Soaring High at the ‘Superman’ Trailer Press Event

It has arrived! The Superman teaser trailer has officially landed for everyone to experience. To celebrate the official debut of the new DC Universe under James Gunn, we were invited to the launch of the trailer earlier this week, with writer/director Gunn himself in attendance, as well as stars Nicholas Hoult, Rachel Brosnahan, and Superman himself, the incomparable David Corenswet!

As you can see from the trailer, the theme of both the film and the Q&A was kindness. That’s what Superman embodies. He’s a symbol of truth, justice, and hope. The idea of Superman, even superheroes in general, is for folks to look up to someone that embodies and also sees the best qualities in humanity, and does whatever he can to stand up to injustice and inequality.

From the initial basis of the character by creators Joe Shuster and Jerry Siegel, sons of Jewish immigrants, Superman has always been an advocate for diversity and inclusion, and equal treatment. Regardless of what trolls across the internet would love to believe.

This serves as the ultimate inspiration behind what Gunn’s vision of the character is meant to be: Kindness in a world that considers kindness to be old fashioned. You can see it in the frames of the trailer where people around the world are looking to him to save them, despite how many others would disagree. The heart of the matter of differing viewpoints is actually what ended up fueling a lot of the screenplay, and explains the reasons behind why conflict exists between Superman/Clark, Lex, and (to a lesser degree) Lois.

This idea, along with many others, were covered during the entire panel featuring Gunn, Brosnahan, Hoult, and Corenswet. Here’s the full breakdown of everything that was discussed with the team and moderator Eric Davis of Rotten Tomatoes/Fandango:

Question: [For James] How did you come up with a story that would honor the legacy of the character and the world, while also having it be accessible for a new generation that’s coming to this universe for the first time?

Gunn: When I answer a question like that, I’m really just answering it from perspective of looking back. Because the truth for me is I didn’t come in here, you know, to write a Superman movie and say, “Oh, I’m going to honor this and honor that, and also be new and open to the fans.” Those are kind of thoughts I had along the way of writing script originally and along the path of making the movie. But for me, I wanted to tell a story that excited me and moved me and felt authentic. And it really just started in that. And it took a while to get to the place where the movie was able to begin. Some of it was some of the stuff that you see in the trailer here. But I knew that I wanted to have a Superman that stayed true to his origins of being the ultimate good guy. And I think that it was a movie about kindness. It was a movie about being good. I remember talking to these guys when we had our cast dinner, the night before we started shooting… And like at the end of the day the world doesn’t always seem to have so much good in it. And this movie has to truly be that. In order to truly be that, it means that we had to be good to each other, we had to be good to the crew, and then it had to be that authentically.

Talk about David and choosing him to be the right choice to play both Clark and Kal-El.

You know, for me, I mean, there was one person who visited the set and said, “oh my God! He’s got such ‘Superman face.'” But the thing I think that, you know, connects him so much, in some ways, to Christopher Reeve is he has a lot of deep training. Like I’ve never worked in my entire life with such a rigorous actor. He challenged me on a daily basis to really get the most out of this character. Get the most out of this story. Everything he does in the movie is utterly true. You don’t ever have a moment even watching David, where David did something that feels stupid or that doesn’t feel real, like he’s faking it or he’s phoning it in. Never. He’s always completely present. And it was, you know, sort of miraculous that, you know, the funniest thing is, I got Rachel’s and David’s self tapes on our very first day of casting. So the thing that I was the most worried about was casting Superman in the process. And after the first day, I was like, “I think that guy’s pretty good.”

[For David] What was something of your own that you wanted to bring to the role [of Superman]?

Corenswet: I sometimes experience a mismatch with people where I don’t get what somebody means by something or something that happened in a room, where some people knew that there was some conflict going on, or did somebody said something inappropriate, and I sort of missed that. I was always cut out of the drama when I was in school, and I never, nobody ever cared to update me about it; the exciting, juicy gossip that was going on. And for that reason, I always sort of saw people as the best versions of themselves, and saw relationships as the best versions of themselves. I don’t think it was in a terribly naive way. I think a lot of people consider Superman to be a naive character, at least to have a naivete about him. I think there’s an element of that, but I think it really is just sort of a blindness to the little imperfections and the little conflicts — the silly little things that we get caught up with as people. I tend to miss those, and I think Superman misses those, and that’s what keeps him steadfastly and determinedly looking at the good and the hopeful and the future, and grounded in the fun and playfulness of the present. Yeah, that was something that really excited me, because it ties back to the culture on the set, which was very much we’re here to make something great, but most importantly, we’re here to take care of each other and to honor each other’s work.

You’re not just Superman, you’re also Clark Kent. So tell us about who Clark is. Is his secret identity completely safe? Or is it perhaps close to being found out? What can you say?

Not much… He’s early in his career at the Daily Planet. He’s established, but he certainly, he’s no Lois Lane. And so he’s, I think he’s trying to make a name for himself as a reporter. He’s trying to fit in with the other exceptional journalists at the Planet. And I think he’s sort of dipping his toe in the water and figuring out who he can trust and who he can’t, who he’s going to trust first.

[To Rachel] What is your favorite thing about your Lois, and what is your favorite thing about her [in general]?

Brosnahan: I’ve always been inspired by this character. She’s somebody who is ambitious and courageous and hungry and determined to get the greatest story, almost at any cost. I’ve always loved this character, and was so excited by the opportunity to bring all of those things that have been true of her in every iteration. But also, one of the things I love about this character is that almost more than any other character in these comics, in the movie, she evolves to fit what it means to be an intrepid journalist of each generation or each decade that she’s presented in. So I think our challenge, and James and I were talking about this, I think before the chemistry read, about how she might fit into the canon today. Today, we’re living in a world where print journalism, to some, is perhaps an endangered art form, and she’s somebody who has dedicated her entire life to it. And then I think as far as what else is different, you’ll have to wait and see. But I love that she’s somebody who doesn’t understand what the word “no” means, and it’s motivating for her.

[For Nicholas] What can you say about Lex? Who is he when we meet him in this film? And what is top of mind?

Hoult: The most exciting thing about this Lex is being inside a James Gunn universe. He’s emotionally raw and powerful, and huge in the scope of the world and what James has created… I mean, obviously he’s smart and ruthless, and he has to outmaneuver Superman on certain levels, because he can’t match him in others. But there’s also something about this character, hopefully, from my standpoint, where even though you perhaps don’t agree with his process, there’s an element where you can understand, on some levels, where he’s coming from and why perhaps what he’s pushing as his ideology is perhaps better than that.

[For James] Can you speak to the relationship between Superman and Krypto in this film, and also your choice to begin the trailer with Superman at his most vulnerable?

Gunn: Because I think we’re seeing that from the beginning a little bit of a different side of Superman than what we see normally on the screen. And that this movie, at the end of the day, is not about power. This movie is about a loose term of the word for “human being,” and who Superman is as a person and as a person struggling with his day to day life. And we see a different aspect of him. So I thought it was a cool place to start the trailer, frankly. And then his relationship with Krypto is complicated… But, yeah, I also thought that it was, you know, a way to say that, yes, we’re embracing all of the Superman mythology, right? You know, there’s a way that superhero movies have taken these characters and said, “okay, yeah, it’s Batman, but it’s not any of the other stuff. It’s Superman, but it’s not any of the other stuff.” But this is an alternative history, fantasy world where superheroes exist, but it’s also incredibly grounded. It’s about real people having real lives. They just happen to be metahumans. But Superman has friends that are other superheroes. And he has enemies, or he doesn’t get along as well with other superheroes. He’s got a flying dog. A fortress that springs from the ground. He has a lot of things when he fights giant monsters. He has a lot of the things that we love from the Superman comics and the Superman mythology that we haven’t been able to see as much of in film or media, and definitely haven’t been able to see in other films yet.

Rachel, I’m coming to you for this one… what can you tell us about the connection/bond between Superman and Lois?

Brosnahan: Well not a whole lot… They’re close. They have been close at recent moments. But what I love about their relationship, in every iteration of the comic books and all the films, is that they they’re soulmates. They’re united in the fact that they are both in momentous pursuits of truth and justice, but they approach the world in totally different ways. She’s somebody who, because of her profession, but also because of who she is, she questions everything, she questions everyone, she’s trying to see around every corner. And that’s the way that she faces the world and Superman… she is just radically present in every moment. Superman solves every issue that’s directly in front of him. And I think the ways that they are opposite is something that is fun to watch. It’s fun to watch them kind of bump up against each other (in more ways than one)… they work hard, they play hard, and love hard.

For David, what was something unexpected about playing Superman?

Corenswet: I think the first thing that comes to mind, I’m sure there are many things that I will remember as I think back over time shooting, but the first thing that comes to mind is the difference between the feeling of playing Superman, which is not, is not that glamorous. It’s a lot of being tied up to cranes and pulleys and having your legs held up by some men, you know, to get you in the right position. And the suit, I think, looks a lot cooler than it feels. Literally on a hot day I’m cooking inside of it. But the thing that took me off guard — there’s also the process of — when people ask about the first time you put on the suit — and when you have the amazing chance to build the suit from the ground up with an amazing costume department, you don’t put on the suit for the first time. You put on parts of it and then gets fitted and more pieces get put in. So for me, it was the first time that other people saw me in the suit. It’s like when you get a nice haircut and you forget about it, but then you walk around, everybody’s like, “whoa. You look great. For once.” So I got to see other people see me as Superman. And I didn’t really feel like Superman, but it was so amazing watching my castmates and the crew members who are also getting to work on this amazing historic piece of media. The moments when they saw it for the first time, or when they saw Superman fly for the first time. Not getting to be that, but getting to witness them witness it. And then the best thing is seeing kids see it when people would bring their kids to set. Getting to see first hand a five or six year old kid see Superman… there’s just nothing like it. It’s amazing.

Gunn: That ties in so well to the thing that I think of so much. Which is when we were designing the costume, I knew certain things were going to be different. I knew that I didn’t want to have it look like a wet t shirt. I didn’t want to have a bunch of fake muscles on it. I didn’t want to have airbrushed abs on it. But it was really a long process of development. And we were standing in the room with [our costume designer], and it was freaking colorful, and had the underwear and the whole thing, you know? And I was like “ugh. I don’t know… it’s so colorful.” And David goes, “Yeah! He’s an alien from outer space who’s super powerful, who doesn’t want children to be afraid of him.” And it touched me in the moment, and it touches me now, as I say it, is that is who he is. And that’s where the costume comes from, and that goes along with Jerry and Joe’s original vision that the you know, hearkening back to wrestlers in the circus and these other things. And that’s who Superman is… he doesn’t want to scare children. He’s got red beams that come out of his eyes that blow up things, you know. But he wants to not be scary to children.

Hoult: When I saw David in the costume I was in awe. I hate to admit it, but it made me feel warm and fuzzy like a kid.

Davis then opened up the floor to questions.

Talk about the use of John Williams’ Superman theme, and making the score different but also somewhat familiar.

Gunn: Yeah, I think that, I knew from the beginning, Williams’ theme — his soundtrack was one of my favorite soundtracks of all time, and when I was a kid, really the thing that I loved the most about the ’78 movie was the music. That was the thing I took home with me, more than anything. But I knew we were doing something that was hearkening back to the past, I was also looking forward to the future. And so it was about finding that balance. John Murphy is a composer who I love working with, and he started working on the music before the script was even finished. And was, you know, one of the first people I gave the script to, along with, you know, Peter Safran and a couple of others, so that he could start making music for it. And I said, I wanted to use a version of the Williams’ theme, but do our own version of it. And so that’s what you hear. What’s really amazing is how that leads into a lot of other pieces, some of which hearken back to the Williams’ theme, but some of which are purely John Murphy. That goes into that and comes back out. And it’s used, you know, beautifully throughout the movie. And John’s worked non-stop for the past almost two years, you know, putting the score together. As a lot of people know, I write the score, the basic elements of the score beforehand, and play those on set while we’re shooting, and we did it with this. But it’s about finding, you know, with everything in this movie, finding that balance between the novel and the traditional, and where to accept both.

For David, was there anything that inspired your performance either from the comics or real-life individuals?

Corenswet: James suggested All-Star Superman, which I did read, and for Clark specifically. I think they’re very interesting challenges with Clark. But it was interesting having a silent version to look at. I hadn’t read so many Superman comics that I had, since all the different Clarks appeared were comics. I knew the ones that appeared on television and films. It was great having a silent one and getting an impression from that. So I drew a lot from that, specifically for Clark. I also loosely stole some stuff from my brother-in-law, who’s 6’8″ and 270 lbs, and has the deepest voice and is always in the way and always trying not to be. Mostly I drew inspiration from the other actors and James. I feel like I want to be living in the world that we’re living in. And so it was when I started working with Rachel that I got clear about who Clark and who Superman was. And especially for Superman, you know, a hero is only as interesting or cool as the nemesis that they’re up against. And so standing with Nick the first time, I started to get clear — I should be careful about spoilers — but that’s where I got so clear about who I am, was because they were clear about who they were.

For everyone, do you remember the first time you saw Superman, and did you carry that experience into this?

Corenswet: The cool thing about Superman is, I feel like I knew what Superman was before I’d ever seen it. Anywhere you can show a kid the Superman symbol and whether they’ve seen a comic or a movie or not, they know that that’s Superman. It’s just bigger than any one iteration. For me, I definitely [remember] seeing episodes of Smallville growing up after school, and I remember seeing Superman Returns in the theaters. That was sort of when I was coming of age and I remember that iteration. Since then, I’ve seen so many iterations and read so much that it sort of all jumbles together.

Brosnahan: Mine was definitely the Christopher Reeve Superman… he was Superman for me for a long time. But I do have to say, like, you know, I feel like you (David) turned to me during the thing that we were shooting. I saw the Superman suit in action, later in the process than I think some other folks had, and I just remember, without giving anything away, we were like walking through a field and following you with the suit on. And I think I ran up to you and said “you’re f**king Superman!” So now it’s David, forever.

Hoult: It’s so ingrained in our culture that I knew about Superman and Kryptonite and all these things before I’d even seen any film or show. Smallville was again, that for us was my real understanding of the world. And Michael [Rosenbaum] had been a fantastic Lex.

How did you add in the film the idea that Superman represents American decency in the world, and is the electric guitar version of the Williams’ theme in the trailer a parallel to Jimi Hendrix’s version of the National Anthem?

Gunn: When you watch the trailer and see the battered version of Superman, I think that is our country. And I believe in the goodness of human beings, and I believe in that most people in this country, despite their, you know, ideological beliefs and their politics, are doing their best to get by and trying to be good people. Despite what may seem like “the other side,” whatever that “other side” might be. And I think… this movie is about… the basic kindness of human beings, and that it can be seen as uncool and it can be seen as under siege, when some of the darker voices are some of the louder voices…. I live in the very rural part of Georgia, and, you know, I see those kinds of people every day, who don’t share all the same political beliefs as I do. But I think that’s what the movie is about. Basic kindness all over the world. [As for the Hendrix parallel], oh no. Never thought about that until now, but it makes sense.

[For James] What blew me away about the trailer was there’s this combination of just realism to it, but then also the fantastical portions (when we see Shayera and Guy Gardner and all those guys). Can you talk about the challenges of trying to blend reality and grittiness with fantastical elements, and how that all ties together?

Gunn: Yeah. I mean, that’s my primary thing I do when I’m marching forward step by step, in writing the script, in filming the movie and cutting it together. It’s to keep this fantastical world that, in a lot of ways, shares as many elements with Game of Thrones as it does with, say, the Marvel Universe. It’s this other world where metahumans happen to exist. People do put on costumes and fight crimes for all very different reasons, which you’ll see in the movie. Superman’s reasons are different than Mr. Terrific’s reasons. But to just try to — within that reality, if this thing was real — that’s always my start. If there was a super dog, what would it be like? If there was a talking raccoon, where would it have come from? That was the premise that got me started thinking about Guardians of the Galaxy back in 2011. That’s what started the whole trilogy of stories. And it is trying to ground everything about land issues, it might be, in reality fortresses. And then, of course part of this like — the thing that I think is really going to surprise people — every once in a while, I just kind of get this crazy moment where I go “oh my god, wait till they see the movie.” It’s the humanity that these actors bring. We don’t short shrift the relationships between these characters and the way they see the world. And the heart of the movie, is about these three characters in how they see the world. And they all believe they’re seeing it in the correct way, and they see it in three very different ways. Two of them are slightly more aligned in action than the third. But that at the end of the day, that is the important element of this movie. And when you’re talking about grounding a film, it’s the conversations that the characters have. It isn’t, you know, a comedy like Guardians. It’s really about, you know, the relationship between these characters and the conversations, as much as it is about the flying dog and the woman with wings and the mad scientist stuff.

How do you describe what you intended for people to walk away feeling when the credits roll on Superman?

Gunn: It’s about the essential kindness of who this character is and what this means for us as individuals. The trailer team will tell you, I was incredibly rigorous with the trailer. And it went through a lot of iterations until I was was was happy with it. And there was only one thing that was on the forefront of my mind: that the trailer had to be an authentic representation of what the film is. It doesn’t have to have every single element that’s in the film, obviously, but it has to show what is the basic essence of the movie and the story we’re coming at. And I think that it does that, but it took a lot of work to get there. And I want to give a shout out to a couple of people. Ben Stringfellow is an assistant editor who put together the teaser that we would show to all the visitors that came to set. And I kept saying to the editors, “why isn’t this more like the teaser, which got everybody emotional?” And I remember I was showing it to one of the actors… she’s in the movie, but she was in my trailer. And I showed her it, and I looked over and she’s sobbing. And my assistant, Michael comes in, and there’s a sobbing actor that I just met… But these guys are an important part of the team and putting this thing together, and they have come to, I think, start to understand what I am like, (I see one of our executives back here laughing at me) in terms of really trying to wring the best out of everything as much as possible. But for this, it was kind of easy, because I had my true north, which was the movie itself, and what is, “how can I make this trailer like the movie?” I kept getting things a little bit off, and I wanted it to feel like the movie.

Can you talk about the decision not to include the title in this trailer, and just the DC Studios logo?

Gunn: It just felt good… You have to go with your gut and what feels right. And I had some people around me, including Peter Safran, whose guts I trust. And my own just seems to be — I have the narrowest of guts, meaning I’m the one who likes the least amount of things… We make it work.

Was there anything in the character that excited you as an actor to explore?

Brosnahan: Lois isn’t always graceful in her pursuit of the truth and the things that she cares about. I think so often with these characters, the thing that is their biggest strength can also be the thing that undoes her. And so just speaking for myself, I find her relentlessness to be something that is really inspiring. And also that quality of asking endless questions, is one of the things that makes her an everyday superhero… but it’s also the thing that can undo her. Sometimes it can sort of help build a wall around her that doesn’t always let the squishier stuff in. And so it was fun to play with those different sides of the coin.

Brosnahan’s answer wrapped up the incredible panel. Overall, it was terrific and wonderful to spend time with these actors and Gunn to discuss, with all the excitement in the world, the next coming of the Man of Steel. The big takeaway, as previously mentioned, was kindness.

What really stuck out to me was Gunn’s approach to the film. This is a movie about characters with completely different outlooks on life and different philosophies. But kindness and goodness can still exist underneath humanity overall regardless of those ideologies. We just have to look closer and harder to find it. Thus, I suppose it makes sense that a man with X-Ray vision can see it better than we can at times. That said, if the film is half as hopeful and epic as the terrific trailer that dropped today, I think it has the potential to make a heck of an impact on audiences everywhere.