DC obviously wants fans to understand that the new DC Universe will be different than Zack Snyder’s DCEU, because all the press surrounding “Superman: Legacy” features commentary regarding Superman’s changed temperament.
During a 2023 press conference (as reported by Yahoo!), Peter Safran said, “Superman represents truth, justice, and the American way. He is kindness in a world that thinks of kindness as old-fashioned.” In addition, during a 2023 interview with IGN, James Gunn described Clark Kent by saying, “He’s a big old galoot. 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.”
Considering the sheer number of movies Gunn and Safran have announced for their DC reboot, the DCU will neither rise nor fall by Superman’s hand alone, but there’s a reason that they decided to begin again with a new version of the character. Zack Snyder’s DCEU opened with a Superman project, too, and it set the tone for everything that followed. It seems as though Gunn and Safran intend to mirror that strategy, only this time with hopefully a different critical and fan reception. If all this plotting wasn’t about a guy whose whole schtick is supposed to be innate goodness, Gunn and Safran’s move would almost feel devious. And maybe it still is. As long as Superman doesn’t break any more necks, though, audiences probably won’t mind.
