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Why Henry Cavill Is NOT Returning as Superman
Up in the sky! Look! It's a bird! It's a plane! It's the new Superman trailer!
Fans got their first look at Superman: Legacy—coming to theaters July 11, 2025—and as the film's writer and director James Gunn has promised before, the comic book-based movie is helping launch a new take on the DC Universe.
The trailer starts off with David Corsenswet as Superman, sporting a costume reminiscent of the character's look from the New 52 comics, with the addition of Superman's iconic red trunks. And while he appears to be in dire straits, he's quickly aided by Superman's favorite good boy, his dog Krypto.
Set to an electric guitar-version of John Williams' epic Superman theme from the 1978 film, the teaser also gives glimpses of Superman's alter ego Clark Kent, Rachel Brosnahan as Lois Lane—a journalist and Clark's love interest—and Nicholas Hoult as the villainous Lex Luthor. Plus, a slew of other DC characters make appearances, including Green Lantern Gardner (Nathan Fillion), Mister Terrific (Edi Gathegi), Hawkgirl (Isabela Merced), Metamorpho (Anthony Carrigan) and Jimmy Olsen (Skylar Gisondo).
Viewers also get to see a tender moment between Clark and his father Jonathan (Pruitt Taylor Vince), better known as Pa Kent, who along with Martha Kent (Neva Howell) raised Clark on their family farm after he crash-landed there as baby Kal-El from the planet Krypton.
In addition to the cavalcade of characters, fans were treated to views of Clark's workplace, The Daily Planet, Superman's arctic home base, the Fortress of Solitude and the romance brewing between Lois and Clark.
And while we'll still have to wait half a year to see how it all plays out on screen, according to Gunn—who was named co-CEO of DC Studios in October 2022—Superman: Legacy marks "the true beginning of the DCU."
"Storytelling is always king," he explained in a video posted to X, formerly Twitter, in Jan. 2023. "It's all that matters to us. I want to be true to those stories. I want to be true to you guys and really give you something different than you've ever seen before."
As for Corenswet, taking on the iconic role of Superman—which has been played on the big screen by the likes of Christopher Reeve, Brandon Routh and most recently Henry Cavill—has been life-changing.
In fact, playing the Man of Steel has been "the best thing ever," he told Variety in an interview published Dec. 19. Although he still has trouble watching himself on screen.
Warner Bros.
"I just disassociate," Corenswet explained. "It's not me up there. It's Superman. It's Clark Kent. What's cool is seeing all your friends up there."
But of course, playing the DC Super Hero did have one advantage: the chance to really transform his body for the role.
"Getting to bulk up for Superman, I was really looking for an excuse to throw on some weight," he said on the Manly Things (Sort Of) podcast in September. "I thought 210 [pounds] was going to make me happy, but I got up to 238."
The Twisters actor joked, "I put on one of those crewneck sweatshirts—like an XL or XXL—and I was like, 'This is amazing.' I didn't fit into any of my pants."
For a look at other stars who transformed for their roles, keep reading.
David Fisher/Shutterstock, Universal Pictures
Cillian Murphy, Oppenheimer
Was eating, as his onscreen wife Emily Blunt joked "like, an almond every day," a bit nutty? Sure. But the Irish star really wanted to nail atomic bomb scientist J. Robert Oppenheimer's appearance. "Oppenheimer had a very distinct physicality and silhouette, which I wanted to get right," he explained to The New York Times. "I had to lose quite a bit of weight, and we worked with the costume and tailoring; he was very slim, almost emaciated, existed on martinis and cigarettes."
Hulu/Moviestore/Shutterstock; Dan MacMedan/WireImage
Andra Day, The United States vs Billie Holiday
The actress lost almost 40 pounds to play the iconic jazz singer in the 2021 film, which earned her an Oscar nomination.
Jon Kopaloff/Getty Images; Lacey Terrell/NETFLIX
Glenn Close, Hillbilly Elegy
To transform the actress into her role of real life Appalachian grandmother Mamaw Vance in the 2020 film, makeup and special effects artist Matthew Mungle pulled Close's 2011 head cast from Albert Nobbs and sculpted her a new set of false ears and a false nose, according to Variety. The actress received an Oscar nomination for her role.
Moviestore/Shutterstock; Jeff Vespa/WireImage
Charlize Theron, Monster
At the 2004 Academy Awards, the gorgeous A-lister was honored with a Best Actress win for her chilling portrayal of real-life serial killer Aileen Wuornos.
Moviestore/Shutterstock; Jason Merritt/Getty Images
Christian Bale, American Hustle
The British actor packed on more than 40 pounds for his Oscar-nominated performance as a beer-bellied con artist in 2013's American Hustle. He put on the same amount to play former U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney in the 2018 movie Vice, which also earned him an Oscar nomination. The star dropped 70 pounds for the 2019 movie Ford v Ferrari, in which he plays slender race car driver Ken Miles. For the 2011 film The Fighter, which earned him his first Oscar, he lost about 30 pounds while gaining muscle.
Jerritt Clark/WireImage; DC Comics/Warner Bros./Shutterstock
Joaquin Phoenix in The Joker
The actor lost 52 pounds to play the deeply disturbed Arthur Fleck, the man who would become Batman's adversary.
Clive Coote/Paramount/Miramax/Kobal/Shutterstock; Jeffrey Mayer/WireImage
Nicole Kidman, The Hours
It took three hours (and an infamously large prosthetic nose) for makeup artists to render the Best Actress winner completely unrecognizable for the 2002 drama.
Snap/Shutterstock; TIMOTHY CLARY/AFP via Getty Images
Tom Hanks, Philadelphia
The actor shed 35 pounds and shaved his head to play an HIV-stricken attorney suing his former firm for wrongful termination. Hanks took home Best Actor at the 1994 Oscars, and made a similar transformation for his Oscar-nominated performance in 2000's Cast Away.
Todd Williamson/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images; BBC Films/20th Century Fox/Kobal/Shutterstock
Renee Zellwegger, Judy
The actress, who famously gained a reported 17 pounds to play the title role in Bridget Jones's Diary, did not have to change her physique to transform into Judy Garland for the 2019 film Judy, for which she won her first Oscar. You can thank the makeup and costume department for her transformation.
"Renée was extremely emotionally and artistically involved in Judy, the movie's costume designer, Jany Temime, who also worked on the Harry Potter films, told Vulture. "It was her film. I think she really got into Judy's skin."
Zellweger told the outlet, "Jany fit the costumes to Judy's posture. So the dresses didn't fit me unless I stood like I was supposed to stand. The zipper wouldn't go up."
Entertainment Pictures via ZUMA Press, Jeff Spicer/Getty Images
Margot Robbie, I, Tonya
Quite a departure from Robbie's sultry character in The Wolf of Wall Street, several prosthetics, braces and wigs helped the Best Actress nominee bring the disgraced figure skater's career-ending scandal to life in the 2017 flick.
Moviestore/Shutterstock; Adam Taylor/Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty Images
Matthew McConaughey, Dallas Buyers Club
The Academy recognized McConaughey's extreme commitment to playing an HIV/AIDS stricken electrician with a Best Actor win during the 2014 ceremony.
Ash Knotek/Snappers/ZUMAPRESS.com; Moviestore/Shutterstock
Heath Ledger in The Dark Knight
The late actor received a posthumous Oscar in 2008 for his chilling and mesmerizing performance as The Joker in the second film in Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy. His look as the iconic villain differed greatly from those previously seen on past actors onscreen.
"What would it be if this guy slept in his makeup, this psychopath?" makeup artist John Caglione Jr. told IGN. "If he didn't spruce up his makeup for two or three weeks? He never changes his clothes It's those kinds of organic details that really helped."
He continued, "You think of a clown's makeup and for the most part, they're pretty detailed with sharp lines. But this had to be the opposite of that."
Bill Matlock/Fox Searchlight/Kobal/Shutterstock; SGranitz/WireImage; Merie W Wallace/Warner Bros/Kobal/Shutterstock
Hilary Swank, Boys Don't Cry & Million Dollar Baby
The two-time Oscar winner dramatically altered her appearance to play real-life transgender man Brandon Teena in the 1999 drama, and then again in Clint Eastwood's 2004 Best Picture winner.
Moviestore/Shutterstock; Kurt Krieger/Corbis via Getty Images
Gary Oldman, Darkest Hour
In order to play British prime minister Winston Churchill, the 2018 Best Actor nominee spent upwards of four hours in the makeup chair every day and wore a "Victorian corset" style bodysuit.
Fox Searchlight/Kobal/Shutterstock; Luca Teuchmann/WireImage
Natalie Portman, Black Swan
Before taking home Best Actress at the 2011 Oscars, the petite actress shed 20 pounds and trained up to 16 hours a day for her role as a mentally ill ballerina.
Anne Marie Fox/Voltage/Kobal/Shutterstock; Kevin Winter/Getty Images
Jared Leto, Dallas Buyers Club
Ever the chameleon, the 2014 Best Supporting Actor winner prepared to play a HIV-positive transgender woman by losing 40 pounds and only staying in character on set.
"I had done similar things with weight, but this was different," Leto told E! News in 2013. "I think the role demanded that commitment…It was about how does that effect how I walk, how I talked, who I am, how I feel. You know, you feel very fragile and delicate and unsafe."
Moviestore/Shutterstock; Christopher Polk/Getty Images
Brie Larson, Room
The Best Actress winner gained 15 pounds of muscle to play a mother who escapes years of captivity with her 5-year-old son (Jacob Tremblay) in the 2015 film. Larson said she even limited her exposure to the outside world, restricted nutrients like Vitamin D and tailored her eating habits to better grasp what her character experienced.
Moviestore/Shutterstock; George Pimentel/WireImage
Rooney Mara, The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo
At the 2012 Academy Awards, the typically fresh-faced starlet was honored with a Best Actress nomination for her performance in the thriller. Mara went as far as to pierce multiple body parts, bleach her eyebrows and chop her hair to transform into Lisbeth Salander.
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