Eagerly-awaited 'Supergirl' arrives in cinemas today

David Corenswet's 'Superman' plays bigger role in film than fans expected, acts as moral guide throughout story

'Supergirl' will hit cinemas today with David Corenswet's Superman having a much larger presence in it than many fans anticipated. Director Craig Gillespie has revealed that the Man of Steel serves as a key influence on Kara Zor-El's journey throughout the film.

According to Gillespie, Superman is far more than a brief cameo. The film features multiple appearances from Corenswet, including flashbacks exploring Kara's arrival on Earth and her early interactions with her famous cousin. One sequence reportedly shows Superman helping Kara adjust to life on Earth and overcome the language barrier between them.

While Supergirl remains firmly centred on Milly Alcock's Kara Zor-El, Superman acts as a moral guide throughout the story. Gillespie described the pair's relationship as having an "older sibling" dynamic, with Clark Kent attempting to patiently support Kara as she struggles to find her place in the universe.

The film follows Kara on an intergalactic adventure after a young alien girl, Ruthye Marye Knoll, seeks her help avenging her family. Along the way, Supergirl confronts her own trauma and questions what kind of hero she wants to become, with Superman serving as a reminder of the ideals she has yet to embrace.

Alcock recently praised Corenswet's support during production, particularly while tackling the film's fictional languages and emotionally demanding scenes. Gillespie also revealed that Corenswet improvised several of his lines, helping to create a natural and believable bond between the Kryptonian cousins.

The movie is based on the acclaimed Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow comic series and stars Alcock alongside Eve Ridley, Matthias Schoenaerts and Jason Momoa as Lobo. Early reports suggest the film will help lay the groundwork for future DC Universe projects, including the upcoming Man of Tomorrow, which will reunite Supergirl and Superman on screen.

Principal photography began on January 13, 2025, at Warner Bros. Studios Leavesden and London in England, with Rob Hardy as cinematographer, using IMAX cameras. Gillespie said the cinematography during action sequences would reflect Kara Zor-El's emotional state at the time, with anger being associated with "frenetically messy, aggressive kind of camera work" while her being relaxed would be associated with a "more fluid" style. An action sequence filmed in Leavesden involved practical 40-foot fireballs and Momoa using a real motorcycle while portraying Lobo. Gunn insisted that Gillespie film the ending that was originally envisioned in the script, even though Gillespie was willing to film alternate versions if it was not well-received during test screenings. The first scenes filmed during production was Kara's arrival on Earth, which involved Alcock and Corenswet interacting in the Kryptonian language. She had also learned five comic book languages for the film, while Gillespie estimated she spent an hour before filming to rehearse her stunts. Later that week, David Krumholtz and Emily Beecham joined the cast as Supergirl's parents Zor-El and Alura In-Ze, respectively.

Oren Uziel was hired by Warner Bros. Pictures in August 2018 to write a film based on the DC Comics character Supergirl. This came as Warner Bros. and DC Films were looking for new approaches to their DC Extended Universe (DCEU) franchise following several critical and commercial disappointments. Development on the film was in the early stages, but Warner Bros. was already being "very vocal" about wanting to hire a female director. The studio's shift to focusing on a Supergirl film was given as one of the reasons that Henry Cavill was no longer expected to portray Supergirl's cousin Clark Kent / Superman in future DCEU films after portraying the role since Man of Steel (2013); Cavill later indicated that he still wanted to return to the role. Production on Supergirl was tentatively scheduled to begin in early 2020, but was put on hold due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In February 2021, Sasha Calle was cast as Supergirl for the DCEU film The Flash (2023) and signed a multi-film contract for the DCEU. Supergirl was included on DC's slate of films planned for release in 2022 or 2023. In April 2022, Discovery, Inc. and Warner Bros.' parent company WarnerMedia merged to become Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD), led by president and CEO David Zaslav. The new company was expected to restructure DC Entertainment while Zaslav began searching for an equivalent to Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige to lead the new subsidiary. Tatiana Siegel of Rolling Stone reported in August that Supergirl was unlikely to move forward under Zaslav, and it was quietly canceled around that time. Writer/director James Gunn and producer Peter Safran were announced as the co-chairs and co-CEOs of the newly formed DC Studios at the end of October.