Written by Gabriel Bell
Earlier this year, the latest in a star-studded gallery of Superman film adaptations hit the silver screen. This reboot, written and directed by James Gunn (Guardians of the Galaxy, The Suicide Squad), simply titled Superman, is expected to launch a fresh, new chapter in the history of DC film adaptations, detached completely from the DCEU that dominated it for the last decade. With a fresh team and a new take on one of the most iconic heroes of all time, audiences couldn’t be any more excited.
But who is Superman, really? To answer that question, we need to go back more than 85 years—before the Justice League, before the MCU, even before World War II. It’s 1938, and as the Great Depression crushes America and the threat of war looms over Europe, two teenagers from Cleveland are about to change popular culture forever.
The Rise of the Superhero
In the 1930s, the world (and especially the United States) had fallen on hard times. The Great Depression dropped much of the Western world into a spiral of jobs vanishing, businesses closing, and savings drying up. At the same time, fascist parties gained power and popularity across Europe. In this climate of constant changes and threats to their core values, Americans wanted a hero who could embody everything they stood for – strength, justice, and hope against all odds.
Two teenagers from Cleveland, Ohio – Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster – answered that call. Inspired by science fiction stories, wrestling culture, and the up-and-coming medium of comic books, they first dreamt up Superman as a time traveler from the far future who had come to fight crime and defend humanity. The Superman that audiences know and love today, complete with his red shorts, “S” logo, and Kryptonian heritage, would take a further five years to flesh out.
Action Comics #1
Action Comics #1 (June 1938) published by National Allied Publications (later known as DC Comics) marked the first appearance of a character the public would recognize as Superman. In this first issue that ran only thirteen pages, readers met Kal-El, a baby sent from Krypton to Kansas where he was raised by Jonathan and Martha Kent and, as the comic explains, grows up to be “the champion of the oppressed, the physical marvel who had sworn to devote his existence to helping those in need.” This comic also sees the introduction of Lois Lane, who is head-over-heels for Superman while unaware of his secret identity as Clark Kent, her coworker.
The comic was an overnight success. Within a year Superman comics were being circulated in newspapers across the country and would continue to be until May 1966, and Superman (June 1939) marked the beginning of the hero’s solo storyline which has been going strong ever since. One year later, Action Comics #23 (April 1940) Superman’s greatest villain, Lex Luthor, would be introduced, and seven years later All-Star Comics #36 (August 1947) would see Superman formally team up with Batman and Wonder Woman, two fellow DC heroes and icons of the superhero genre who have come to form the “Trinity” at the heart of DC’s success.
While some characters like Lois Lane (introduced as early as Action Comics #1) and Lex Luthor have been with Superman since his earliest days, other icons of his world would come much further down the line. Allies like Krypto the Superdog in Adventure Comics #210 (March 1955) and Supergirl in Action Comics #252 (May 1959) took nearly two decades to be rolled into Superman’s mythos, while villains like General Zod in Adventure Comics #283 (April 1961) and Darkseid in Superman’s Pal Jimmy Olsen #134 (December 1970) would take even longer to leave their mark.
Powers and Abilities
Superman is one of the most powerful base characters in all of comic book history. Originally, his powers were innate to all Kryptonians (originally called “supermen”) whose bodies were far more evolved and developed than humans were. Today, however, his powers are the result of both Earth’s lower gravity and yellow sun whose energy he can absorb, as opposed to Krypton’s harsher gravity and red sun which he can’t draw energy from. His usual powers include super strength and speed, flight, x-ray and heat vision, and near invulnerability, although different stories will dabble in giving him a whole array of other powers including time travel, mind control, and kisses which induce amnesia.
The Big Screen
Superman’s record of film and TV appearances is both extensive and impressive. His live-action debut came by way of Kirk Alyn’s fifteen-part series Superman in 1948, followed by George Reeves’ The Adventures of Superman starring George Reeves in the 1950s and Christopher Reeve’s Superman: The Movie in 1978 that defined the hero for a new generation. More recently, Henry Cavill’s take on Superman in 2013’s Man of Steel in the DC Extended Universe. Now, a new reboot directed by James Gunn is set for release on July 11, 2025, starring David Corenswet (Twisters, Pearl) as Superman, Rachel Brosnahan (House of Cards, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel) as Lois Lane, and Nicholas Hoult (Nosferatu, The Menu) as Lex Luthor.
