At the trailer launch we attended, Hoult described how he sees Luthor’s relationship with the blue-eyed boy scout. “He’s smart and ruthless; he has to outmaneuver Superman on certain levels because he can’t match him in others. But there’s also something about this character, hopefully, from my standpoint, where even though you perhaps don’t agree with his process there’s an element where you can understand on some levels where he’s coming from and why perhaps what he’s pushing as his ideology is better for humanity.”
While we don’t know what that ideology is yet, something that’s noticeably absent from the trailer are the members of the Authority. Could Lex be in cahoots with them? Perchance trying to start a new league of superheroes? Either way, we see Lex holding a pistol that we’d bet has some kryptonite bullets in the chamber.
One of the most exciting pieces of casting in the sprawling Superman universe is Barry’s NoHo Hank himself, Anthony Carrigan, as Metamorpho. We get a momentary glimpse of his gray face and striking blue eyes but that’s not the only Metamorpho moment. After Superman walks through the streets where he’s being pelted with trash, he heads into a large empty building that we see via a small lit up screen is none other than Stagg Industries.
First introduced in 1965’s Metamorpho #1, Stagg Enterprises—but Industries in the trailer—was owned by Simon Stagg in the comics where he employed Rex Mason, aka Carrigan’s Metamorpho! It’ll be interesting to see how Metamorpho and Stagg Industries play into the wider story, especially as this ends up being the first moment we meet the film’s other heroes.
Superman Isn’t the Only Hero
It’s been clear since the outset that James Gunn and Peter Safran’s DCU was going to be inhabited by all kinds of superheroes and Superman would feature a smorgasbord of capes. We see a smattering of them here, beginning with Nathan Fillion’s Guy Gardner (aka one of the Green Lanterns!). Guy arrives in Stagg Industries with his iconic bowl cut. His Lantern powers look great and he’s not alone.
We quickly see Hawkgirl (Isabela Merced) flying through the sky and Mister Terrific (Edi Gathegi) facing down an unseen foe before he reappears in a large red forcefield. With heroes like this it’s a curious thing to wonder if they are members of any kind of society or, ahem, league. Nothing in the trailer confirms that but we do get a few good villains. Aside from Lex, we also see a huge kaiju-like monster breathing fire into a skyscraper in Metropolis.