In news that I feel like most of us already knew but which is now "confirmed," The Hollywood Reporter has it that Milly Alcock, who played Young Rhaenyra Targaryen in the first season of HBO's Game of Thrones prequel series House of the Dragon, will appear as Superman's cousin Kara Zor-El, aka Supergirl, in the upcoming Superman movie, which lands in theaters on July 11, 2025. She'll likely only show up for a cameo, but she'll be there, alongside other DC heroes like Metamorpho (Anthony Carrigan), Mister Terrific (Edi Gathegi), Green Lantern (Nathan Fillion), and Hawkgirl (Isabela Merced).
Some fans worry that the movie is overloading itself with characters. This movie is supposed to be about Superman, right? It makes sense that folks like Lois Lane (Rachel Brosnahan) and Lex Luthor (Nicholas Hoult) will show up, but who are all these other people?
Well, director James Gunn is hoping to use the new Superman movie to jump-start a whole new cinematic universe; there's already a solo Supergirl movie planned: Woman of Tomorrow just started filming and is set to hit theaters on June 26, 2026. That movie is based on the comic book mini-series of the same name, about a young alien girl named Ruthye who enlists Supergirl's help in getting revenge on Krem of the Yellow Hills, who killed her father. Eve Ridley will play Ruthye and Matthias Schoenaerts Krem. David Krumholtz and Emily Beecham will play Supergirl's parents and Game of Thrones veteran Jason Momoa will appear as the chaotic space bounty hunter Lobo.
But that'll be in 2026. For now, I'm looking forward to seeing what James Gunn brings to Superman; the trailer was certainly more interesting than I was anticipating. But the surfeit of characters does raise my eyebrow a bit. Gunn is a writer-director given to sentimental excess, and while he usually balances that out with edgy cynicism, I'm not sure if Superman is the right character on whom to use this unique blend.
We'll all see soon enough. May the new DCU get off to a good start this year.
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