Is James Gunn Teasing This Iconic DC Villain for Superman 2?

In James Gunn’s Superman, David Corenswet’s Kal-El has nary shortage of enemies to battle. He faces disconnected with everyone from Ultraman to María Gabriela de Faría’s Engineer to a runaway kaiju, each portion Nicholas Hoult’s Lex Luthor pulls the strings. It’s a bully happening the Man of Steel has specified a immense rogues gallery, oregon other determination mightiness not beryllium anyone near to physique a sequel around.

Superman whitethorn not beryllium overly funny successful laying seeds and dropping teases for aboriginal movies, but we bash person to wonderment if Gunn is telegraphing the villain of a imaginable Superman 2. It each has to bash with the open-ended destiny of 1 character. Which iconic DC villain could Gunn beryllium hinting at? None different than Superman’s backwards-talking doppelganger, Bizarro. Let’s interruption down the evidence.

Why Ultraman Is Like Bizarro

As galore DC fans suspected, there’s a crushed Ultraman’s look is kept hidden for overmuch of the movie. Early on, we larn that Ultraman was genetically engineered by Luthor arsenic portion of his ambitious Planet Watch initiative. He’s meant to beryllium the cleanable limb - a being that possesses each of Superman’s powers but is wholly malleable and controllable.

In the climax of the film, it becomes evident conscionable however overmuch DNA Ultraman shares with Superman erstwhile his look is yet revealed and we spot a scraggly, long-haired mentation of Corenswet’s face. Ultraman genuinely is Superman, conscionable without Clark’s latent humanity and intelligence.

At this point, it’s hard not to beryllium reminded of a circumstantial incarnation of Bizarro from the comics. While, traditionally, Bizarro is depicted arsenic an alien from the square-shaped satellite Bizarro World, DC attempted to springiness the quality much of a grounded makeover for its New 52 reboot. 2013’s Forever Evil introduced a caller instrumentality connected the character, 1 that whitethorn good person inspired Gunn’s mentation of Ultraman.

The New 52 mentation of Bizarro. Art by Aaron Kuder. (Image Credit: DC)

The New 52 Bizarro is besides a Superman clone genetically engineered by Luthor. He’s the archetypal semi-successful trial subject, codenamed Subject B-0, though an penetration by the Crime Syndicate forces Luthor to defrost his instauration 5 years early. That’s the root of Bizarro’s white, mottled tegument and constricted intelligence. Bizarro besides wears an inside-out Superman T-shirt, explaining his iconic backwards Superman costume.

Bizarro helps Luthor support the satellite from these interdimensional invaders, and the 2 signifier a amazingly tender enslaved (very overmuch dissimilar Luthor’s wide disgust for Ultraman successful the movie). Bizarro yet dies warring Luthor’s Earth-3 doppelganger, Mahzahs, and Luthor avenges his friend. As Forever Evil ends, Luthor is seen ordering his scientists to statesman increasing a caller Superman clone, portion besides instructing them to specifically aftermath him up 5 years aboriginal again. That’s astir apt the astir humanity Luthor has ever shown anyone.

Even anterior to the New 52, the thought of Bizarro being a Superman clone created by Luthor was explored successful Superman: The Animated Series. There’s a definite precedent here.

The Birth of Bizarro World

There are definite comparisons to beryllium drawn betwixt the DCU’s Ultraman and the New 52 mentation of Bizarro. But that’s not the lone crushed we deliberation Gunn whitethorn beryllium mounting up Bizarro successful a imaginable sequel. Ultraman’s open-ended destiny besides hints astatine a larger storyline for this poor, misunderstood villain.

Even aft yet gaining the precocious hand, Corenswet’s Superman stops abbreviated of sidesplitting Ultraman successful the film. Instead, Ultraman is dragged into the achromatic spread astatine the halfway of the pouch beingness Luthor created to service arsenic his idiosyncratic prison. When the rift betwixt dimensions is yet closed, Ultraman is near trapped and alone. But fixed that helium has each of Superman’s powers, we’d task to conjecture he’s not dead.

Instead, we could easy spot a script wherever Ultraman is near isolated and unsocial successful this unusual realm. Maybe the solitude drives him crazy, transforming him into a shambling carnal with airy tegument who speaks successful opposites. Maybe the adjacent clip we conscionable Ultraman, he’s devolved into Bizarro.

The pouch magnitude itself seems to beryllium the cleanable mode to present Bizarro World to the DCU. The information that truthful overmuch of the architecture and geological formations successful that realm are cubes could precise good beryllium a telltale hint that this is wherever Gunn is headed. Luthor’s pouch beingness could reassemble itself to signifier 1 giant, cubed planet. And don’t hide - the movie ends with a post-credits country revealing Metropolis isn’t perfectly realigned. That jokey infinitesimal could beryllium a hint that the pouch magnitude volition travel backmost into play successful a imaginable Superman 2.

The question is conscionable however acold down the Bizarro rabbit spread Gunn mightiness spell successful aboriginal movies. Will we spot Bizarro versions of Rachel Brosnahan’s Lois Lane and the remainder of the Daily Planet crew? Will helium present Bizarro’s person Batzarro, the World’s Worst Detective? If anyone is going to excavation that ridiculous DC treasure trove, it’s Gunn.

It’s besides worthy remembering that Bizarro and the anti-Bizarro known arsenic Zibarro play a large relation successful Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely’s All-Star Superman, a comic we cognize was a immense root of inspiration for Gunn and his team. Gunn whitethorn privation to further grant that comic by including Bizarro successful the sequel. If not arsenic the main villain, past astatine slightest arsenic an entertaining broadside character. If Gunn tin marque Guy Gardner’s hideous vessel chopped enactment successful unrecorded action, past there’s nary crushed helium can’t bash justness to Bizarro.

Jesse is simply a mild-mannered unit writer for IGN. Allow him to lend a machete to your intelligence thicket by following @jschedeen connected BlueSky.