I’ll always remember the moment I realized Superman owned more than one costume.
I was a kid, watching something about the making of the first Christopher Reeve Superman movie, and they were talking about how they had created like six or seven different capes for Reeve, depending on the needs of the scene. Superman is flying? Use this cape. He’s going into the water? There’s a different cape for that. He’s just hanging out, talking to Lois? New cape!
Which brings me to the set photos that have shown up online from James Gunn’s currently shooting Superman 2025 reboot, featuring David Corenswet in his Superman suit alongside Edi Gathegi as DC Comics hero Mister Terrific. Some fans have expressed disappointment with the latest look of the Man of Steel, which follows, of course, a long tradition of folks worrying about superhero casting, superhero costumes, superhero hairstyles, and all other manner of superhero stuff when a movie or show based on a popular character is in production. This worrying, for some, is like going to the prom, or paying taxes, or dying – one of life’s rituals, it seems.
The suits are out! 🦸♂️ Superman and what appears to be Mister Terrific from DC Comics are in full uniform and together filming a scene in downtown Cleveland.
Photos: Joshua Gunter, https://t.co/a4YA4W2Cro pic.twitter.com/QoM3G0NUCD
— clevelanddotcom (@clevelanddotcom) June 24, 2024
Is the James Gunn/David Corenswet leaked Superman suit kinda bulky in spots? Do the belt loops seem a little big and loose? Are the colors too bright? What’s with those boots? DID MA KENT EVEN SEW THIS THING HERSELF OR NOT?!
The truth is, while it’s totally within fans’ rights to have concerns about stuff like this, ultimately they shouldn’t be worrying too much over the way Corenswet’s costume looks in these unauthorized photos. And that’s because this almost certainly is not what the suit will look like in the finished film.
For starters, superhero costumes in tentpole movies and big-budget TV shows are designed and constructed to be seen in very unique circumstances, specifically to be photographed under professional lighting by Hollywood’s top craftspeople. They’re not meant to be cosplay, which can often look amazing in person as we all know, but are a completely different breed of costume. Rather, one consideration that goes into making a Hollywood costume is how well an actor can, you know, act his or her role in said costume – can they walk around, gesture, and most importantly, feel comfortable as they work to bring their character to life? There’s also the matter of the hero costume, which is not to say “superhero,” but rather the one you’d see in close-ups or primary shots versus background or stunt shots.
Big-budget movie costumes are meant to be seen in a finished product that will undergo many steps between what is happening on set and by the time we’re all watching the movie on the big screen (or on our iPhone as the case may be). Just as the lighting and photography of the suits is already transforming them in a way that a paparazzi shot will not, it’s no secret that once the production enters the visual effects and editing stage, the super suits can and most certainly will undergo an entire overhaul as well.
Once the production enters the visual effects and editing stage, the super suits can and most certainly will undergo an entire overhaul as well.
Vox released a great video a couple of years ago about how commonplace digital body doubles are in comic-book movies. Everyone from Spider-Man in Captain America: Civil War to the Vision in the Avengers movies to Hawkeye’s costume in the Disney+ series, to name just a few, were digitally replaced or redesigned in some way. It’s a frequent practice because it doesn’t just give the filmmakers the ability to have their characters pull off stunts that even the greatest stunt person wouldn’t do in real life, but it also allows for the tweaking and final design of the look of the characters long after the film or show has completed primary production.
In the case of Tom Holland’s Spider-Man in the famed airport tarmac battle in Civil War, the character is a digital double throughout. Holland did some performance-capture work, but then he was painted over by the digital artists. Even the spider logo on the wallcrawler’s suit was changed in the final product! Because why not?
The point being, the Superman suit we’re seeing in these set photos is not the Superman suit we’re going to get in the final James Gunn movie next year. If you have an issue with the design of the suit – the Kingdom Come logo or the inclusion of the red trunks or the New 52 rifts – then that’s a different issue entirely. But for now, just remember that many of the tiny, granular details on this costume will change before final cut. Superman has like seven capes in his closet, after all!
Photo Credit: Joshua Gunter/Cleveland.com
Talk to Scott Collura on Twitter at @ScottCollura, or listen to his Star Trek podcast, Transporter Room 3. Or do both!
