The upcoming Superman is expected to be directed by writer-director James Gunn: Legacy in accordance with a previously announced reboot of the DC Superman series.
On Thursday, the director of Guardians of the Galaxy made the announcement via Instagram. Before he and Peter Safran took over as co-heads of DC Studios in November of last year, he had already begun writing the film.
James shared a picture of superman on his Instagram and wrote, “Yes, I’m directing Superman: Legacy to be released on July 11, 2025. My brother Matt said, when he saw the release date, he started to cry. I asked him why. He said, “Dude, it’s Dad’s birthday.” I hadn’t realized. It has been a long road to this point. I was offered Superman years ago – I initially said no because I didn’t have a way in that felt unique and fun and emotional that gave Superman the dignity he deserved. Then a bit less than a year ago I saw a way in, in many ways centering around Superman’s heritage – how both his aristocratic Kryptonian parents and his Kansas farmer parents inform who he is and the choices he makes. So I chose to finally take on writing the script. But I was hesitant to direct, despite the constant pestering by Peter Safran and others to commit (sorry, Peter). Just because I write something doesn’t mean I feel it in my bones, visually and emotionally, enough to spend over two years directing it, especially not something of this magnitude. But, the long and the short of it is, I love this script, and I’m incredibly excited as we begin this journey.”
In the note, Gunn gave some details about the way he envisioned the new Superman project and the importance of Superman’s heritage.
Despite the fact that the British actor had previously portrayed the superhero in films like Man of Steel (2013) and Batman v Superman: Justice League and Dawn of Justice (2016). When Safran and Gunn took over DC last year, it became clear that they would be casting a younger person to play the superhero.
One of the projects Gunn and Safran had previously teased as part of what they called DC’s Chapter 1: God and Monsters, which claims to be a unified narrative told through a variety of films, television shows, and video games. Supergirl: One of the project’s other titles The Authority and Woman of Tomorrow. The Batman Part II by Matt Reeves, which will be released in theaters on October 3, 2025, is one example of a title that will also be shown on the big screen.