Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrowis no longer the title of the Girl of Steel’s firstDC Universemovie. While there are reports that Kara Zor-El will first appear inJames Gunn’sSupermanmovie, the official first project for the character on theDCU’s slate of releasesis a Supergirl solo film. The project is based on theSupergirl: Woman of Tomorrowcomics written by Tom King, one of the architects of the DCU, and drawn by Bilquis Evely. While the Supergirl movie will remain linked to the comic book run, their titles will no longer be the same.
Speaking withRolling Stone,James Gunn revealed that Milly Alcock’s DCU movie will just be calledSupergirl. Gunn remembered how he was originally going to call his Superman rebootSuperman: Legacybefore deciding to shorten the title to just the hero’s name. While he did not directly state why he changed the Supergirl title, he mentions that he is “sick of the superhero title, colon, other-name thing.” His experience withSupermancertainly seems to have impactedDC’s upcoming Supergirl movie. Check out the full quote below:
“Rolling Stone: That’s no longer called Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow, correct?
James Gunn: I think it’s just called Supergirl.”
Rolling Stone: Your Superman movie was first calledSuperman: Legacy,and now it’s justSuperman.
James Gunn: Yeah. I’m always cutting. “Legacy” was really — we do something called a premortem. A premortem is you get together with your group that’s doing the project. It’s usually about a couple months before shooting, and you go, hypothetically, “If it’s an epic disaster, what are the things that we’re doing today that are going to cause it to be an epic disaster? Everyone here can speak freely.” The things you find on other productions are the things that people are whispering. “Oh, God, I don’t know why they cast that actor — he doesn’t fit the role.” Or, “The production designer’s never on time.” One of the things I brought up was, it was calledSuperman: Legacy.Even though I was the one that gave it that title, I just wasn’t sure. First of all, I’m sick of the superhero title, colon, other-name thing. And then also it seemed to be looking back when we’re looking forward, even though it does have to do with legacy in the movie itself. And everybody was like, “Oh, yeah, no, change it.”
What The DCU’s New Supergirl Movie Title Means
James Gunn Is Making One DC Movie Decision Clear
With his new DC movie title comments and the change fromSupergirl: Woman of TomorrowtoSupergirl, James Gunn is sending a clear message of what he wants to see from the future of the DCU. While subtitles for films will inevitably have to become a thing for the DCU when sequels enter the picture, it seems likemost of the first films for the DCU’s heroes and villains will just carry the name of the projects' main characters, as is the case withSupermanandSupergirl.
That said, Batman’s status in the DCU suggests that while the majority of films could follow theSupergirlpattern, not all of them will. In the same interview, James Gunn confirmed that, for the time being, Batman’s first solo film in the DCU — which will include Damian Wayne’s live-action debut and other players in the Bat-Family — isstill being calledThe Brave and the Bold. DC’s slate includes projects likeThe Authority,Waller,Lanterns,Booster Gold,Swamp Thing, and more, all following theSupermanandSupergirlpattern.
Our Take On The DCU’s New Supergirl Movie Title
I’m a bit mixed on the DCU Supergirl movie’s new title. While I like the idea of going for a simpler approach to DCU movie titles in Chapter One as a whole, followingSuperman’s lead, I’m a huge fan of theSupergirl: Woman of Tomorrowcomics. As such, based on how the project should be following them — thoughthere are changes like the addition of Jason Momoa as Lobo— I thought it was good for the movie to share a title with the comics. That said, I don’t think it impactsSupergirl’s performance at all, so it is fine.
