Superman

Teaser poster

Paul Dini

***Superman*** is a science fiction action-adventure superhero film based on the DC Comics character of the same name. Directed by Brad Bird, the film is the debut installment in the DC Cinematic Universe. It stars Tom Welling as Kal-El/Clark Kent/Superman, alongside Mark Strong, Emmy Rossum, Joel Kinnaman, Laurence FIshburne, Thomas Mann, and Alicia Vikander. The film details Superman defending Metropolis from a new superpowered adversary known as "Atlas".

A reboot of the *Superman film series* was confirmed to be in development in 2010, following the cancellation of a sequel to *Superman Returns* (2006). Brad Bird was confirmed to direct the film in March 2011 and Welling, who portrayed Clark Kent on the television series *Smallville* (2001-11), was cast the following month. Bird sought to draw on Richard Donner's Superman films but also drew inspiration from *Action Comics* and the *New 52* incarnation of the character. Filming took place from March to June 2012, in locations like Cincinnati and Chicago which were blended together to portray the fictional Metropolis. The film's visual effects were handled by Blur Studio.

Superman was released theatrically on May 10, 2013 to positive reviews critics, with particular praise aimed at Welling's performance as Superman, Bird's direction, the action sequences, and visual effects. The film was a box office success, grossing over $634 million, making the eighth highest-grossing film of 2013. Four sequels have been released: *Superman: The Eleventh Hour* (2021), *Justice Legue: New World Order* (2022), *Justice League: Age of Apokolips* (2026), and *Justice League: Apokolips War* (2027).

## Plot

The film opens with Clark Kent accompanying Lois Lane and Jimmy Olsen to a press event for a boxing match. Lois expresses a desire to report "real news" while Jimmy is starstruck by the athletes. Getting a new notification on his phone, Clark slips away and dons his Kryptonian armor as Superman before rushing off to stop a raging apartment fire. He saves the tenants and successfully extinguishes the fire before rushing back to the event with Lois and Jimmy. As Superman, Clark has been slowly gaining the trust of the citizens of Metropolis after two years. Receiving word of Superman's actions, Lois becomes furious and tells Clark that they should both talk to their boss at the Daily Planet, Perry White which Clark attempts to dissuade her from. Meanwhile at LexCorp, CEO Lex Luthor observes Superman's exploits and is visibly envious of him. Meeting with his assistant Mercy Graves, she informs him of a meeting with General Sam Lane and Amanda Waller, the director of the newly established A.R.G.U.S., a federal agency responsible for monitoring (and possibly policing) metahumans. Lex and Mercy attend the meeting where General Lane informs Lex that the U.S. military will not be renewing their weapons contract with LexCorp, due to his controversial "studies" of metahumans. Waller posits that while metahumans are superpowered, they are still human and there are ethics surrounding their treatment. Lex attempts to explain that Superman's emergence has caused them to become inspired, warning them that Superman may lead them in a war against humanity. Waller and Lane both tell Lex that the government will no longer endorse LexCorp before departing. Lex, then, tells Mercy that if Superman can't be controlled, they will one that can. At the Daily Planet, Lois confronts Perry about being put on "bullshit stories" while Clark and Jimmy remain enthusiastic about their assignments. In response, Perry tells Lois that if she can find a story worth telling, she can pursue it. She accepts this proposal but berates Clark for being "spineless". Clark desperately wants to reveal his secret to her but refuses. Jimmy offers to take Clark to lunch and the two venture to a hot dog stand. While eating, Jimmy tells the news about everyday life has seemed less engaging since the arrival of Superman which gives Clark an idea. He races back to the Daily Planet, barging into Lois' office and asking her if an interview with Superman is worth pursuing. Lois' interest is piqued and she asks Clark how they'll make it happen, prompting Clark to tell her he'll "find a way". Feeling remorse for her words earlier, Lois apologizes and thanks Clark with a kiss on the cheek which causes him to grin happily.

In a bar near Midtown, disgraced ex-police officer Michael Nolan drowns his sorrows in alcohol, having lost his job after fatally shooting an unarmed Black teen in the Suicide Slum neighborhood, an area of Metropolis plagued with street crime and gangs. He is consoled by his friend Callum Meeks who tells him he is a hero, furthering remarking that no one cares about the residents of that neighborhood and that they put their lives on the line to protect them, describing the residents as "ungrateful". Nolan sees an image of Superman on the television and becomes angry, telling Meeks that people only care about heroes like him before angrily tossing a glass at the television. The bartender subsequently ejects both Nolan and Meeks, who leave in anger. The next day, General Lane meets with his daughter Lois for lunch where they discuss work. Lois enthusiastically tells her father of her plan to interview Superman but General Lane, fearing for her safety, tells her to stay away from him. Quickly changing the subject, Lois asks her father about his work and after some prodding, he divulges that the government has severed ties with LexCorp. This gives Lois the idea to change her story to focus on LexCorp and General Lane once again warns his daughter away from Superman. Elsewhere, Clark lands in Smallville to visit his parents. He helps his father Jonathan fix his truck while his mother Martha makes dinner. While working on the truck, Clark tells his father about Lois and his plan to help with the interview, to Jonathan's dismay. He fears his son will endanger himself by doing the interview, already fearing that being Superman makes him a target. Before they can discuss it further, Martha calls them in for dinner and they sit down together as a family. However, a hostage situation in Metropolis causes Clark to suit up and race off to stop it. Back in Metropolis, Superman finds the hostages being held captive in a free clinic and intervenes, discovering the gunman is homeless veteran whom Metropolis PD assumes has PTSD. Superman comforts him and attempts to talk him down, discovering the man is suffering from acute radiation poisoning before he collapses, allowing his gun to discharge and wound an officer. Although he rescues the hostages and gets the man medical treatment, Superman is blamed by various metahuman hate groups and fringe-types, one of them being Michael Nolan who speaks out on the news. Nolan champions himself as a true hero while making remarks against Superman implying he doesn't truly care about Metropolis, sparking Lex's attention. Following this, Superman finds Lois Lane in her Upper East Side apartment where he implies that "Clark" sent him. Lois tells Superman she heard about what happened and hints that it could be connected to LexCorp, showing him her investigative reports on missing transients. Superman then tells Lois he can go after Lex but she informs him that any attack against LexCorp will only strengthen the negative narrative. The two then resolve to work together.

Following his appearance on the news, Nolan is invited to LexCorp where he meets with Lex and Mercy. Lex commends Nolan for his work as police officer, inviting him into his personal laboratory where he reveals his experimentation with radiation and alien geodes. He tells Nolan that he may be his "atlas to a true American hero", believing Nolan to be a suitable candidate. Having been successfully goaded, Nolan agrees. Meanwhile, Superman and Lois visit the homeless vet in the hospital where they learn he is dying but he reveals that LexCorp has been kidnapping transients and experimenting on them. He directs them to a sewage outflow near the Queenland Docks that LexCorp has been using as a dumping ground for the bodies. Superman is visibly angered by this and travels to LexCorp where he confronts Lex. Lex taunts Superman, echoing Nolan's words about him not caring about people and reveals that he knows Lois is digging up dirt on the company, implying that he has sent someone after her. Before Superman can react, Lex tells him he has rigged a commercial airplane with explosives before seemingly detonating them as the plane flies over Metropolis. Superman instinctively races off to save the passengers. In the sky above Metropolis, Superman is able to stop the plane from crashing and safely land it in a field before realizing Lois is danger. Lois is kidnapped by a superpowered Nolan, now calling himself "Atlas", as Superman tries to intervene but meets his match in a fist fight with Atlas. The grueling battle spreads to the Suicide Slum where Superman attempts to protect the people from the destruction while still defending himself against Atlas. Gaining the upperhand, Superman attempts to break through to Atlas, telling him he is endangering the people he swore to protect. Atlas surveys the damage he's caused and surrenders himself, remorseful of both his actions as both a police officer and metahuman. He is subsequently apprehended by A.R.G.U.S., with General Lane admonishing Superman for putting Lois in danger but Lois defends him, reminding her father she is an adult. Although, General Lane advises Superman to leave, he refuses, intent on helping to clean up as well as help rebuild the Suicide Slum neighborhood.

Following the battle on Metropolis' South Side, Lex is delivered the proof of LexCorp's nefarious deeds by Mercy Graves, who stole it in the commotion, also revealing that the homeless vet was killed with a morphine overdose and disposed of in an unmarked grave. Mercy has also cleaned up their dumping grounds and triggered a killswitch attached to Atlas' heart which kills him en route to Belle Reve Prison, fully absolving LexCorp of any crimes. Back at the Daily Planet, Lois publishes a story on Superman's heroism but remains angry over failing to expose LexCorp. Clark, Jimmy, Perry, and several other Daily Planet employees take her to dinner to celebrate with Clark pulling her away for a "surprise". He lifts Lois into the sky, flying above Metropolis which reveals to her that he is Superman.

In the film's post-credits scene, Lex Luthor sits on a private jet, discussing a shipment of weaponized plutonium with a United States senator named Mars Buchanan who provides him with the one alien geode he could not obtain: kryptonite.

## Cast

* Tom Welling as Kal-El/Clark Kent/Superman
* Emmy Rossum as Lois Lane
* Mark Strong as Lex Luthor
* Joel Kinnaman as Michael Nolan/Atlas: This version differs greatly from his comic book counterpart.
* Laurence Fishburne as Perry White
* Thomas Mann as Jimmy Olsen
* Alicia Vikander as Mercy Graves
* Annette O'Toole as Martha Kent
* John Schneider as Jonathan Kent
* Kevin J. O'Connor as Callum Meeks
* Tommy Lee Jones as Sam Lane
* Alfre Woodard as Amanda Waller
* Liev Schreiber as Mars Buchanan *(cameo)*