It’s been a surprising summer for audiences, with surefire blockbusters like The Mandalorian and Grogu and Disclosure Day being met with vitriol and middling or underwhelming returns by mainstream audiences. While potential crowd-pleasers like Toy Story 5 and Spider-Man: Brand New Day are on the horizon, audiences still seem disappointed in big budget studio blockbusters. Thankfully, like the Kryptonian shield of the House of El symbolizes, I have hope that Supergirl will help save the summer.
Fun, action packed, big budget spectacles used to be enough for audiences in the summer movie season. However, today, audiences want more. Blockbusters need to be likable, enjoyable, smarter, and more emotional. Thankfully, for me, Supergirl has been the first summer blockbuster of 2026 that checks every single one of those boxes. And I have a suspicion I won’t be the only one.
Last year, the DC Universe kicked off with Superman acting as a successful relaunch of the brand for DC Studios critically and commercially. Though I’m personally a fan of the James Gunn film, after seeing the Craig Gillespie-directed adaptation of Tom King and Bilquis Evely’s Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow, I can confidently say Supergirl is even better.
Like the Woman of Tomorrow storyline, Supergirl follows Kara Zor-El (Milly Alcokc) as she and a young alien girl named Ruthye Marye Knoll (Eve Ridley) chase down a ruthless alien killer named Krem of the Yellow Hills (Matthias Schoenaerts). Krem and his gang of Brigands murdered Ruthye’s parents and critically poisoned Krypto. So to save her beloved furious furball, Kara must find the intergalactic assassin, take him down and take the antidote from him, or risk losing the single part of her home she still has left.
Unlike most superhero tentpoles, Supergirl benefits from being a much more intimate and personal, character-driven story, which avoids MacGuffins and cliches like apocalyptic sky beams. At its core it’s a movie about finding strength to overcome trauma and preserving innocence, taking notes more from films like Logan or True Grit (which was one of the original inspirations for the comic storyline). As such, it manages to feel incredibly fresh and sincerely emotional, both in its writing and execution.
While many may see certain scenes of Gillespie’s adaptation, and easily write it off as “another Guardians of the Galaxy,” those comparisons would honestly only end at surface level aspects like the visuals of the intergalactic settings and aliens and the soundtrack. However, when assessing the film for what it really is, and the story Gillespie and writer Ana Nogueira are trying to tell, it’s a lot more mature and much darker than most other family-friendly MCU films or even Gunn’s Superman. Yet it’s also a lot brighter, more hopeful, and far more coherent and competently made than installments in the now defunct DCEU.
Nogueira’s script is incredibly focused and wonderfully touching. She understands who Kara is, centering the film on her personal and emotional struggles, and evolving her and Ruthye through the course of their journey together. The heart of the movie is their amazing relationship and how they change each other, making their relationship and their motivations drive the narrative rather than the other way around.
She also manages to jettison some of the unnecessary aspects of the graphic novel. Shifting the POV of the film from Ruthye’s perspective to Kara’s makes for a much stronger story and arc for Supergirl herself. It also eliminates much of King’s verbose narration, conveying changes to both Ruthye and Kara’s characters without ever having to demonstrate those changes through voice overs (as the graphic novel does).
She also manages to incorporate Lobo seamlessly, and smartly reveals Kara’s backstory in ways that emotionally make sense and effectively drive the narrative and relationships. Kara’s backstory is not just an exposition dump. It’s a necessary part of showing why Krypto matters so much to Kara, defining her arc in the film, and evolving her relationship with Ruthye.
Gillespie’s vision of the film completely compliments Nogueira’s script. It’s refreshing when tonally, this may be the first superhero movie in a long time that doesn’t undercut the serious moments with humor. When we go into the backstory for where Kara’s trauma comes from, Gillespie doesn’t just follow that up with a dumb joke. He wants us, as the audience, to process her feelings, understand why she is the way she is, understand what she wants Ruthye to know and why, because it’s important to the story. He still incorporates the humor into the film, but when appropriate and not constantly. He also adds a sense of real peril and tension into the movie, allowing for Ridley to shine as much as Alcock in the movie in many scenes.
The pacing is also brisk without ever feeling rushed, as the events progress in ways that feel logical and escalate accordingly both narratively and emotionally. Outside of Cruella, Supergirl might be one of the first big budget mainstream blockbusters of Gillespie’s career, but his character-first approach to filmmaking is the reason why the film feels more successful than others in the genre.
On a performance level, there’s three we must absolutely dive into. First and foremost, Alcock is an absolute force to be reckoned with! She leads this movie with both vulnerability and strength. She understands, much like Nogueira, that Kara is not Clark, but manages to make the character immediately likable and immensely complex. Her ability to navigate between the fun, negligent side of Kara, the somberness of her survivor’s guilt, and the responsible hero makes her even more human than David Corenswet’s homespun depiction of Kal-El, and infinitely more multi-dimensional and interesting. Simply put, she is hands down the best actor to ever portray Kara in any medium thus far.
The next performance we absolutely need to discuss is rising star, Ridley. This is arguably the biggest role of the young Filipina-British actress’ career thus far, and a massive breakthrough for her. Ruthye is a character that could have easily been annoying, which even extends to her graphic novel counterpart. However in the hands of Ridley, the character never feels that way. Ridley plays Ruthye with a sense of calming intelligence and competence that never feels precocious or obnoxious. Her ability to mirror Alcock’s tortured nature beat for beat allows for them to have an easy sisterly chemistry, and allows us to connect to their relationship instantly. In many ways, it’s a performance that evokes Hailee Steinfeld’s breakout in True Grit, and one that serves as a promise that we can expect great things from her to come.
The final performance that absolutely deserves praise is Jason Momoa as Lobo. This is absolutely the role the charismatic badass was born to play, because he is pitch-perfect as the character. His passion for the character adds to the performance significantly, and brings a sense of chaotic fun into the film to truly enhance its action beats and humor. It’s as if the character fully leaped off the pages of the comic and into reality, thanks to impressive makeup effects and costume design, and a swagger to absolutely match every element that makes Lobo The Main Man. It’s not a significant role per se (and it doesn’t have to be since the movie should never lose focus on Kara or Ruthye). However, it absolutely adds a firecracker of spice and fandom fun to the film.
The biggest flaw in the movie, however, is one even some of the best comic book films have trouble with: defining a compelling villain. I will admit that this interpretation of Krem of the Yellow Hills is stronger than the version from the graphic novel (which honestly was just some bearded red-headed dude). The makeup job and the costumes truly make him feel intimidating. Unfortunately there’s just no dimension to this very generic character. It’s a forgivable offense because, like Lobo, the movie knows where to spend its time (defining Kara and Ruthye’s relationship). However, it would have been nice to have them fight a villain that actually had some depth to him. He might be a scary looking villain, with Schoenaerts doing his best to make him imposing, but he’s certainly not a complex one.
I will also say that, like Superman, the visual effects do have occasional blemishes. I think, similar to other superhero films post 2019, every effects shot feels a bit too glossy or cartoonish in spots. For the most part, the movie still manages to avoid visual effects pitfalls that other films like Quantumania or Thor: Love and Thunder fell into. However, some shots feel like they could have been better developed.
However, the movie sounds terrific! That’s thanks to strong score from composer Claudia Sarne, which feels modern and triumphant, and most of all, it’s absolutely impressive use of needle drops with an assortment of terrific songs. As we saw with his use of Blondie and Jimmy Ruffin in the trailers (ironically not in the movie actually), Gillespie showcases that he has a good grasp for when to play a song and what it means to the scene. Perhaps Gunn’s influence? There’s an incredible climactic set piece, for instance where a cover of Jimmy Eat World’s “The Middle” plays unexpectedly. It works so well in tandem with the gorgeous visuals of the scene, taken from the perspective of a specific character. The use of the song elevated the scene from being a generic action beat to something much more emotional, and it’s because Gillespie knows how to use music to prioritize character over action and spectacle.
Overall, no other film so far this summer has made me feel what Gillespie, Nogueira, Alcock, and the entire crew were able to put together with Supergirl. At the time of writing this, it is definitively the best blockbuster of the summer; driven by its heart and characters first, but enhanced by terrific, fun action and an intimate story. Alcock leads the film with an incredible complex performance that’s funny, emotional, and so incredibly strong. And she’s supported by terrific performances from breakout star Ridley, and an energetic and fun turn from Momoa. If Gunn’s Superman was a strong kick off to the DCU, consider Supergirl to be the defining turning point in solidifying the legitimacy of this franchise’s impressive quality. Smart, emotional, and action packed, Supergirl is proof that audiences can have it all, soaring high as one of the best DC films ever put to screen!
Overall Score: A-
Supergirl hits theaters this Friday!
