The upcoming Supergirl movie is hitting DC fans like kryptonite after her cameo in “Superman” showed her messy, drunk and primed for a new take on the character.
When “Superman” was released last summer, it made a splash in the DC fandom with 7/10 stars on IMDb and earned over $618 million at the box office worldwide. Following the character’s appearance at the end of the film, only visiting to pick up her dog, the “Supergirl” trailer was released on Dec. 11, 2025.
Milly Alcock’s twist to the beloved cape-wearing hero’s persona captured audiences’ attention. Her appearance and trailer captured her as a galaxy-hopping partier — over- all living a very different, darker and messier lifestyle than her cousin Superman. This contrasting way to be “super,” in comparison to the beloved Clark Kent, has fueled the online debate of how this movie will live up to Superman’s success.
“He is such a beacon of hope that after the movie, people were happier,” Tali Ly, student and Supergirl fan, said. So the question remains: Will Supergirl live up to the hype created by her cousin?
Supergirl isn’t new to cinema, nor to superhero-dom, having shown up in comics start- ing in 1959. Kara Zor-el (her alter-ego) is Superman’s older cousin from Krypton. Sent as a teenager to follow baby Superman to Earth amid their planet’s destruction, Kara’s spaceship was knocked off course, and she didn’t arrive on Earth until her cousin was grown and already a superhero.
Their stories are similar except for the major difference in age. Kara was able to remember the planet she grew up on, and remembers it being destroyed, unlike Superman.
This makes her original story in the comics overall more traumatizing and very different compared to Superman’s. Yet, in many Supergirl adaptations, especially the eponymous TV show featuring Melissa Benoist as Kara, her character admires her cousin to the point of her following in his S-shaped shadow — becoming a hero and saving lives in a mimicry of Superman.
This new film is not trying to do that in the slightest. After fans’ initial reaction to a new interpretation of the character, director James Gunn said that they are purposely trying to make her messy and dark, in other words, imperfect, unlike how female superheroes have been in the past.
“I like that she’s not in the shadows of her cousin,” Ly said. “Even though he’s more well- known in that universe, and also a man, I like that we get to see her as her own person and see her fight her own demons.”
Some fans had already created online debates and conversations surrounding this insecurity and concerns from the trailer, while others supported and promoted the message of an imperfect, messy Supergirl.
“I don’t think they should have set rules for the gender of a superhero,” Gabe Leavitt, a student at UO, said. “I feel like it (Supergirl) hasn’t been shown a lot; I think it’s cool.” Supergirl’s story hasn’t been shown as much as her cousin’s, so Leavitt thinks it is overall a good idea for another Supergirl adaptation to be created and to have that representation out there.
“There are so many expectations for women to be put together all the time. I think it all ultimately comes down to how they show it,” Ly said.
Despite the movie’s intense predictions and conversations, Leavitt, Ly, DC and other comic fans are on the edge of their seats to see the movie’s release on June 26. Time will tell with the movie’s performance, progression and dark storyline, but regardless of how the film chooses to interpret that, Supergirl’s story will go down in history right next to her cousin, creating yet another inspiring film about these heroes.
“I don’t know how to describe it; it made me feel good, made me want to be a better person,” Leavitt said in response to the “Superman” movie.
