Superman teaser trailer introduces a hero: Krypto the Superdog

“Look up!” It’s not a bird or a plane, it’s James Gunn’s vision of Superman finally coming to life. Gunn and Peter Safran’s new DC Cinematic Universe has already soft launched on the TV side, but on Thursday the Superman teaser trailer marks the true beginning of a new DCU. (Here’s hoping it’s more successful than the last one.) And now we have our first full look—or at least, a tease of a full look—at David Corenswet as the Man Of Steel ahead of the July 11, 2025 premiere. 

And frankly, Supes is not looking too good. That’s nothing against Corenswet or his suit; it’s just that our literal first look at Superman is him crashing to Earth and spitting up blood. He has to whistle for his loyal companion Krypto, who races through the tundra to come drag Superman “home.” Presumably by “home” he means the Fortress of Solitude, but we don’t get a look at that here. (Maybe in the full trailer!) Anyway, it’s Krypto who gets the biggest hero moment in the teaser.

Of course, there’s significant moments for Clark in the Superman teaser trailer, too. We’re meeting an embattled Superman; the public appears to have turned against him. But he’s got allies, including Lois Lane (Rachel Brosnahan), who shares romantic moments with Clark and Supes (seems like we’re probably past the secret identity thing, here). There’s also a look at Nathan Fillion’s Guy Gardner/Green Lantern and Isabela Merced’s Hawkgirl, among other colorful characters. That includes Nicholas Hoult as a bald, gun-toting Lex Luthor.

Speaking with Gizmodo, Gunn assured that his movie isn’t an origin story, but it will grapple with the hero’s origins—even if he did drop “Legacy” from the title. “I thought maybe the title had a looking back feeling about it. And this isn’t about looking back. This is about looking forward,” the director explained. “So although when you see the movie you’ll understand where ‘Legacy’ comes from, because it is about Clark and his relationship to his Kryptonian parents and his relationship to his human parents and whose legacy is he really? And so it’s about that. But I think as a title it felt too ‘looking back.'” And as we all know, what you really want to do is look up.