James Gunn’s Superman releases in theaters on July 11, but fans in certain territories almost had to wait much longer to get hold of the movie. Over the past few months, the estate of Superman co-creator Joseph Shuster has been attempting to block the release of Superman in territories like the UK, Canada, Australia, and Ireland, due to the respective territories’ copyright laws. After months of waiting, with international fans left on edge wondering if they would get to watch Superman at the same time as the rest of the fan base, the verdict has finally been revealed. After months of legal deliberation and other fun courtroom drama, a New York judge has denied the Shuster estate’s bid to block the release of Superman in the above territories. As a result, fans in the UK, Ireland, Canada, and Australia will now all be able to enjoy Superman in theaters when it releases on July 11.

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David Corenswet is ready to take to the skies as Superman.

David Corenswet stars as the Man of Steel in James Gunn’s new movie, alongside Rachel Brosnahan as Lois Lane, Skyler Gisondo as Jimmy Olsen, and Nicholas Hoult as Lex Luthor. The film will mark the official start of the DCU on the big screen, although the rebooted cinematic universe technically began with 2024’s animated show Creature Commandos. DC Studios is hoping for a big hit with Superman, as its success will act as the momentum to propel the rest of the DCU’s big screen endeavours, including next year’s Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow.
A Brief History of ‘Superman’s Legal Battle

Unfortunately, real legal proceedings aren’t as dramatic as an episode of Suits, and Superman’s release lawsuit has been dragging on for months. The suit was opened in January of this year. Shuster’s estate attempted to block Superman’s release in the above territories, claiming that Warner Bros. and DC Studios lack the foreign rights to the comic book IP. In May, the Shuster estate refiled its suit in New York. Having refiled just less than two months from Superman’s release, things were looking dicey for the Man of Steel’s big screen debut. The second suit claimed that Warner Bros. and DC Studios were “exploiting Superman” through their film and television releases. Now that Superman is cleared for takeoff across the globe, the film is expected to dominate the box office this summer. A recent report confirmed that the film’s budget was an estimated $225 million, with an additional $200 million spent on marketing. As a result, Superman will need to be a serious hit just to make back its budget. While the hype for Superman is gigantic, it also faces a major competitor at the July box office. Fantastic Four: First Steps releases on July 25, and pre-sale demand for the MCU’s next entry was so high it caused online ticket websites to crash. Source: @DCFilmNews

Superman

Release Date

July 11, 2025

Director

James Gunn

Producers

Lars P. Winther, Peter Safran