Spoilers! Those 'Superman' cameos, post-credit scenes explained
What if Superman's parents sent him to Earth from their dying planet not to help mankind but to rule over us?
That's the intriguing twist on the usual Man of Steel mythos that marks the new 'Superman,' which launches the rebooted DC movie universe. In it, Clark Kent (David Corenswet) is in his third year of being Superman and protecting Metropolis when he loses his first fight and causes an international incident by stopping war from breaking out between fictional neighboring nations Boravia and Jarhanpur.
Join our Watch Party! Sign up to receive USA TODAY's movie and TV recommendations right in your inbox
Still, Superman is a really popular dude, which sticks in the craw of billionaire tech bro Lex Luthor (Nicholas Hoult). Lex's bad-guy crew raids the hero's Fortress of Solitude in Antarctica and discovers a hidden message from his mom and dad telling him to use his powers to take over Earth and even have a harem of wives. The supervillain reveals it to the world, turning the public against Superman and making Supes' life hell, including kidnapping his dog Krypto.
Let's dive deep into that epic ending – which 'made me feel like a big kid again,' Hoult says – plus a few noteworthy cameos and a couple of post-credit scenes.
What happens in the ending of 'Superman'?
Superman has to deal with the existential crisis of what his parents' surprising message means as well as all manner of obstacles, from fighting a giant kaiju to being tortured by Kryptonite in Lex's interdimensional pocket universe. But as the hero begins his underdog comeback, Luthor's true plans come to light: He's in cahoots with Boravia, and when they take over Jarhanpur, Lex will get his own country.
When Lex realizes he's on the ropes, he goes scorched earth and causes a rift in the pocket universe that begins tearing Metropolis in half. After Superman defeats Lex's henchman Ultraman – a Superman clone also played by Corenswet – he confronts Lex (who's attacked by Krypto), science whiz Mr. Terrific (Edi Gathegi) fixes the rift, and Lois Lane (Rachel Brosnahan) breaks the exclusive that Lex is a traitor. 'Get his bald ass to Belle Reve,' a soldier says while sticking Lex in a transport vehicle headed to the penitentiary for superpowered baddies led by Suicide Squad honcho Amanda Waller (Viola Davis).
'I feel like Lex is smart enough that no matter where he ends up, he will thrive somewhat,' Hoult tells USA TODAY. 'You can only keep a genius like that down for so long. But of course it's going to be a lot on him. Belle Reve is an intense place to be.'
Are they are any surprise cameos in the new 'Superman'?
There are some familiar folks in the movie from director James Gunn's other DC efforts. John Cena reprises his role from 'The Suicide Squad' and TV's 'Peacemaker,' while Frank Grillo, who played military commander Rick Flag Sr. in the animated 'Creature Commandos,' brings him to live action in 'Superman.' (He also will appear in the upcoming 'Peacemaker' Season 2.)
The most high-profile cameo appears early, with Bradley Cooper speaking Kryptonian as Superman's father Jor-El. Corenswet didn't know until recently that the fellow Philly native would be playing his dad (since Cooper's character shows up in a recorded message). Cooper is 'somebody who I've admired for a long time,' he says.
'Superman' also introduces the star of DC's next big-screen venture. At the end of the movie, Supes is hanging at the Fortress of Solitude when his drunk cousin Kara (Milly Alcock) shows up to pick up her dog. (Apparently Krypto is hers, and Superman was just his foster dad for a bit.)
With party girl Kara, the central figure of 'Supergirl' (in theaters June 26, 2026), Gunn wanted someone who was completely opposite to strait-laced Supes. 'Superman was raised by these loving parents in really a non-dysfunctional family,' the director says. 'Where Supergirl came from, it's pretty hellish and she doesn't have a lot of joy in her upbringing. It was a terror pretty much. She just watched people around her dying the whole time. So they're different people.'
Does 'Superman' have a post-credit scene?
Yes, there are two! The first one is a quick, heartwarming mid-credits sequence where Krypto is seen hugging Superman high above Earth. And then after the credits roll, there's a funny scene where Mr. Terrific is trying to fix all the buildings in Metropolis, some aren't quite lining up and Superman hints to that fact. A ticked-off Terrific walks off in a huff. 'Darn it, I can be such a jerk sometimes,' Superman sighs.
Corenswet acknowledges there are a few G-rated lines and phrases like 'darn it' or 'good gosh' – a favorite of his uncle's – that he'd throw in during scenes to match Superman's Boy Scout ethos.
'Superman says 'Golly' and all these things,' he says. 'And he wants to say 'Jesus Christ' or '(expletive) hell' or whatever. You can't say that.'
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Buzz Feed
28 minutes ago
- Buzz Feed
Superman Is Super Woke According To MAGA Supporters
It's a bird! It's a plane! No, it's grown adults upset over a classic superhero in tights, and what he stands for. Superman hit theaters on July 11. It was written and directed by James Gunn and stars David Corenswet, Nicholas Hoult, Rachel Brosnahan, Edi Gathegi, Nathan Fillion, and more. At this point, everyone knows that Superman is an alien from another planet who humans raised to eventually become the superpowered hero in the red and blue tights. But when James recently referred to Superman as an "immigrant," all hell broke loose. In a recent interview with The Sunday Times, James said, "Superman is the story of America. An immigrant that came from other places and populated the country, but for me, it is mostly a story that says basic human kindness is a value and is something we have lost." James's comments sparked immediate backlash from the far-right MAGA crowd. Even though the original comic was created in 1938 by the sons of actual immigrants, and Superman was sent to Earth to make a better life for himself after his planet was destroyed, they accused the film of being "too woke." Fox News contributor Kellyanne Conway said, "We don't go to the movie theater to be lectured to and to have somebody throw their ideology onto us." Fox News host Jesse Watters said in the same segment, "You know what it says on his cape? MS-13," referring to the Salvadoran gang that's designated as a foreign terrorist organization. Ben Shapiro may have agreed that Superman is technically an immigrant but argued that he's a man "who assimilates to American values and then brings those classic American values to the big city." Actor Dean Cain, who played Superman in the 1990s TV series Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman, agreed with Jesse Watters, saying to TMZ, "How woke is Hollywood going to make this character? How much is Disney going to change their Snow White? Why are they going to change these characters to exist for the times?" Dean continued, "For Superman, it was 'truth, justice in the American way.' Well, they dropped that … I don't think is a great idea. I think if you want to create a new character, go ahead and do that. But for me, Superman has always stood for 'truth, justice, and the American way' — and the American way is tremendously immigrant friendly. But there are rules. You can't come in saying, 'I want to get rid of all the rules in America because I wanted to be more like Somalia.' Well, that doesn't work, because you had to leave Somalia to come here — so it doesn't make any sense. If people are coming for economic opportunity, let's take a look at your government and why you don't have that economic opportunity … And there have to be limits, because we can't have everybody here in the United States … our society will will fail." Ironically, the internet quickly resurfaced a clip from Season 4, episode 14 of Dean's series where Superman is stopped by an "immigration and naturalization" officer asking for his green card. Even the 2001 TV series Smallville had an entire storyline where Tom Welling's Clark Kent referred to himself as "an illegal immigrant" when justifying to his mom why he wanted to help a friend from being deported. So, I had the pleasure of seeing the Gunn's Superman reboot. While things that certain groups consider "too progressive" don't cause me a meltdown, I find it disturbing that people are accusing superheroes of being "too woke." For decades, comic book superheroes have been characters who come from different planets, sometimes with abilities that set them apart from average society, and heck, some of them even find themselves at odds with world governments and authority because they challenge the status quo. It has ALWAYS been the superhero agenda since its iteration. The only difference is that there was a time when American values aspired to fight for the same causes as Captain America, Superman, and Batman, and not the bad guys. Today, it feels like it might be harder to swallow that Lex Luthor, a genius tech billionaire who colludes with political figures for his agenda could be the villain in the story. Thanos, Magneto, Doctor Doom, and these larger-than-life supervillains who use their power, wealth, influence, and exact vengeful and hypocritical tyranny on people who don't align with them are hitting too close to home nowadays. If our world leaders' talking points start sounding more and more like something a Bond villain would say, it's not the fictional superhero that got "too woke," or changed for the worse — it's our society. And heck, don't just take my word for it. Although MAGA enthusiasts might decry the idea of Superman being an immigrant fighting for truth, justice, and the progressive American way, there are a lot of folks pointing out that the backlash is wrong. Aside from the celebrities involved in the film, the rest of the internet is having a field day shutting down the backlash against Superman being "took woke." Here's what some folks are saying: And finally, this X user held nothing back, saying, "You're uncomfortable by the acts of kindness cause you're fucking evil. The movie isn't woke. You're just fucking evil." She called out people who claim Superman is "superwoke" for trying to push a political message when the message is just "be kind to other regardless of who they are." What are your thoughts?
Geek Tyrant
40 minutes ago
- Geek Tyrant
Fan-Made Trailer Gives James Gunn's SUPERMAN a Zack Snyder-Style Remix — GeekTyrant
James Gunn's upcoming Superman just got a moody makeover, thanks to a fan trailer that reimagines the reboot through the lens of Zack Snyder's visual style. Created by YouTube user Joe Trailers, the video pairs the film's existing footage with Leonard Cohen's haunting 'Hallelujah', a nod to Snyder's Justice League teaser. With brooding character shots, slow-motion action beats, and a desaturated color palette, the trailer transforms Gunn's hopeful tone into something more operatic and mythic. It's a interesting recontextualization that highlights just how differently Superman might feel if it were filtered through Snyder's aesthetic, epic, somber, and full of weight.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Is the ‘Superman' 2025 Movie Streaming on Netflix or HBO Max?
It's neither a bird nor a plane—it's the new Superman 2025 movie that's soaring into theaters this weekend. It's been less than a decade since star Henry Cavill hung up his cape following Zack Snyder's Justice League films, but the DC Extended Cinematic Universe is back at again with yet another Superman reboot. This time around, director James Gunn (Guardians of the Galaxy, Suicide Squad) takes the reigns, and David Corenswet stars as the Man of Steel, aka Kal-El, aka Clark Kent. Clark is an alien from the planet Krypton who crash-landed on Earth in Smallville, Kansas and was adopted by a human family. Under Earth's yellow sun, Clark has all kinds of powers, including flying, super-strength, super-speed, X-ray vision, and more. The new Superman movie also stars Rachel Brosnahan as Lois Lane, Superman's love interest; and Nicholas Hoult as Lex Luthor, Superman's nemesis. Additional cast includes Edi Gathegi, Anthony Carrigan, Nathan Fillion, and Isabela Merced. Reviews have been positive thus far, so here's what to know about how to watch the Superman 2025 movie and when we expect to be able to watch the Superman 2025 movie on streaming. Right now, the 2025 Superman movie is only available to watch in a movie theater when it opens in theaters on Friday, July 11 You can find a showing near you via Fandango. However, we do expect the Superman movie to be on streaming eventually. Superman is not streaming on Netflix and likely will not be on Netflix any time soon, due to the fact that the film is a Warner Bros. release, will have a streaming home on the Warner Bros.-owned streaming service, HBO Max. If you want to watch the new Superman movie at home, you'll have to wait for the film to be available to buy or rent on digital platforms, or wait for it to stream on HBO Max. If you're new to Max, you can sign up for as low as $9.99/month with ads, but an ad-free subscription will cost $16.99/month. MAX DISNEY+ BUNDLES If you want to stream even more and save a few bucks a month while you're at it, we recommend subscribing to one of the discounted Disney+ Bundles with Hulu and Max. With ads, the bundle costs $16.99/month and without ads, $29.99/month. The Superman 2025 HBO Max release date has not yet been announced, but we expect to see the new Superman man streaming on Max sometime this year. All the new WB theatrical movies end up streaming on Max, though the wait period has varied by title. Another recent WB movie, Sinners was released on PVOD about a month and a half after opening in theaters, and began streaming on HBO Max on July 4, about two-and-a-half months after it was released in theaters. If Superman 2025 follows a similar release pattern, you may see the movie on digital around late August 2025, and streaming on Max around early October 2025. But that's pure speculation. The Warner Bros. home releases have varied by title. If you want to see the new Superman movie ASAP, your best is to catch Superman in theaters.
