One of the biggest issues with James Gunn’s Man of Steel continues to dominate social media comments after a new post shared a look at Superman being given a taste of Kryptonite in this summer’s DCU blockbuster. However, while the post was meant to be highlighting the design of Gunn’s take on Kryptonite, some took it as a chance to call out the “weak” character the director is bringing to lead the franchise. While Christopher Reeve is still the definitive Superman for many fans, there are many people who seem to believe that several modern stories of the Last Son of Krypton, and the darker and more powerful version created by Zack Snyder and Henry Cavill, are what Superman has always been about. For this reason, the internet has been a constant stream of complaints about how the new Man of Steel is more like a Man of Tin.

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From trailers including moments of David Corenswet’s Superman struggling through fire, to his original appearance battered and bloodied on the ice waiting to be saved by Krypto, the vulnerability of the character in this new iteration has been something some people just cannot allow to pass without comment. Now, in the images of Superman being exposed to Kryptonite, the same comments have come around yet again. Responding to images taken from the latest teaser, one response said, “Again….Superman on the ground for the 6,345 time in the movie cause he’s weak.” Another followed this by adding, “I mean Superman can already get hurt in this film without the Kryptonite. So this scene is irrelevant. Unfortunately in the new film almost everything can hurt him.”
Is Superman Weak in James Gunn’s DCU?

Warner Bros.

Although the discourse over Superman has been very loud from a select few on social media, the idea of Superman being “weak” is one that has very little ground, and there have been many willing to point this out. One subsequent comment said, “Kryptonite has never been the only way ever to hurt Superman what tf are you morons talking about.” Gunn previously countered initial complaints about Superman showing “weakness” with a detailed response as to why this version of Superman is not “God Man.” He said:
“There are things that I know I don’t explain that I don’t even want to say out loud! But I wanted Superman to be vulnerable. I see the online things ‘Who would beat whom?’ — Homelander or Superman or f—ing whatever, Adam Warlock or Brightburn, and I’m like, ‘This is the f—ing stupidest f—ing conversation.’ Like, so then whoever would win this fight means that they’re the best? Because I’ll just go out and write God Man, who can destroy you with a wink. And I win. I win all the fights forever. But I didn’t want a Superman who could punch planets. And also we’re creating a whole universe now, so what’s a girl with wings gonna do in the face of that? So he’s a little less powerful. [Green Lantern] Guy Gardner’s pretty f—ing powerful. They’re all pretty powerful.
Honestly, in talking to people, a lot of people are like, ‘I like Batman better because he can actually be beat,’ and I get that. So we have a Superman that can be beat.” Source: X

Superman

Release Date

July 11, 2025

Director

James Gunn

Producers

Lars P. Winther, Peter Safran