In a statement that will likely provoke more groans than applause, Superman Star Isabela Merced says that while the upcoming DC film appears to be “very faithful” to the original comics, it still features a typical “James Gunn twist.”
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Merced, who will debut in the film as the new DCU incarnation of Hawkgirl, gave this insight into Gunn’s next big screen appearance while appearing on the August 15 episode of Josh Horowitz’s The 4000. Happy, sad, confused Podcasts.
When asked if she could give her opinion on the entire project without spoilers, Merced said, “It’s like the whole movie stays very true to the comics, but with the twist with the James gun.”
(Time stamp: 18:13)
“I think it’s really funny, it’s clever, but it’s heartwarming,” she beamed. “At least that was my experience on set. Of course, things can change in the editing room, but my God, I loved it. James is so prepared. I could actually breathe a sigh of relief on set. I don’t even have to worry about whether I can breathe a sigh of relief afterward, because James is one of those people who knows exactly what they want, will stop at nothing to get it, has a shot list, communicates with his team – they’re all prepared before they get there because they’ve worked with him for over 20 years, right? So when someone like that is in charge and you’re there, you really have room to be happy, to have confidence and to relax into the role. I think that was the most beautiful thing about the experience.”
After a brief detour to her audition for the role of the Thanaga Warrior, Merced later returned to the topic: Supermanand claimed: “I mean, I love this movie for a thousand reasons.”
“I mean, look, James as Superman is exciting enough, but we also see that it’s a huge ensemble,” the actress explained. “It’s obviously a Superman story, it has to be a Superman story, but he’s got the hell out of Guardian And Suicide Squad. He knows how to fill the smaller roles.”
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In this context, Horowtiz was asked whether she felt that the film avoided telling individual origin stories, And Paying due respect to each member of the large cast – including Hawkgirl as Merced, Guy Gardner as Nathan Fillion, Mr. Terrific as Edi Gathegi and Engineer as María Gabriela de Faría – the actress answered with conviction, “Yes.”
“I think we at least know our place in this new universe that James is creating,” Merced said. “I think I’ve learned more about my character every day. I think one of the most eye-opening days for me was when I saw her room. I think the room was super revealing of who she was. I didn’t even know what it was going to look like. You can reference the comics, and then the script might say ‘Inside view: hot girl’s room,’ but that’s it. Then you see it, and it’s super informative, and yeah – I think James is again trying to be really true to the comics, but also put his own spin on it to a certain extent.”
As their discussion about the upcoming DCU reboot drew to a close, Horowitz finally pressed Merced to ask her what she thought of David Corenswet as Superman.
The actress, in turn, explained: “I think David himself is, in my opinion, a very Superman-like person.
“He has the patience of a Buddhist, he’s super super nice and talks to everybody and babies love him, kids love him,” Merced recalls. So I think he’s going to be a wonderful Superman.”
Currently, Gunn’s Superman is on track to begin rescuing Metropolis on July 11, 2025.
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