Inside Superman New Trailer, Test Screenings’ Mixed Reactions, and David Corenswet’s Toughest Role Yet

The upcoming Superman movie, now titled Superman: Legacy, will remain the talk of the town till it gets released, and even after that, as the audiences and critics love their favorite comic character and would want to have it the same way.

Since this is the first revamp after James Gunn and Peter Safran, DC Studios co-heads have taken over, and they did not want Robert Pattinson to play their Superman. Rather they did verify that Robert Pattinson would remain Batman in Matt Reeves’ trilogy.

Superman new trailer is released at CinemaCon, an annual official event for cinema holders, and that has further stirred fans’ emotions. The movie is already in the test screenings phase, for which James Gunn agreed that minor tweaks have been made, which are only for improvement purposes.

David Corenswet admitted that it is the most challenging role that he has ever played, and he has a reason for it. Read on to know why.   

What was in Superman new trailer shown at CinemaCon?

The timing of dropping a Superman sneak peek at CinemaCon was just amazing. Right before Marvel’s presentation, James Gunn decided to throw this sneak peek trailer of 4 minutes online for Superman that stormed the internet within no time. 

It was also shown at CinemaCon this week. Watch it here first, then we’ll do the talking. 

The footage shows Superman’s dog, Krypto after Superman falls from the sky to the ground. Superman is in pain and whistles out loud to his dog for help. The dog comes running instantly and then drags him into the Fortress of Solitude. 

There, the automatons come running to help him and assist him in, what should we say, repairing with the sunlight. The rest of the footage is the action we are about to be exposed to on July 11 and we just can’t wait. 

The extended cut also signified one thing. DC reboot with Superman is not just a James Gunn plan to reinvent things in the DC verse. He has a purpose behind it- he wants the audience to look closer at the characters and be connected with them.

The automatons and the dog are not just side characters. People can see them as emotional beings who are sensitive to external stimuli. For example, the dog was ecstatic to see Superman, so much so that he was seen running all over him, although Superman was in pain, lying on the ice. As soon as Superman handed him over his cape to drag, he fulfilled his command and performed his duty, just like any good dog.

Similarly, the girl automaton, who is seen giggling, is just as close to a human as we can imagine. James Gunn wants us to explore and care for those characters. Gunn wanted a totally battered sort of Superman who has broken ribs, a damaged bladder, and awful pain all over his body- it is the accurate version that Gunn had in mind. It was extremely sweet when the girl automaton said in a tense situation, “He looked at me!”

We can sum up James Gunn’s idea of Superman here, 

“Back in 2018, I was first offered Superman and I was like ‘Oh my god, that seems so cool … it seems hard…How can you take a character like that, perceived as old-fashioned by many permutations throughout the years … how can you do it for a modern audience? This is a movie that celebrates kindness and human love. I want people to have that magical feeling when they come out of the movie.” [Source]

Superman test screenings get mixed reactions

At the CinemaCon presentation, James Gunn teased the fans by hinting at “pocket universes, sorcery, flying dogs, and Max Fleischer cartoons”, per Comic Book Movie. 

• Some regular internal test screenings have spread chatter over the internet about the possible leaks of Superman’s plot. Following these speculations, it is expected that the pocket dimension could refer to Lex Luthor trapping Superman and Krypto in another dimension.
• By Sorcery, it is inferred that we could see Circe, who made her debut in the animated Creature Commandos series. 
• Flying dog is, of course, Krypto.
• James Gunn has reinvented visuals from Max Fleischer’s Superman cartoons.

However, the test screenings have received some mixed reviews out from insiders. Some have compared it to the Guardians of the Galaxy while others have praised it, saying, “people loved it”. 

Even Anthony Carrigan, who played Rex Mason or Metamorpho, as seen in the trailer, shares his experience that it was wonderful to be a part of this movie, and it “blows” his mind every time he is reminded that he was in the movie. 

It is all because of “James’ trademark” as he has put his heart and intelligence into this DCU work. Carrigan is equally excited about the film and would love to see the final version, which is really “special”. 

Superman is David Corenswet’s toughest role yet

David Corenswet has the cape now and is ready to fly high on July 11, 2025. Although he is elated but he confesses that it is the toughest role he has ever played and realizes how it feels to be the Man of Steel. He said, 

“It’s a great honor to play a role that is so clearly in the public consciousness. You know what his symbol means… It feels like you’re riding a tidal wave of good vibes and creative choices. It’s not a job. It’s the one thing you want to be doing all the time.” [Source]

As per Movie Web, Corenswet went through a thorough physical transformation for this role, gaining 40 pounds of muscle. His personal trainer shared his specific routine and training regimen that helped Corenswet gain over 200 to 240 pounds to gain muscle strength. 

James Gunn asked David Corenswet to be nice and kind, and this is exactly the vision Gunn had in mind when he was making the film. Guess what? This is exactly what his trainer has cited, expressing that David “is the nicest guy ever” and was an apt choice for Superman. 

Genre: Superhero action, adventure, fantasy, sci-fi

Cast: David Corenswet, Rachel Brosnahan, Nicholas Hoult, Edi Gathegi, Anthony Carrigan

Director: James Gunn

Producers: James Gunn, Peter Safran

Writers: James Gunn, Joe Shuster, Jerry Siegel

Release date: July 11, 2025

Are you excited for James Gunn’s Superman? Let us know in the comments.