Felipe is a writer who is an avid film and TV fan, with superhero movies and series being his biggest passion. He graduated from college in 2019, having studied Journalism. Before college, he spent a month studying at the Oxford English Centre. His superhero knowledge expands to the comics, with his undergraduate thesis being "Politics Reflected In American Comics. "
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Sadly, 2026's Supergirl movie could not repeat the success of James Gunn's Superman. The film had many exciting factors going for it, with Alcock as Supergirl, Krypto, and David Corenswet's Superman reprising their roles from the latter's solo movie, as well as the debut of Jason Momoa's Lobo in a space-set story that adapted the iconic Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow comics.
Metropolis · Daily Planet Edition
Superman
Trivia Challenge
☠VillainsKneel!
⚡PowersInvincible
🎥FilmsBelieve
💫LegacyHope
Before he was Clark Kent, Superman was born Kal-El on a distant planet doomed to destruction. His parents Jor-El and Lara placed him in a rocket ship as an infant, sending him across the cosmos to Earth. What is the name of Superman’s home planet?
✗ Not faster than a speeding bullet on that one! The answer is Krypton. Thanagar is Hawkman’s homeworld, Apokolips is Darkseid’s domain, and Oa is the headquarters of the Green Lantern Corps. Krypton’s destruction is the defining event of Superman’s origin story.
Superman’s greatest love is a fearless, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist who works alongside Clark Kent at the Daily Planet. She’s known for her relentless pursuit of the truth and for being one of the few people who sees both the hero and the man. Who is she?
✗ Not faster than a speeding bullet on that one! The answer is Lois Lane. Diana Prince is Wonder Woman, Lana Lang is Clark’s high school sweetheart from Smallville, and Cat Grant is a gossip columnist at the Daily Planet. Lois Lane is Superman’s iconic partner.
Despite being nearly invulnerable under Earth’s yellow sun, Superman has one famous weakness — a radioactive mineral from the remnants of his destroyed homeworld. Exposure to it drains his powers and can even kill him. What is this substance called?
✗ Not faster than a speeding bullet on that one! The answer is Kryptonite. Vibranium is from Marvel’s Black Panther universe, Nth Metal is tied to Hawkman, and Red Sun Ore isn’t a real DC substance. Kryptonite is the iconic green-glowing mineral that is Superman’s ultimate weakness.
In 1978, a then-unknown actor donned the cape and made the world believe a man could fly. His portrayal of Superman became the gold standard for superhero films and he starred in four Superman movies. Who is this legendary actor?
✗ Not faster than a speeding bullet on that one! The answer is Christopher Reeve. Henry Cavill played Superman in the DCEU starting with Man of Steel (2013), Brandon Routh starred in Superman Returns (2006), and Tom Welling played young Clark in TV’s Smallville. Reeve was the original big-screen Superman.
Superman’s greatest enemy isn’t a superpowered alien — he’s a brilliant, ruthless human billionaire who believes Superman is a threat to humanity’s potential. This bald-headed genius has been Superman’s archenemy for over 80 years. Who is he?
✗ Not faster than a speeding bullet on that one! The answer is Lex Luthor. Brainiac is an alien android who collects cities, Darkseid is the god-like ruler of Apokolips, and Doomsday is the monster who famously killed Superman. But Lex Luthor is the definitive archenemy — Superman’s dark mirror.
After crash-landing on Earth as a baby, Kal-El was found and adopted by Jonathan and Martha Kent, a kind farming couple. They raised him with strong moral values in a small rural town. Where did Clark Kent grow up?
✗ Not faster than a speeding bullet on that one! The answer is Smallville, Kansas. Gotham is Batman’s city, Metropolis is where Clark moves as an adult to work at the Daily Planet, and Coast City is Green Lantern’s home. Smallville is where the Kents raised Clark on their farm.
As Clark Kent, Superman disguises himself as a mild-mannered reporter working at Metropolis’s most famous newspaper, alongside Lois Lane and photographer Jimmy Olsen. Their editor-in-chief Perry White runs the newsroom. What is the name of this newspaper?
✗ Not faster than a speeding bullet on that one! The answer is the Daily Planet. The Daily Bugle is Spider-Man’s Marvel universe newspaper, the Metropolis Star and Gotham Gazette are lesser DC publications. The Daily Planet — with its spinning globe — is Superman’s journalistic home.
This Kryptonian military commander was banished to the Phantom Zone for treason before Krypton’s destruction. He escaped and came to Earth seeking vengeance, famously demanding that others “Kneel before” him. His iconic portrayal by Terence Stamp cemented him in pop culture. Who is this villain?
✗ Not faster than a speeding bullet on that one! The answer is General Zod. Bizarro is a flawed clone of Superman, Parasite drains powers through touch, and Metallo is a cyborg with a Kryptonite heart. General Zod is the Kryptonian military leader whose cry of “Kneel before Zod!” echoes through decades of Superman stories.
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Are you the Man of Steel — or still stuck in a phone booth?
With two movies so far, Gunn's DCU has a clear hit in 2025's Superman, and a major bomb in 2026's Supergirl. The latter had a reported budget of $170 million. In Hollywood, the rule of thumb is that a movie needs to make between 2x and 2.5x its budget in order to break even, as that sum accounts for marketing spend and other expenses. Based on that, Supergirl was looking at a breakeven point in the range of $340 million to $425 million.
That seemed like a pretty reasonable target for Supergirl, especially given how Corenswet's Superman had brought in $618.7 million a year before. Supergirl could have ended its run with as much as $200 million less than 2025's Superman, and it would have been somewhat fine for the DCU's second movie. However, Alcock's solo film ended its theatrical run with an abysmal $126.4 million, falling considerably short of even hitting the lower end of its projected breakeven point. Supergirl's box office performance was so bad that DC had to address it.
To that end, DC Studios co-CEO Peter Safran responded to Supergirl bombing at the box office in a statement to The New York Times. According to the executive, "Supergirl didn’t meet our box office expectations." That said, Safran pretty much defined the movie as a bump in the road, as DC continues to be extremely confident in its long-term strategy for the franchise. Supergirl's negative box office was a result of the character not being as popular as Superman — Helen Slater's Supergirl movie only grossed $14.3 million domestically — reviews skewing negative, a controversial needle drop, a generic villain, and fans not liking changes from the comics.
Supergirl Can Finally Become A Hit Now That It's On HBO Max
Supergirl has two projects currently ruling streaming to base itself on, and both make it look like Alcock's movie is on its way to a major form of redemption. One of those is Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu. Like Supergirl, the Star Wars movie was a box office disappointment, though the space opera got much closer to breaking even than the DC movie. From the moment Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu landed on Disney+ on September 2, the Star Wars release became the most-watched movie on Disney+ worldwide, according to FlixPatrol.
The other project that teases Supergirl's streaming dominance comes from the same streaming service that Kara Zor-El has landed on. That would be Lanterns, the new DC and HBO live-action series focused on the Green Lanterns Hal Jordan, played by Kyle Chandler, and John Stewart, played by Aaron Pierre. Lanterns put the DCU back on top after Supergirl became a box office bomb, with the sci-fi detective series routinely becoming the most-watched TV show on HBO Max worldwide as new episodes are released weekly. There is a clear interest in the DCU on HBO Max, and Supergirl quenches that thirst.
Supergirl Still Has A Bright DCU Future
After that, Supergirl does not have any confirmed appearances in the DCU, but they are likely to come. Gunn would not let a single box office bomb stop Alcock from playing Supergirl after the actress' performance in the movie was still deemed a fan-favorite aspect and celebrated even in the negative reviews. What should happen is DC will put a pin on Supergirl sequels and start using the character in a supporting role, similar to what is happening with Xolo Maridueña's Blue Bettle, whose solo movie also bombed, but will reportedly return in Man of Tomorrow.
Supergirl is not going anywhere, and her solo movie becoming an HBO Max streaming sensation could position Kara to appear in more upcoming DCU projects, being the key event to start a new era for the character.
- Release Date
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June 26, 2026
- Runtime
- Director
- Writers
- Producers
108 minutes
Craig Gillespie
Ana Nogueira
Ruthye