I Was Wrong About The New Superman Costume

Don’t get me wrong. I still hate the weird lines and the collar, but something about seeing David standing up in the Superman costume outside in the daylight just looks right. Part of it is the colors James Gunn chose.

I previously went off on the suit for continuing the Synderverse tradition of muted, dark colors. A Superman costume should be, if nothing else, bright with vibrant colors. Turns out this one is.

In my defense, the first picture Gunn released of the new Superman costume wasn’t very well-lit. In the shadows, the costume looked much darker. For all I know, once the movie is finished and color-graded, it may look that way again.

But as of right now, if you put these new pictures side by side with a picture of Christopher Reeve in his Superman costume, the colors are almost identical. The yellow on Corenswet’s symbol might be a tad more Kraft Mac n’ Cheese than Big Bird, but otherwise, it’s a match.

The new Superman symbol on the costume is growing on me, although I still would have preferred the classic S-shield. I will, however, give James Gunn credit for putting an all-yellow version of the symbol on the cape. The last few big-screen Supermen didn’t have the S on the cape, and honestly, I missed it.

In fact, I give Gunn major props for bringing back both the cape shield and the red trunks. Who decided that Superman being an alien with laser eyes was fine, but having underwear on the outside of his costume was too much? The DCU should embrace the absurdity inherent in its characters—something Gunn looks to be doing.

Of course, Henry Cavill’s fan club hates the new suit. Some Snyder diehards have even compared it to something from Spirit Halloween. If you read my previous article, you probably already know my rebuttal. But for those readers who are new to the Superman costume discourse, here it is: that’s how Superman should look.

The whole point of Superman’s costume is that it doesn’t have to look cool. He’s not Batman out there trying to look menacing; he’s an indestructible god. No matter how much you giggle at his corny suit, he’s the one getting the last laugh.

The Christopher Reeve suit is pretty much a skintight spandex bodysuit with no intricate design work whatsoever. But when you see him in action, you never doubt for a second that he’s Superman. With any luck, the same thing will happen with Corenswet.

Ultimately, the DC fandom’s final opinion on the new Superman costume will depend on how David Corenswet carries himself while wearing it. Until we see the new Superman in action, it’s hard to judge the costume. All of the live-action Superman suits look ridiculous when you see them hung up or on a mannequin.

It’s the actor himself who makes the Superman costume work or not. Hopefully, David Corenswet has what it takes to make Superman a name that puts butts in seats once again. For now, he certainly looks the part.