in the new DC Universe and set for release on July 11, 2025.
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Sources: James Gunn on Instagram/Threads, Variety