Hollywood is in the middle of another WGA Writers Strike, with the last one lasting 100 days from November 2007 to February 2008. Whether this new one will go for nearly as long or perhaps longer remains to be seen, but for now, various TV shows are already feeling the effects of the writers strike, and it’ll obviously start affecting film productions too. However, word’s come in that Superman: Legacy, which DC Studios co-head James Gunn is directing and writing, is safe on the scripting side of things.
As the first upcoming DC movie slated for the new DC Universe’s Chapter One slate of projects, there’s a lot riding on Superman: Legacy, the first standalone theatrical Superman movie to be released since Man of Steel in 2013. Well, according to The Wrap, Gunn turned in his first draft last week, mere days before before the writers strike kicked off. As such, this event is not expected to interfere with the timetable, with Legacy’s preproduction having begun last month and principal photography expected to start around February 2024.
Although James Gunn had indicated that his Superman: Legacy script was complete, it’s good to hear that it was properly filed before the writers strike. However, the article notes that this was the “first draft,” and anyone remotely familiar with filmmaking knows that even people as talented as Gunn make revisions from there. Even when a movie does start shooting, changes to dialogue and even story beats can be made on the fly, and Gunn is particularly known for coming up with ideas on set to implement immediately. The point being, as long as this writers strike is going on, Gunn will not be able to tweak his Legacy script in any way until it’s over.
Still, if the writer/director feels confident enough to begin Superman: Legacy’s preproduction, then evidently he’s comfortable enough with his script to leave it untouched at least for a little bit. Gunn actually had the opportunity to make a Superman movie years ago, but he decided to do The Suicide Squad instead. When the opportunity came his way again to leave a cinematic stamp on the Man of Steel, he was ready to seize it, and that was on top of his duties running DC Studios with Peter Safran.
Naturally specific plot details for Superman: Legacy haven’t been revealed yet, but the movie is taking a cue from The Batman by following a younger Clark Kent, but not delving into his origin story again. The storyline is partially inspired by Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely’s All-Star Superman, and while it remains to be seen when we’ll learn who’s playing the new Clark/Kal-El, Gunn said he’s looking for "somebody who has all of the humanity that Superman has, but he's also an alien,” and can also express the character’s kindness and compassion. Whoever is cast will succeed Henry Cavill, who played Superman in four DCEU movies (counting both versions of Justice League) and was originally going to conintue as the character following his cameo in Black Adam until those plans were shelved.
Superman: Legacy is set to hit theaters on July 11, 2025. Keep visiting CinemaBlend for updates on its progress and use your HBO Max subscription if you’d like the stream any of the older DC movies in order.
