It’s Superdog! Co-star looks to steal the show in new Superman film

James Gunn, the director of the highly anticipated upcoming Superman reboot, is banking on nostalgia to help his “man of steel” fly, restoring the iconic Superman March music to the film and introducing audiences to the superdog Krypto.

The new trailer for the film marks the big-screen debut of Superman’s four-legged super-pooch, and if social media reaction is any indicator, Krypto looks certain to steal the show when the film is released in July.

Krypto the superdog rescues Superman.Credit: Warner Bros

In the trailer, Superman, played by David Corenswet, is seen injured on a snow drift, and is rescued by Krypto, who arrives on the scene faster than a speeding bullet.

Krypto was first introduced in the comic books as a companion to Superboy – the teenaged version of Superman – in 1955. The Kryptonian pooch has also been seen over the years in the television series Smallville, Titans and most recently Superman & Lois.

In a pre-release press conference, Gunn said the trailer’s glimpse of Krypto is “a sort of simple version of [the relationship between Superman and] Krypto, and in the movie you will realise his relationship with Krypto is much more complicated”. In other interviews, Gunn has described Krypto as a “not-so-good good boy”.

Of the decision to restore the iconic John Williams music suite to the film, Gunn said he instructed British composer John Murphy to “turn it into [something] that will represent this film and this story”.

The suite, originally composed by Williams for the 1980s movies starring Christopher Reeve, became one of the most celebrated soundtrack compositions of all time.

“There’s a very powerful thing about it,” Gunn said. “There’s also a slight melancholy thing about it, and I think those are both parts of this very emotional and touching story that we’re telling through the movie.”

The rebooted Superman is intended to break ground on a new DC Comics “cinematic universe” under the creative direction of Gunn. It supersedes the DC Comics films produced between 2013 and 2023, in which Henry Cavill played Superman.

Those included Man of Steel (2013), Justice League (2017), spin-offs Wonder Woman and Aquaman, and standalones such as Shazam! (2019) and Birds of Prey (2020).

Those films were criticised for their portrayal of Superman as a broken figure, but the new movie appears to restore the character’s heroic nobility.

The trailer features the words “look up”, a reference to one of the iconic phrases associated with the character: “Look up, there in the sky, it’s a bird, it’s a plane it’s … Superman!”

In addition to 31-year-old Corenswet in the dual role of Superman and Clark Kent, the film also stars Rachel Brosnahan as Lois Lane, Nicholas Hoult as villain Lex Luthor, Sara Sampaio as Luthor’s sidekick Miss Teschmacher, and Australian actress Milly Alcock as Superman’s cousin, Supergirl.

The film will also feature other heroes from the DC Comics universe, including Metamorpho (Anthony Carrigan), Green Lantern (Nathan Fillion) and Hawkgirl (Isabela Merced).

Superman will be released internationally in July.

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