James Gunn’s 2025 Superman film presents a provocative thesis: even the most noble intentions become weaponized when filtered through international relations and political manipulation. The film positions Superman as a character who must reconcile his alien Kryptonian heritage with his human upbringing while finding himself in a world that views traditional values as outdated. This creates tension between timeless moral principles and modern political realities. This Superman confronts the messy consequences of heroic action in a world where the fictional war mirrors real-world dynamics of contemporary international conflicts. Starring David Corenswet as the Man of Steel, the film transforms Superman’s greatest strength, his unwavering moral compass, into his most dangerous liability in an age of political cynicism.
Gunn’s narrative constructs a political thriller within the superhero framework, using the fictional Boravia-Jarhanpur conflict to examine how heroic intervention becomes entangled with national interests and propaganda. Critics praise Gunn’s approach as “sincere, inspiring and idealistic,” yet the film’s complexity lies in examining how truth becomes a casualty when heroes operate across international boundaries. The story’s central engine involves Lex Luthor’s systematic destruction of Superman’s reputation through manufactured evidence, serving as a meditation on information weaponization. This makes Superman’s vindication a statement about authentic heroism transcending political machinations. Through this lens, the film argues that in an era of deepfakes and digital manipulation, the greatest superpower may be the ability to maintain faith in objective truth.
Hero Under Political Fire
The story opens with Superman crash-landing in Antarctica, badly wounded after being defeated by Ultraman. Clark calls for his super-dog companion Krypto, who rushes to bring him to Superman’s secret Antarctic hideout, the Fortress of Solitude. Once they arrive, loyal robot servants tend to Clark. We catch a glimpse of a final video message left by Clark’s late biological parents. The robots heal Clark’s wounds using sunlight, the source of his power as Superman. His strength restored, Clark continues his battle against Ultraman.
This duel stems from Clark’s earlier success in stopping a major Moravian attack on Jarhanpur. However, under Lex Luthor’s (Nicholas Hoult) command, Ultraman beats Clark down until he’s defeated again. Local civilians try to help Clark get back on his feet, as he has always been a hero to them. Meanwhile, Ultraman returns to Luthor’s base after defeating Clark, revealing that Ultraman is one of Luthor’s henchmen.
Clark works as a reporter at the Daily Planet, where his special glasses keep his identity as Superman secret. At work, he receives a call from his adoptive parents, Jonathan (Pruitt Taylor Vince) and Martha (Neva Howell), who care deeply for him despite knowing he’s an alien. Clark interacts with Lois, his fellow reporter at the Daily Planet. Lois is puzzled about how Clark manages to interview Superman so often when no other reporters can pull it off. Clark plays it cool to hide his identity as Superman.
Meanwhile, Luthor meets with important U.S. officials, including General Rick Flag (Frank Grillo), the commander of a secret monster unit. Luthor shows off the power of Super Ultraman and Engineer (María Gabriela De Faria), his two top lieutenants. Luthor also demonstrates his special flying unit called the Raptors. After displaying his defense assets, Luthor tries to convince the officials to take action against Superman. Luthor wants Superman punished for his actions in stopping Boravia’s attack on Jarhanpur. The officials agree to take action against Superman, provided Luthor has proof that Superman is a criminal.
After work, Clark meets up with Lois and they get cozy at home. They’ve been secretly dating for several months. Lois also knows Clark’s secret identity as Superman. After their intimate moment, Clark allows Lois to interview him as Superman for the first time. On camera, Clark admits he’s an alien from the now-destroyed planet Krypton. Before Clark’s biological parents died on that planet, they evacuated their son to Earth to save him from Krypton’s destruction. Following his parents’ final message, Clark became humanity’s hero under the name Superman.
The interview turns tense when Lois brings up Clark’s actions in stopping Boravia’s major attack on Jarhanpur. Clark’s actions violated international law. Besides destroying many Boravian tanks and fighter jets, Clark also illegally entered another country’s territory. Clark’s actions damaged the relationship between the United States and Boravia, given that Superman is technically a U.S. citizen. In his defense, Clark insists that many people in Jarhanpur would have died if he hadn’t stopped Boravia’s attack. Clark also ensured his actions didn’t cost any lives and feels he did nothing wrong in stopping Boravia’s attack. Clark leaves after having a huge fight with Lois about the controversy surrounding Superman’s actions.
Deception Destroys Superman’s Reputation
Luthor, Ultraman and Engineer break into the Fortress of Solitude. While his two henchmen destroy Superman’s robot servants, Luthor accesses the computer. After all the robots are defeated, Engineer carries out Luthor’s order to hack the computer storing the video file of Superman’s parents’ final message. Meanwhile, back in the city, Luthor’s henchmen secretly release a small monster called Thing into downtown Metropolis, Superman’s home city. The next day, Thing transforms into a giant monster attacking the city. Clark prioritizes evacuating citizens above all else.
A superhero team called the Justice Gang arrives to help fight Thing. While his two teammates fight, Justice Gang member Mr. Terrific (Edi Gathegi) briefly communicates with Clark. The Justice Gang stops Thing through good teamwork. The Justice Gang reveals they’re a superhero team sponsored by Maxwell Lord’s company. The team is led by Guy Gardner (Nathan Fillion), a Green Lantern. Everyone is shocked by breaking news claiming that Superman came to Earth to destroy human civilization. This broadcast also plays the final video message from Superman’s late parents.
Initially, Superman’s parents express their wish for their son to become Earth’s hero despite coming from planet Krypton. At the end of the video, Superman’s parents call Earth’s humans weak creatures. They ask Superman to take over Earth, eliminate anyone who doesn’t support him, and marry many Earth women to preserve Krypton’s bloodline.
As the news destroys Clark’s reputation as Superman, the Justice Gang meets with him. Mr. Terrific confirms that Superman’s parents’ video message is authentic. However, Clark questions the authenticity of the video’s final section. As far as he knows, that portion was already corrupted when he was evacuated to Earth by his parents. Clark flies to the Fortress of Solitude, suspecting that someone accessed his parents’ final video message from there. When he arrives, Clark is shocked to see the Fortress of Solitude in ruins, with the robots in critical condition.
Clark accuses Luthor of kidnapping Krypto after discovering his dog has vanished. Cameras catch Clark angrily confronting Luthor, making Superman even more hated by the public. Later that night, Clark talks with Lois to calm himself down. Lois admits she doesn’t believe the final part of Clark’s parents’ video message and still sees Clark as humanity’s hero.
Imprisonment and Unlikely Alliances
According to Luthor’s plan, Superman’s parents’ message now serves as proof that the superhero is a criminal. General Rick Flag hands over responsibility for detaining Superman to Luthor’s faction, as they’re deemed capable of securing someone so powerful. Luthor brings Clark through a portal to a massive, sprawling dark facility—a special dimension of his creation that can only be accessed through his portals scattered across various parts of the world. Luthor’s created dimension is called the Pocket Universe.
Luthor shows off his team of intelligent monkeys attacking Superman online. Luthor then orders a superhuman named Rex Mason (Anthony Carrigan) to transform parts of his body into Kryptonite. Luthor already knows that Kryptonite is the main weakness of native Kryptonians—in this case, Superman. Clark discovers that Krypto is being held prisoner in a cell within the Pocket Universe. Luthor has been using the Pocket Universe as a prison for people who become his targets.
Lois asks Guy to bring the Justice Gang to rescue Superman. The Justice Gang already knows Superman’s true identity as Clark. While Lois tries to convince Guy, Mr. Terrific pinpoints Clark’s last known location using a nanobot tracking device he secretly planted in Clark’s bloodstream. Guy refuses to rescue Clark because he doesn’t want the Justice Gang involved in major trouble. However, after that meeting, Mr. Terrific agrees to help Lois investigate Clark’s condition. Using his advanced aircraft, Mr. Terrific heads to Clark’s location with Lois.
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Meanwhile, inside his pocket-dimension prison, Lex Luthor interrogates Superman while holding Malik Ali (Dinesh Thyagarajan)—a humble falafel vendor who once aided the Man of Steel—as a hostage. Luthor is accompanied by Vasil Ghurkos (Zlatko Buric), the President of Boravia who’s become Luthor’s ally. Luthor shoots Malik dead because he suspects Superman has allies helping him take over Earth, despite Superman’s emphasis that he acts alone with pure heroic intentions. Superman deliberately let himself get captured so he could find Krypto.
Rex becomes increasingly disgusted with Luthor’s high-handed behavior, especially since Luthor is also holding Rex’s son Joey in the Pocket Universe. After the interrogation, Rex remembers that Superman promised to help free Joey as long as Rex would eliminate his Kryptonite creation so Superman’s power could recover. Even though Rex has done that, Superman is still weak because there’s no sunlight at the location. Using his power to manipulate his body’s elements, Rex creates a small sun, gradually restoring Superman’s strength.
Mr. Terrific and Lois arrive at Clark’s last known location, which is heavily guarded by Luthor’s Raptor forces. Mr. Terrific battles the army and defeats them all using his various high-tech gadgets. Mr. Terrific and Lois find the portal leading to the Pocket Universe as his gadget hacks and opens it. Mr. Terrific condemns the existence of the Pocket Universe because Luthor’s created dimension risks creating a black hole that could destroy Earth. Once the portal opens, Mr. Terrific and Lois immediately enter the Pocket Universe. They cannot proceed further due to a chasm blocking their path. Mr. Terrific uses his drone to search for Clark.
After his power fully recovers, Superman escapes from his cell and immediately frees Joey, returning him to Rex. Superman also frees Krypto so they can be reunited. While searching for an exit, Rex fights against the Raptor forces. Meanwhile, Superman tries to protect Joey from the troops’ attacks. Superman and the others get sucked in by something resembling a black hole. They survive this deadly situation thanks to Superman’s breath, which effectively pushes them away from the black hole. Mr. Terrific gets Clark and the others out of the Pocket Universe.
Rex decides to go home with Joey. Meanwhile, Mr. Terrific allows Lois to use his aircraft so she can take Clark to a safe place to recover from the effects of Kryptonite poisoning. Mr. Terrific stays at the location because he’s determined to secure the portal to minimize the risk of a black hole appearing. Lois brings Clark to rest at Jonathan and Martha’s home. Clark’s adoptive parents are farmers living a simple life who already know his secret identity.
Truth Emerges Amid Crisis
Meanwhile, Luthor is furious because Superman managed to escape from the Pocket Universe. Luthor takes out his anger on Eve Teschmacher (Sara Sampaio), who is his assistant and girlfriend. To get back at Luthor, Eve secretly contacts Jimmy Olsen (Skyler Gisondo), a Daily Planet reporter and Lois’s colleague. Before Raptor soldiers capture her, she manages to send her collection of private photos documenting Luthor’s evil plans. Now Jimmy and Lois will investigate those photos to find evidence to bring down Luthor.
Luthor uses a new tactic to lure Superman out. By increasing the power of the Pocket Universe reactor, Luthor creates a black hole that begins splitting the ground beneath Metropolis. The following day, Clark opens up emotionally while talking with Jonathan. Clark is now unsure whether he’s truly a hero or not, because he’s starting to be influenced by the final part of his biological parents’ message. Regardless of whether that final part is real, Jonathan asks Clark to keep acting according to his conscience, as that’s what defines who Clark really is.
Martha urges Clark to watch the latest news. The Boravian military is now preparing to attack Jarhanpur again and the people are hoping Superman will come to save them. Thanks to Martha’s support, Clark gets ready to go help the people of Jarhanpur. Just as he prepares to leave, Clark receives a call from Mr. Terrific. The black hole has now started splitting the ground in Metropolis. Mr. Terrific urges Clark to help him immediately, warning that if left unchecked, this ground split will expand and potentially destroy Earth.
As Metropolis residents evacuate, Lois and Jimmy present the results of their investigation into Eve’s photos. Luthor has secretly been supporting Boravian military attacks on Jarhanpur by providing billions of dollars worth of money and weapons. Through this partnership, Luthor has a mission to occupy half of Jarhanpur’s territory. With this evidence in hand, Editor-in-Chief Perry White (Wendell Pierce) approves their mission to expose Luthor, the tech industry billionaire.
Lois uses the aircraft Mr. Terrific gave her as shelter for her team while they prepare to write an article exposing Luthor’s crimes. The widening ground split causes buildings in Metropolis to collapse. When Clark arrives at the scene, he manages to stop a building from crushing a woman. When Clark meets him, Mr. Terrific explains that Luthor has the code to stop the black hole splitting the ground—now called the Rift. Clark and Mr. Terrific face a surprise attack from Ultraman and Engineer before being thrown into a stadium. While Mr. Terrific is down, Clark has to fight both Ultraman and Engineer at once. With their combination attacks, they temporarily disable Clark.
Final Battle and Redemption
On Luthor’s orders, Engineer uses a Nanite weapon that wraps around Clark’s body. Despite the Nanites attacking his nervous system, Clark continues fighting back. To get rid of the Nanites, Clark flies out of Earth while being held by Ultraman and Engineer. Once they reach outer space, Clark lands back on Earth at maximum speed so he can make Ultraman and Engineer crash hard. Engineer is unconscious, but Ultraman is believed to be recovering quickly.
Ultraman is revealed to be Luthor’s artificial human cloned from Clark. Luthor cloned Clark using hair strands found at battle sites. Using this genetic material, Luthor gained access to the Fortress of Solitude, which could only be opened with Clark’s DNA. Luthor can also fully control Ultraman’s body. Every fighting move Ultraman makes follows Luthor’s coded directions, which are executed by a team of experts controlling Ultraman. While the duel continues, Luthor reveals that he deliberately triggered the conflict between Boravia and Jarhanpur to get government permission to kill Clark, explaining that he hates Superman because his heroic actions always leave massive destruction in their wake.
After receiving reports that Superman cannot reach Jarhanpur, President Vasil orders the Boravian military to begin their attack. Just as the people begin to panic, the Justice Gang suddenly appears to fight the Boravian military. They’re helped by Rex, who sympathizes with the suffering of Jarhanpur’s people. Justice Gang member Hawkgirl (Isabela Merced) captures Vasil after defeating his bodyguards. Once they’re flying high, Hawkgirl deliberately drops Vasil to punish him for his crimes against Jarhanpur.
When cornered by Ultraman’s attacks, Clark calls Krypto, who follows his command and destroys Luthor’s monitoring drone. Without visual contact with Ultraman, Luthor cannot give proper directions. Taking advantage of this situation, Clark slowly begins dominating the fight and eliminates the Raptor forces sent to kill him while Ultraman struggles to respond. However, Clark experiences a surprise attack from Ultraman. When cornered again, Clark throws his opponent into the black hole. Mr. Terrific arrives and urges Clark to come with him immediately to Luthor’s location so they can stop the Rift.
nce they arrive, Mr. Terrific takes over the computer and begins the process to stop the Rift while Clark confronts Luthor. To address Luthor’s misconceptions, Clark insists that he lives as a normal human being. Despite continuing to oppose Clark, Luthor is attacked by Krypto.
Mr. Terrific shuts down the Pocket Universe reactor that was the source of the Rift. The media buzzes with news about Luthor’s crimes being exposed through Lois’s team’s article, leaving him unable to fight back as his reputation is destroyed and public opinion turns against him. Simultaneously, the public apologizes to Superman for their misunderstanding and hatred. Following this incident, Superman is once again regarded as humanity’s hero.
Rex joins the Justice Gang to help more people in the future. Authorities free all prisoners from the Pocket Universe. Meanwhile, for his crimes, Luthor will be detained at Belle Reve, a prison for superhuman criminals. Once the situation stabilizes, Clark and Lois retreat to a quiet place to be alone together, reaffirming their love for each other.
Clark recovers at the Fortress of Solitude, accompanied by the robot servants that have returned to normal. During his recovery, Clark’s cousin Supergirl visits him while intoxicated. After spending some time together, Supergirl leaves with Krypto, revealing that the dog actually belongs to her. The robot plays a collection of videos showing warm moments between young Clark and his adoptive parents, Jonathan and Martha. These cherished memories help Clark recover peacefully as the film concludes.
