It’s a Fascist! It’s a Communist! No, It’s Superman! James Gunn’s blockbuster is America’s favorite Rorschach test. What do you see?
David Corenswet suits up for Superman (2025). (Courtesy of Warner Bros.)
It’s a bird! It’s a plane! It’s an inane culture war! The new Superman film, released over the weekend, turned, predictably enough, into a partisan issue. Director James Gunn started things off on July 4—of all days—by reminding us in an interview that Superman is “an immigrant,” albeit one who arrived from outer space. This article is featured in Culture and Ideas. Sign up here to get an update every time a new piece is published. You’ll never guess what happened next: Superman is superwoke, cried the right, in essays, op-eds, and numerous cable segments. X was full of predictions from the right that this was another case of “go woke, go broke.” Then—naturally—the White House suggested that Donald Trump is the real Superman, by posting a mock movie poster of the president in Lycra regalia. Gavin Newsom parried back, saying that Superman was not only an immigrant but “an undocumented one.” Not that everyone on the left was enthused...
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