Major spoilers for DC’s Superman lie ahead so, with that knowledge, read on at your own discretion.
James Gunn’s Superman is finally in theaters and, having seen the film for myself, I can say that the writer/director really put his foot into this feature film. There are plenty of comic book-inspired thrills as well as slew of excellent character moments. As you’d expect, the first film in DCU Chapter 1: Gods and Monsters also has credits scenes. However, they’re not exactly the kinds of tags that fans have come to expect from superhero films. Gunn has his reasons for that, and Chris Hemsworth’s Thor is involved.
Before landing the job of DC Studios’ co-CEO, James Gunn worked within the Marvel Cinematic Universe, crafting the Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy and executive-producing Avengers: Infinity War and Endgame. The MCU is famous for its mid and post-credits scenes, which are typically designed to set up other productions. Based on the comments that Gunn shared with EW, it seems that he wanted to do his best to avoid that with his first DCU flick:
I have a philosophy about post-credit scenes. It's somewhat related to my own mistakes in my time with Marvel.
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The Superman credits scenes are the antithesis of many that are featured in the MCU films (which can be streamed with a Disney+ subscription). During the mid-credits scene, the Man of Steel sits on the moon, holding Krypto in his arms while they look at Earth. That moment, while brief and subtle, is actually a nod to a scene from the comic book All-Star Superman. As for the post-credits scene, it sees Supes and Mr. Terrific humorously talking about a building in Metropolis due to the black hole created by Lex Luthor.
With those tags, James Gunn seemed more concerned with warming audiences’ hearts and making them laugh than worldbuilding. A major motivator for Gunn’s rationale, as he explained, was the ending of Avengers: Endgame, which saw Thor’s arc take a major turn, when he joined the Guardians of the Galaxy. During that time, fans assumed there was a chance Chris Hemsworth’s God of Thunder would join the cosmic adventurers in Vol. 3, but Gunn wasn’t having it:
I said in the script notes: 'I’m not gonna put him in. I don’t want to have Thor in the Guardians. I don’t want to do a movie with Thor. I don’t understand the character that much. I love watching his movies and I love Chris Hemsworth as a guy. I don't understand how to write that character.
That narrative situation was ultimately resolved with the Guardians playing a small role in 2022’s Love and Thunder, during which the group parted ways with the Asgardian Avenger. James Gunn also went on to say that he took issue with one of his credits scenes in Guardians Vol. 2, which set up the character of Adam Warlock. Nevertheless, Gunn was able to work Warlock into Vol. 3 in a way that made sense to the narrative.
What James Gunn’s Superman credits-scenes seem to indicate is that with the DCU, such end tags won’t be used for the sole purpose of teeing up what’s to come. It wouldn’t be surprising if some of them do, yet it sounds like Gunn is of the thinking that he doesn’t want to lock himself into certain plot threads. That makes sense, and I’m hopeful that it means the closing scenes in this budding franchise’s films will vary.
Check out Superman, one of the biggest titles on the 2025 movie schedule, as it’s currently playing in theaters nationwide. Also, to get a sense of the MCU's post-credit scenes, stream the various films (and TV shows) on Disney+.
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