TK Easter Eggs DC Fans Need to Know
The first trailer for writer-director James Gunn’s “Superman” which premiered Thursday morningmarks the official debut of the new Man of Steel as played by David Corenswet, as well as the love of Superman’s life, Lois Lane (Rachel Brosnahan), and Superman’s archenemy, Lex Luthor (Nicholas Hoult).
talking with Black after a special preview of the trailer at the Warner Bros. lot on Dec. 17, Corenswet said the opportunity to finally show what he’d been working on for over a year and a half was “the best thing ever,” but he shrugged, when asked what it was like to see himself as Superman with an audience for the first time.
“I’m just separating myself,” Corenswet said. “It’s not me up there. It’s Superman. It’s Clark Kent. What’s cool is seeing all your friends up there.”
He’s not just talking about Brosnahan and Hoult, either. When Gunn and his fellow DC Studios co-head Peter Safran first announced their January 2023 outline, they made it clear that their reboot of Superman would also officially reboot the DC Universe as a fully unified creative endeavor that would capture the rich breadth of established characters over nearly 90 years within the wider DC Comics. (The animated DC series “Creature Commandos,” currently streaming on Max, is intended to be a “gentle intro” to the DCU — an appetizer for “Superman’s” main course.)
In practice, this means that for the first time in the live-action “Superman” film franchise, it will launch into the same cinematic universe as dozens upon dozens of metahumans and super-powered creatures ranging from famous in their own right to totally obscure to the general public. Imagine Christopher Reeve’s Superman flying in the first “Superman” movie alongside Martian Manhunter, Hawkman and Blue Beetle — or Robert Downey Jr.’s Tony Stark fighting in the first “Iron Man” movie along with Doctor Strange, Shang-Chi and Wanda Maximoff. The filmmakers and studios behind these earlier comic book movies believed that audiences could only handle one superhero at a time. But thanks to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, moviegoers have been conditioned to accept a movie where a multitude of superheroes occupy the screen at the same time.
And good gravy, there are a lot of them in the first look at Gunn’s new film. Here’s a list of 17 DC characters and Easter eggs — from Superman’s dog to Krypto to Stagg Industries — hidden inside the “Superman” trailer.
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Lois Lane
“The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” star Rachel Brosnahan makes her debut as Lois Lane, Clark’s love interest and co-reporter at the Daily Planet. Lois is a smart and fearless reporter, but is often unaware that Clark and Superman are the same person. Brosnahan is the latest star to play Lois, following Amy Adams, Margot Kidder, Teri Hatcher, Kate Bosworth and more.
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Lex Luthor
Nicholas Hoult, who recently starred in “Nosferatu” and “Juror #2,” is Superman’s ultimate nemesis, the bald and super-smart Lex Luthor. Considered one of the most iconic villains of all time, Lex is the power-hungry CEO of LexCorp, often posing the greatest threat to Superman. Hoult joins a list of actors who have taken on the role, including Jesse Eisenberg, Gene Hackman, Kevin Spacey, Jon Cryer, Michael Cudlitz and more.
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LuthorCorp
Lex Luthor runs LutherCorp, his billion dollar corporation founded by his father. In the comics, it is later renamed LexCorp and is located in the heart of Metropolis.
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Crypto
Superman’s canine best friend Krypto was announced to appear in the film back in October. Gunn revealed that his own adopted dog Ozu inspired him while writing “Superman.”
“I remember thinking, ‘Gosh, how hard would life be if Ozu had superpowers?’ – and thus Krypto entered the script and changed the shape of the story as Ozu changed my life,” Gunn wrote. “What better time to debut the not-so-good-boy Krypto.”
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Guy Gardner
Nathan Fillion (“Castle,” “Firefly”) rocks the red-haired bowl cut as Green Lantern member Guy Gardner. As a member of the Green Lantern Corps, a galactic space police force, Guy can fly and create green light constructs out of his ring. In addition to the bowl cut, he is known for his arrogant and cocky attitude. Fillion is expected to reprise the role in the HBO series “Lanterns,” which stars Aaron Pierce and Kyle Chandler as the famous Lanterns John Stewart and Hal Jordan.
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Hawkgirl
Isabela Merced (“Alien: Romulus”, “Madame Web”) plays the winged heroine Hawkgirl. Several women have taken up the Hawkgirl mantle, and they all have large, bird-like wings and carry an N’te metal mace. Aldis Hodge previously played Hawkman in “Black Adam”.
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Mister Fantastic
Edi Gathegi (“For All Mankind”, “The Blacklist”) plays Mister Terrific, one of the smartest people on the planet and a master inventor. He wears a T-shaped mask on his face and uses a variety of high-tech gadgets.
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Clark Kent
Clark Kent is Superman’s nerdy, bespectacled alter-ego who also works at the Daily Planet. Most people don’t realize that Clark and Superman are the same person, except for Lois Lane.
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Jonathan Kent
Pruitt Taylor Vince and Neva Howell play Jonathan and Martha Kent, known as Pa and Ma Kent, who adopt the young Kryptonian boy when he crash lands on their Kansas farm. They were previously played by Kevin Costner and Diane Lane in the “Man of Steel” and DCEU films.
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Kent Farm
Jonathan and Martha Kent live in Kansas and raise a young superman as their own after he lands from the distant planet Krypton.
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Metamorphosis
Anthony Carrigan (“Barry”) is Metamorpho, who can transform his body into various elements. In the comics, Metamorpho can stretch like rubber, turn into liquids or gases, and gain rock-like strength. Carrigan previously played Batman villain Mr. Zsasz in the series “Gotham”.
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Stagg Industries
Stagg Industries is another mega-corporation run by billionaire antagonist Simon Stagg. In the comics, Simon’s daughter Sapphire falls in love with Rex Mason (played by Anthony Carrigan), and Simon is responsible for turning Rex into the disfigured hero Metamorpho.
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The Daily Planet
The Daily Planet is the newspaper where Clark, Lois, Jimmy Olsen, Steve Lombard and Cat Grant work. Wendell Pierce’s Perry White is editor-in-chief. The building is known for its globe on the pointed roof terrace, and it is also seen at the entrance.
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Jimmy Olsen, Steve Lombard and Cat Grant
Skylar Gisondo (“Booksmart”, “The Righteous Gemstones”) is photographer Jimmy Olsen who works at the Daily Planet. Jimmy is often portrayed as a close associate of Clark and Lois and has appeared in several other “Superman” adaptations. “Saturday Night Live” alum Beck Bennett plays Daily Planet reporter Steve Lombard. Steve is often portrayed as a sports reporter and rival to Clark. Mikaela Hoover is fellow Daily Planet reporter Cat Grant. In the comics, she is sometimes a love interest for Clark or Jimmy Olsen.
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Fortress of Solitude
The Fortress of Solitude is Superman’s private headquarters located in the Arctic. The secret base is made of massive ice shards and far away from humanity.
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Kelex
Superman looks pretty emotional over a broken robot, and it’s possible it’s Kelex from the comics. Kelex was a servant droid from Krypton who later becomes caretaker at the Fortress of Solitude. If it was destroyed, it would cut off one of the last links to Superman’s home planet – which makes sense that he would be upset.
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Monster fight
It’s unclear if the giant, fire-breathing monster Superman fights in the trailer is from the comics, but it could be one of his first big fights as Superman.