James Gunn Announces He Will Be the Director of the Movie Superman: Legacy

After announcing the entire plan that James Gunn has prepared for DC in the coming years, it is now confirmed that he himself will be the director of the first film called Superman: Legacy.

Unsurprisingly, Superman is one of the biggest on the DCU movie slate after the controversy over Henry Cavill’s return and subsequent firing.

Not much is known about Superman: Legacy, but James Gunn revealed in the tweets announcing that he would be taking the reins on the direction he sees the story as “Centered on Superman’s heritage: how both his Kryptonian aristocratic parents and Kansas farmer parents inform who he is and the choices he makes.”

The story is likely not complete yet, considering it’s set to be released on July 11, 2025. James Gunn uses a very specific piece of art in his announcement tweet. It’s a cover for an issue of the All-Star Superman story drawn by Frank Quitely and written by comic book legend Grant Morrison.

Yes, I’m directing Superman: Legacy to be released on July 11, 2025. My brother Matt told me when he saw the release date he started to cry. I asked him why. He said, “Dude, it’s Dad’s birthday.” I hadn’t realized. pic.twitter.com/ohQNV8nI4g

—James Gunn (@JamesGunn) March 15, 2023

In the story, Superman is dying from extreme overexposure to solar radiation. While this makes him stronger, he also quickly destroys his cells in a way that they cannot regenerate. Superman then uses the time he has left to right many wrongs in his life and prepare things for a world without the Man of Steel.

Given the tone of the story, Superman: Legacy is unlikely to suit this, but it could borrow at least a bit from the story. It’s unknown how far along production is on Superman: Legacy, but it would make sense if it doesn’t go full steam ahead until after the May 5 release of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3.