How James Gunn's Superman Characters Should Really Look

Contains spoilers for "Superman"

The last time folks saw a live-action Superman was in a slew of cameos in 2023's "The Flash." It was a telltale sign that the DC Extended Universe had gone off the rails, and the franchise was in need of course correction. Enter: James Gunn and Peter Safran as the new heads of DC Studios, culminating in the first film of the newly established DC Universe — "Superman." 

He's DC's most iconic character, so it only makes sense to put a fresh spin on him after Henry Cavill's portrayal. But David Corenswet, stepping into the blue and red suit, isn't just carrying on a legacy from Cavill. There are decades of comic books, cartoons, and other films to draw influence from. That goes for the majority of characters featured in the film.

There are bound to be some differences with each new interpretation. Some make sense within the world director James Gunn created, while others may leave fans wishing for a bit more. Either way, here's how the cast of "Superman" should've looked, according to the more popular depictions of them from across comics history.

Superman is one of the most popular figures in modern culture. We all know what he's supposed to look like — black hair with a curl in the front, strong physique, and a blue and red outfit with a noticeable "S" in the center. For the most part, David Corenswet nails the look. He's someone who looks like he came out of a Superman factory, tailor-made to play this part. When he's Superman, everything looks perfect. The main noticeable difference that might throw some fans off is the design of the "S." It bears a strong resemblance to the emblem Superman wore in the "Kingdom Come" comic storyline, written by Mark Waid with art from Alex Ross. The bottom of the "S" blends into the lower half of the frame as opposed to being a singular "S."

James Gunn was clearly influenced by "Kingdom Come" to a degree, considering one of the small details in "Superman" is a Mark Waid Easter egg. But let's look at Clark Kent's aesthetic. He's clearly meant to be a Superman for the Gen Z generation since he has a broccoli perm, a popular hairstyle among the kids these days. It helps differentiate him from previous Clark Kents and adds to the idea that no one can tell Clark is actually Superman, hypno glasses or not. 

Accuracy Man's Score: 7/10 — When you look at Corenswet, you see Superman. That's really all you need at the end of the day. But he's coming from a long lineage of live-action Supermen, including George Reeves, Christopher Reeve, Tom Welling, Henry Cavill, and so many others. He may be different in some ways, but it allows him to put his unique stamp on the iconic character. 

Lois Lane has a lengthy comics history as well, with slight permutations cropping up over the years. But through it all, it's pretty easy to tell when you're looking at Lois. She's an intrepid reporter for The Daily Planet. She's a brunette, with either short or long hair depending on the exact drawing. Her big thing is that she's a fan of the color purple. Many of her most noteworthy outfits incorporate purple somehow, and in some interpretations, even her eyes are purple, like in "Superman: The Animated Series."

Rachel Brosnahan doesn't have purple eyes; that would probably be a little distracting and imply she's wearing colored contact lenses for some reason. However, everything else about her is Lois to a T. She sports several outfits throughout the film's runtime, but rest assured, she rocks a purple top during the film's climax after Metropolis has been saved. She may not have a cool superhero outfit like some other characters in the movie, but it's undeniable that she's this generation's Lois Lane.

Accuracy Man's Score: 9/10 — It shouldn't be difficult to pull off a good Lois Lane. Like David Corenswet, Rachel Brosnahan naturally looks like how the character should appear from various comic appearances. It'll be a different question if future DC projects see Lois gain superpowers, which has occurred before in the comics. 

Lex Luthor's most notable physical characteristic is his baldness, which has had several explanations in the comics from a science accident to simply being a victim of male pattern baldness. Nicholas Hoult definitely has that attribute down, and it's clear from the rest of "Superman" that this Lex is leaning more into being a diabolical businessman.

Whenever we see Lex, he's in some kind of suit. It doesn't matter if he's controlling Ultraman from afar or threatening a man's life while Superman himself is incarcerated, Lex knows how to dress himself. It's a great way of separating himself from the other metahumans in the film with more colorful and unique outfits. This Lex is all business even though the comics and cartoons occasionally put him in a warsuit so that he can go toe-to-toe with the Man of Steel. Hoult's Lex is more content with letting Ultraman and Engineer (María Gabriela de Faría) handle all that while he stays safe in his ivory tower.

Accuracy Man's Score: 8/10 — One thing that's appreciated about this version of Lex Luthor is that he's bald from the beginning. It doesn't feel the need to give him hair at first, like we've seen with the Gene Hackman and Jesse Eisenberg versions of the character, and then make him bald later. He's bald and proud, and maybe that makes him just the teensiest bit jealous of Superman for having a really solid head of hair. 

Guy Gardner (Nathan Fillion) is a fan favorite in "Superman," and Fillion really has the attitude of the character down. He's hotheaded and a bit of a loudmouth, but he still cares for his friends deep down. As far as looks, he has the signature bowl cut the character is so often defined by. However, Fillion's hair is lighter than what Guy typically has. Fillion is pretty much bleach blonde whereas comic Guy's hair is redder, even orange. Plus, Guy is more muscular. All due respect to Fillion, but he doesn't seem as buff, which could simply be a matter of his muscles getting hidden under his outfit.

All Green Lanterns can create their signature green suits via their power rings, but Guy's outfit is a green, white, and blue number. It makes sense within the context of the film because he's part of the Justice Gang, as sponsored by Max Lord (Sean Gunn) and LordTech. It's a corporate costume so that he looks somewhat similar to his colleagues. Still, it would've been nice if his jacket looked more akin to what he typically sports with the exaggerated, popped-out collar. 

Accuracy Man's Score: 8/10 — For many, Fillion having a bowl cut may be enough to signify he's Guy Gardner, but there's a lot more that would've made him stand out. Redder hair and a more stylized jacket really would've taken the character to the next level. Perhaps the DCU is saving a more comic-accurate Guy look for the upcoming "Lanterns" series on HBO Max. 

Kendra Saunders, aka Hawkgirl (Isabela Merced), has many of the same deviations from the comics as Guy Gardner. While her helmet is comic-accurate, the rest of her outfit is a LordTech costume with some gold lines running through it. She usually appears wearing a gold crop top with green/black leggings. White usually doesn't factor into the equation, but it makes up most of the film's costume. There's also the matter of Kendra's wings, which James Gunn went on the record as saying are organic as opposed to artificial, which has been the case in the comics before. This does raise the question as to why Kendra doesn't have her wings in certain shots, unless she's able to suck them back into her body somehow. 

There's also the matter of her height. While Hawkgirl's height is malleable across media, she tends to be on par with other members of the Justice League, who are pretty tall. However, Merced is 5'1", making her noticeably shorter when she's standing amongst others in "Superman." It doesn't make a huge difference because size isn't everything, but if she ever joins the Justice League in the DCU, she'll probably look smaller than everyone else.

Accuracy Man's Score: 6/10 — Many of Hawkgirl's changes come down to the Justice Gang's affiliation with LordTech in "Superman." By the end, it definitely seems as though they've gone rogue, so a future adaptation may see Hawkgirl assume a more comic-accurate costume. Height isn't a huge deal in the grand scheme of things, and we're just glad she has her helmet and mace in the film. Everything else can be added later. 

Mister Terrific (Edi Gathegi) gets the most screen time out of anyone else in the Justice Gang, so maybe that's why he looks the most like his comic counterpart. He's practically a spitting image with the prominent "T" across his face. While he does have a similar LordTech outfit like Guy and Kendra, he at least puts on his "Fair Play" jacket that's been a key part of his aesthetic from the comics. It symbolizes Mister Terrific stepping away from being a corporate-friendly hero, as he wears the jacket when he agrees to help Lois find out what happened to Superman.

There have been some iterations of the character where he has a metal node in his ear. This earpiece works in conjunction with his facial mask to control his T-Spheres, allowing them to instantly follow his every command. However, this earpiece doesn't appear in many Mister Terrific adaptations, so it might be a moot point to dwell on it. 

Accuracy Man's Score: 9/10 — Mister Terrific might be the closest thing we have to a one-to-one adaptation of a character in "Superman." The look is great; the jacket's on point. He's a character we're excited to see more of going forward in the DCU.

Metamorpho (Anthony Carrigan) has a unique role in "Superman" where Lex uses him as a living weapon to transform his body into kryptonite to weaken Superman while he's locked up. It's a great adaptation of Rex Mason, aka Metamorpho, from the comics, who has the power to transform his body into any element, whether it's a solid or gas. He even has a similar color palette to his counterpart where his face is starkly white whereas his torso is divided between orange and purple. 

However, the film's Metamorpho has a lot more texture to his skin. Comic Metamorpho tends to look smoother, which could be explained as a natural result of him being a 2D drawing. There's also the matter of his trunks. Metamorpho has traditionally worn black trunks, but in "Superman," he appears to have something closer to basketball shorts. That is when his bottom half hasn't transformed into helpful tentacles or a dust cloud.

Accuracy Man's Score: 7/10 — Metamorpho stands as a great way to adapt a strange character into a live-action setting. "Superman" isn't afraid to lean into its more absurd comic book influences, and it's great the film didn't feel the need to "normalize" Metamorpho to appear more grounded. His coloration is superb, and the more ragged aesthetic, although a departure from the source material, lends itself to the idea that his skin is malleable.

Jimmy Olsen (Skyler Gisondo) has long been Clark Kent's intrepid pal, and "Superman" gives him a modern makeover. Instead of acting like a plucky sidekick photographer, he's a journalist in his own right. He even plays an instrumental role in getting all of the information necessary to take Lex Luthor down. Women love Jimmy Olsen, and that's probably because he specifically doesn't dress like he did in the 1940s.

There's no bow tie here. Instead, he's more modeled after recent comic appearances from Jimmy Olsen. His styles have stayed current with the times. Gisondo's not quite the level of a redhead Jimmy is, with more of a dirty blonde look. But the biggest departure is easily the fact Jimmy doesn't carry a camera around with him everywhere he goes. Photos are crucial to his contributions to the film's plot, but they come in the form of Eve Teschmacher (Sara Sampaio) sending him incriminating selfies of Lex's plans with Boravia. 

Accuracy Man's Score: 7/10 — Gisondo naturally looks like how you would imagine a live-action Jimmy Olsen would. He has a boyish charm, but he's more of a ladies' man than what we've seen from him before. But this list is about how characters look compared to their comic counterparts, not how many hearts they've broken. He may lack a camera, but he still embodies what Jimmy has traditionally looked like, even if his job seems slightly different in the new film.

The Engineer, aka Angela Spica, probably has the greatest deviation from the comics to "Superman." In the comics, Angela's blood is replaced with nanites, allowing her to morph her body into whatever she needs, whether it's a weapon or jetpack. This liquid metal subsequently covers her entire body so that she appears silver and metallic at all times.

The Engineer has undergone a similar procedure in "Superman," albeit with Lex's help this time. However, she looks vastly different. For starters, you can still make out her human face. Not every part of her is covered in nanites at the same time, which probably helps in allowing her to emote more easily. However, the part of her body that is covered in nanites is black instead of silver. It's almost like a suit she wears and can then transform into buzzsaws or whatever she needs to take out Superman. 

Accuracy Man's Score: 4/10 — All the powers are there, but there's no denying that comic Engineer is meant to look more like a robot. She's practically a Terminator with malleable metal, allowing her to shape-shift or interact with advanced computers with ease. The Engineer in "Superman" can do all that, too, but it appears James Gunn wanted to emphasize she's still a human underneath all the nanites. Considering she's part of the Authority, which is due to get its own film that Gunn has called a passion project, we should be seeing more of her in the near future, and maybe the nanites will have overtaken more of her body by that point.

We couldn't end a list talking about "Superman" characters without bringing up the goodest boy of all — Krypto. He's the unruly dog Superman's taking care of, but admittedly, he's a major departure from past Krypto portrayals. For the most part, Krypto, despite being an alien dog, has always looked something like a Labrador Retriever. Even if you want to call him a Lab mix, he's generally a bigger dog, the kind you would want to take on missions with you because he looks like he could do some damage. 

The Krypto we have in "Superman" looks decidedly smaller. He's rougher around the edges, being a clear mix of breeds with some scruffy-looking fur. He's also wildly out of control, jumping on Superman after he's been beaten by the Hammer of Boravia. He still has a red cape, though, which is utterly cute and really all we want. 

Accuracy Man's Score: 7/10 — Krypto doesn't look much like past iterations, but there's a heartwarming reason for this. James Gunn told NPR that he modeled Krypto after his own dog, Ozu, who was saved from a hoarder's home. "A rescue organization rescued these dogs, and I went into this room with all these dogs," he explained. "Some of them were friendly. Some of them were not. And my dog was one of them that was not. But he had this funky ear that stood out. I wanted that dog." Krypto has a noticeably wonky ear, so while Krypto may look different than what people are used to, this change gets a pass because there's such a lovely story behind it. It's a good reminder that changes from the source material aren't necessarily done all willy-nilly; an artist can have a very good reason for making a character stand out a certain way.