Superman includes several big cameos from across the world of DC, and here is every one of them. As the first true installment of the DCU’s Chapter One: Gods and Monsters, Superman naturally includes wider references to the franchise. This is done in several ways, from outright story beats to Superman‘s niche Easter eggs and references.
The former includes countries like Jarhanpur and Boravia, both from DC Comics, while the latter includes hidden elements like a road sign leading to Gotham City. By the time of Superman‘s explosive ending, the film had featured so many DCU Easter eggs that it was hard to keep track. The easier references to catch, however, were Superman‘s cameos.
Rather than have Superman‘s post-credit scenes be cameo-fests, as tends to be the case in many superhero movies these days, the film naturally sprinkled them throughout its runtime. From other DCU heroes and antiheroes and those with real-life connections to the Man of Steel to wider members of the franchise, here is every cameo found in 2025’s Superman.
7
Jor-El & Lara
Superman’s Biological Parents From Krypton
The first major cameos in Superman came in the film’s opening moments. After an opening crawl of text that establishes the state of metahumans, including Superman, in the DCU, the тιтular hero crashes to the ice and returns to the Fortress of Solitude for healing.
There, Superman’s trusty robot helpers play the message that his biological parents, Jor-El and Lara, sent to Earth along with him. The message becomes important later in the film’s story, while also featuring the first true cameos of Superman; Bradley Cooper plays Jor-El, with Lara being played by Angela Sarafyan in a lengthy video message.
Bradley Cooper is known for working alongside James Gunn as the voice of Rocket Raccoon in the Guardians of the Galaxy movies, while Sarafyan is perhaps best known for her work on Westworld. Now playing the Kryptonian parents of Kal-El himself, Cooper and Sarafyan are only the tip of Superman‘s iceberg of cameos.
6
Peacemaker
The DCU’s Resident Anti-Hero
While Jor-El and Lara were cameos mainly due to the star-power of those playing them, Superman features one later in the film’s first half that is recognizable in a character sense. The character in question is Chris Smith, aka Peacemaker, who previously appeared in James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad and Peacemaker season 1, before reprising his role in the upcoming Peacemaker season 2.
In Superman, Peacemaker appears as a guest on a talk show after the aforementioned video message featuring Jor-El and Lara becomes vital to the film’s plot. Peacemaker is being interviewed and makes a few humorous jabs at Superman and other metahumans before the camera pans away.
5
Rick Flag Sr.
The Leader Of The Creature Commandos
Although Superman is the first true launch-point of James Gunn’s DC Universe, Creature Commandos was technically the first installment. This was an animated story more akin to Gunn’s work on The Suicide Squad, featuring a task force of monsters led by Rick Flag Sr., played by Frank Grillo.
The cameo was a neat way of involving a previously established DCU character who will go on to be more important…
Grillo appears in Superman as someone who sides with the Man of Tomorrow, despite Lex Luthor worming his way into the U.S. government. Flag Sr. has a fairly small role in Superman, yet the cameo was a neat way of involving a previously established DCU character who will go on to be more important thanks to a role in Peacemaker season 2.
4
Will Reeve
The Real-Life Son Of Another Superman Actor
Moving away from established DCU characters, Superman gave some cameos to people with real-life connections to the iconic hero. One such person was Will Reeve, the son of Christopher Reeve, who portrayed Superman/Clark Kent in four movies:
- Superman (1978) – Directed by Richard Donner
- Superman II (1980) – Directed by Richard Lester
- Superman III (1983) – Directed by Richard Lester
- Superman IV: The Quest For Peace (1987) – Directed by Sidney J. Furie
Christopher Reeve sadly pᴀssed away in 2004, yet is still synonymous with the character of Superman. Therefore, Gunn included Christopher’s son Will in 2025’s Superman as a news reporter. This not only bolsters the link between Will Reeve and Superman, but it also links to the former’s real-life occupation as a correspondent for ABC News.
3
Michael Rosenbaum
A Former Iteration Of Lex Luthor
Staying in the realm of Superman cameos with real-life links to the character, Michael Rosenbaum appears in the DCU film. Although not facially, Rosenbaum has a cameo as the voice of one of Lex Luthor’s Raptor guards.
Michael Rosenbaum also appeared in cameo roles as Martinex in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 and Vol. 3.
Rosenbaum’s cameo in Superman is important, as he is perhaps best known for portraying Lex Luthor himself in the past. Rosenbaum portrayed Lex in 154 episodes of Smallville, now serving another version of Lex, played by Nicholas Hoult in Superman‘s cast.
This is a blink-and-you-will-miss-it role, but it’s still cool that Rosenbaum gets to play in the Superman sandbox once more. With Gunn and Rosenbaum now regular collaborators, I would not be surprised if the latter appears in more DC Studios projects going forward.
2
Maxwell Lord
The Overseer Of The Justice Gang
Going back to the world of DCU characters, Maxwell Lord appears in Superman. Played by Sean Gunn, brother of writer-director James Gunn, Lord appears in a similar vein to Peacemaker. Lord is shown being interviewed by various news anchors towards the end of the film, linking to his Justice Gang heroes.
Lord is the owner of LordTech in the DC Universe, which oversees the Justice Gang. It is implied that he usually makes the decisions as to where the Justice Gang is deployed, yet Superman‘s ending changes this. With metahumans beginning to make decisions on their own in Superman, Lord is shown being quizzed on this.
Superman’s actions caused Guy Gardner and Hawkgirl to intervene when Boravian forces invaded Jarhanpur in the film’s final act, causing many to wonder if metahumans are now making the decisions instead of Lord. Gunn will reprise his role as Maxwell Lord in Peacemaker season 2, which will continue exploring the internal machinations of the Justice Gang.
1
Supergirl
The Cousin Of Kal-El
The final cameo in Superman comes in the film’s closing moments. Superman is shown healing with a revitalized Robot #4 after the film’s climax in the Fortress of Solitude before someone crashes through the building. Robot #4 tells Superman that his cousin has returned, revealing Supergirl herself as the film’s last cameo, played by Milly Alcock.
Milly Alcock was cast as Kara Zor-El for the upcoming DC movie, Supergirl, reтιтled from Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow. Her cameo in Superman sets this up, with Clark telling Robot #4 that Kara would rather spend her time drinking on planets with red suns so that she can become inebriated.
This is how the Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow comic book series starts. The comic book also includes Krypto, another part of Superman‘s story, which explains why Supergirl turned up to retrieve him in the 2025 film.
This marks the final cameo in Superman, proving the film to be one chock-full of DC heroes, villains, antiheroes, and real-life figures whose lives have been impacted by Kal-El’s hope and inspiration.
