David Corenswet is imagined as two of DC Comics’ most famous versions of evil Superman for James Gunn’s DC Universe. The next cinematic version of the Man of Steel is on its way as Corenswet’s Superman movie will be flying into theaters in 2025. Set to focus on a younger version of Superman, Gunn’s movie will be the first film to come out of Chapter 1, “Gods and Monsters.”
While Gunn’s Superman movie is still in production, there are still a lot of unanswered questions about Corenswet’s movie. As the world keeps speculating, Horrific Heroics shared two DC Universe artwork pieces of Corenswet as alternative versions of the Man of Tomorrow.
The first piece by Horrific Heroics shows what Corenswet could potentially look like as Bizarro, best known to DC readers as a failed clone or mirror version of Superman. While Bizarro has not been depicted on the big screen yet, he has appeared in numerous live-action Superman TV shows, including Smallville and Superman & Lois.
The other pitch from Horrific Heroics shows Corenswet as Ultraman, who is Superman’s doppelganger from Earth-3, and one of the founding members of the Crime Syndicate of America. Ultraman made his live-action debut in Smallville season 10, with Tom Welling playing him, going by Clark Luthor from Earth-2, which despite its number designation, was meant to be the TV show’s take on Earth-3.
Will James Gunn’s DC Universe Movie Explore An Evil Superman Story?
While Gunn has confirmed the villain in the Superman movie to be Lex Luthor, there are still a lot of theories about whether or not there may be other foes in the story. There had also been rumors floating around that Ultraman would supposedly be featured in Superman, but with a twist. Rather than be a multiverse version of Krypton’s last son, the movie would allegedly depict Ultraman as a clone, essentially merging him and Bizarro.
However, it didn’t take long for Gunn to debunk the Superman villain theories, stating that Lex would be the antagonist. While Superman may not explore the concept of an evil Man of Steel in this film, that doesn’t mean future DC Universe movies and/or TV shows couldn’t tackle it down the line. The multiverse angle is likely also something DC Studios will stay away from for the foreseeable future after The Flash movie in 2023.
Bizarro would make more sense to introduce into the DC Universe before Ultraman, as that character would be more fitting to bring in once they explore something like the Crime Syndicate of America as a parallel to the Justice League. It will also be more rewarding to see Corenswet’s Superman face different versions of himself once he has gotten established within the DC Universe. Hopefully, more updates about the Superman movie are on their way as they get closer to wrapping principal photography.
