The first Superman trailer has been released, offering the first glimpse of the DCU in live action. The trailer revealed Clark Kent, Lois Lane, and Lex Luthor, along with other classic supporting characters from the comics. It also revealed some DC Comics superheroes who are not as well known as the Man of Steel. Indeed, the trailer marks the live-action premiere of many of these characters.
Guy Gardner
First appearing in Green Lantern #58 in 1968, Guy Gardner had a chip on his shoulder for most of his life. He was verbally and physically abused by his father, who favored Guy’s older brother, Mace.
This left Guy with a need to prove himself, even before he was recruited into the Green Lantern Corps. These feelings of inadequacy were not helped by the revelation that he missed out on being the first Earthling to be a Green Lantern because Hal Jordan was closer to a dying Corpsman crashed on Earth. However, despite his acerbic attitude, Guy dedicated his life to helping those in need as a social worker and special education teacher before becoming a superhero.
Guy Gardner is played by Nathan Fillion. The Superman trailer briefly shows Guy at the 1:43 mark, as he follows the Man of Steel into a Stagg Industries building. Guy is shown using his ring to block off the windows, shielding a clearly saddened Superman from the angry crowd that was throwing things at him earlier. This showcases Guy’s compassion, as he acts to protect Superman despite his clear annoyance with the situation.
Hawkgirl
There are several heroes who used the name Hawkgirl. The first was Shiera Hall, who first appeared in 1940’s Flash Comics #1. Like her husband Carter Hall, she was the reincarnation of an Egyptian noble, cursed to be continually reborn. This mystic origin was abandoned in the Silver Age of Comics, when DC Comics revamped many characters with science-fiction themes. Thus did Shiera Hall become Shayera Hol, an alien peacekeeper from the planet Thanagar, in 1961’s The Brave and the Bold #34.
Both these origins were brought together in 1999’s JSA: Secret Files #1, with the introduction of the third Hawkgirl, Kendra Saunders. The grandniece of Shiera Hall, Kendra was reborn with her grandaunt’s soul following a near-death experience. She inherited all of Shiera’s fighting prowess, but none of her memories. It was later shown that the reincarnated Egyptian nobles that became Carter and Shiera Hall had made contact with Thanagar and made use of their technology in ancient times.
The Kendra Saunders Hawkgirl is played by Isabela Merced. She is briefly seen in the Superman trailer among the heroes following Superman into Stagg Industries. She is later seen more visibly at the 1:45 mark, swooping dramatically towards the camera, mace raised to face some unknown enemy.
Metamorpho
First appearing in 1965’s The Brave and the Bold #57, Metamorpho is one of DC Comics’ strangest heroes. Rex Mason was an adventurer, who was forever transformed into a “fabulous freak” by the Orb of Ra. This gave him the ability to reshape his body into any element, though he could not assume a human form. This didn’t matter to Rex’s girlfriend, socialite Sapphire Stagg, though he still worried about her truly being happy with him.
Rex Mason is played by Anthony Carrigan. The Superman trailer briefly shows Rex in his Metamorpho form around the 1:53 mark. His face shows the trademark whirls from the original designs of co-creator Ramona Fradon. The distinctive orange and purple coloration of his costume can also be made out on his shoulders.
Mister Terrific
Two superheroes have used the name Mister Terrific at DC Comics. The first was Terry Sloane, who first appeared in 1942’s Sensation Comics #1. A self-made millionaire and Renaissance Man, Sloan became depressed by the thought that he had accomplished all his goals and had nothing left to live for. However, he ultimately found new purpose as a costumed hero, devoting his genius to helping others after stopping a woman from jumping off a bridge. Decades later, Sloane’s story served as inspiration to another troubled genius.
Michael Holt had, as he put it “a natural aptitude for having natural aptitudes.” Like Sloane, Holt was a self-made millionaire, possessing 14 Ph.D’s and Masters degrees in disciplines including chemistry, physics, law, and psychology. Holt also, like Sloane, fell into a deep depression after his wife and unborn child died in a car crash. He ultimately found new purpose devoting his life to helping others, taking on the Mister Terrific mantle in 1997’s The Spectre #54.
Michael Holt is played by Edi Gathegi. He can be seen in the Superman trailer among the heroes following Superman in the scene set at Stagg Industries. Mister Terrific appears more visibly around the 1:59 mark, where he uses his trademark T-Spheres to protect a woman with a forcefield.
Superman (2025) releases in theaters on July 11, 2025.
