The DC Universe is starting a whole new chapter with its “Gods and Monsters” plan, which includes animated and live-action TV shows and movies that will form a cohesive universe, and among the confirmed titles is a Supergirl movie, which will be what Henry Cavill’s Superman tried to be but, sadly, failed at. With James Gunn and Peter Safran now serving as co-chairmen and co-CEOs, the DC Universe is ready to finally be a connected universe across live-action movies, TV shows, animation, and video games, and while some characters from the DCEU are coming back as part of this world, others had to be left out so the DC Universe can move forward.
While not all the projects in Gunn and Safran’s 10-year plan for the DC Universe have been announced, there are big characters from the DCEU that won’t be coming back, most notably Henry Cavill’s Superman. After announcing that Man of Steel 2 was finally starting to move forward, Cavill’s Superman was later confirmed to not be part of the DC Universe anymore, and instead, “Gods and Monsters” will kick off with Superman: Legacy, which will follow a younger Superman. Also part of this first chapter is the movie Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow, which has a bigger chance than Superman: Legacy to be what Cavill’s Superman tried to be in the DCEU but could never be thanks to its source material and other elements.
Henry Cavill Tried To Be A Darker Superman, But It Didn't Really Work
The DCEU began in 2013 with Man of Steel, Cavill’s debut as Clark Kent/Superman in a story that took the title character on a darker route that was heavily criticized by the audience, and from which, ultimately, it couldn’t recover. Man of Steel saw Superman facing General Zod (Michael Shannon), who arrived at Earth with the purpose of turning it into a new Krypton, but he ended up putting humanity’s existence at risk. The final battle in Man of Steel ended with Superman having to kill Zod as he attacked a family in a train station, a decision that has been endlessly criticized and which was supposed to bring out a darker side of Superman, but his history and place in the DCEU became inconsistent after that.
One of Man of Steel’s biggest mistakes was focusing more on Superman’s origins and leaving his human side aside, which alienated the character from the audience. In the DCEU’s efforts to make a darker Superman, it turned the character into a less hopeful one than he traditionally is, and the reasons for him to be a darker character didn’t really make sense. Superman isn’t a character that can benefit from a darker adaptation, and Cavill’s version proved this point, as in the process, the writers left out the traits that make Superman a beloved superhero, dooming Cavill’s character and leading to him having an inconsistent tone after Man of Steel.
The DC Universe's Supergirl Will Also Be A Darker Take On The Character
After the failure of Cavill’s version of Superman in the DCEU, it might seem strange that the DC Universe is going for a darker take on Supergirl as well, but in this case, it’s justified. Gunn and Safran announced that the upcoming Supergirl movie will be an adaptation of the comic book miniseries Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow, hence the movie’s title. Written by Tom King, Woman of Tomorrow is told from the perspective of Ruthey, an alien girl Kara Zor-El meets and whose entire planet was destroyed and is now looking for revenge, but the story focuses on Kara’s quest in space. Gunn even explained that the audience will see a Supergirl who was “raised on a rock” and who “watched everyone around her die and be killed in terrible ways” for the first 14 years of her life before arriving on Earth. Woman of Tomorrow deals with Kara’s trauma and has its truly dark moments, which will surely translate to its film adaptation.
Why Dark Supergirl Will Succeed Where Cavill's Superman Failed
While Supergirl has her own fanbase, there’s less expectation of her and her adaptations to other media, while Superman is held up as the ultimate symbol of hope and thus the expectation is always massive. Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow being based on a comic book will also help give Supergirl a more consistent story and tone and will justify the darkness of the character, avoiding the storytelling issues that Cavill’s Superman had to face, and as the DC Universe is aiming to be more cohesive, Supergirl can also avoid the universe-building issues that Cavill’s Superman dealt with and that, ultimately, ruined the character. Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow is one of the DC Universe’s most exciting projects, and it has the potential to be better than what the DCEU did with its Superman.
