Director of the New 'Superman' Movie Decides to Burn It to the Ground Right Before Release
Another "Superman" movie is about to be released, as Warner Bros. tries, yet again, to reboot its DC Comics universe after a myriad of failures. At the head of the endeavor is director James Gunn, perhaps best known for his work on the "Guardians of the Galaxy" franchise. For my money, the first movie in the series was one of the best movies Disney and Marvel Studios ever put out.
Gunn is not without controversy, though. In the early 2020s, he found himself temporarily fired after left-wingers rushed to cancel him over old tweets where he joked about pedophilia and rape, among other things. Still, he's a talented filmmaker, and many people have had high hopes for his reimagining of the DC universe, including "Superman."
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Which makes his decision to burn all the goodwill around his film to the ground right before its release a real headscratcher. During a recent interview with The Times of London, Gunn stated his movie is "about politics," citing the illegal immigration situation in the United States, and his answer to anyone who doesn't like that is "screw them."
In his Sunday profile with The Times of London, the DC Studios head went deep on the themes and ideas that drive his highly anticipated “Superman.” He explained that the superhero epic encompasses “the story of America,” and at a basic level, is about a man searching for a better life away from his original home.
“I mean, ‘Superman’ is the story of America,” Gunn explained. “An immigrant that came from other places and populated the country, but for me it is mostly a story that says basic human kindness is a value and is something we have lost.”
Gunn acknowledged that the movie’s themes may be interpreted differently across political groups, especially considering the current nationwide unrest around immigration. However, Gunn stands by the ideals embedded in “Superman,” and added that he doesn’t care if anyone takes offense.
“Yes, it plays differently, but it’s about human kindness and obviously there will be jerks out there who are just not kind and will take it as offensive just because it is about kindness. But screw them,” he said.
I'm not going to outright reject all of the themes Gunn is pushing. I think conservative commentators can sometimes be too quick to lash out, and it makes us look petty and overemotional at times. Superman does come from a different planet, and the history of the comics does include his run-in with authorities who do not understand him or believe he is good. Whether that translates to "the story of America" is a different matter, as I think there's quite a bit more to the nation's history than that, but let's put that aside.
The problem with this is how hostile it is. As a director, producer, actor, or studio executive, you should never try to promote your movie by proclaiming it's about politics and then shouting "screw them" at anyone who might object to that. Americans are rightfully tired of having "the message," as The Critical Drinker says, shoved down their throats in entertainment. After decades of Hollywood pushing overplayed left-wing themes in almost every movie and television show, a lot of the benefit of the doubt has evaporated.
So even if the movie isn't actually that political, Gunn has already alienated a large portion of his potential audience by essentially telling them they aren't welcome when he didn't need to. I don't get it. How is that a smart box office strategy? Why not just stay neutral and let viewers decide how they interpret the film? That would avoid a lot of controversy and keep things apolitical, at least on the surface.
Of course, there's another possibility here. Given the rash of superhero movie flops over the last few years (by both Marvel and DC), it's possible the preliminary data on "Superman" isn't great, and Gunn and Warner Bros. are looking to rally people to the theaters by purposely stirring up political controversy. If that's the plan, I have serious doubts about it working.
But hey, maybe it'll be a great movie and Gunn's political jabs are just noise from a guy who couldn't help himself. We'll just have to wait and see.
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