Warning! This post contains SPOILERS for James Gunn’s Superman

James Gunn’s Superman is by no means an origin story for the new Man of Steel. On the one hand, this is quite refreshing as audiences are thrown into an established DCU. However, it does mean that there are a few questions to be asked when it comes to Superman’s backstory and the history of Krypton.

Especially after the major twist to Superman’s origins regarding his parents in the new DCU movie, curiosities surrounding the Man of Steel’s past have certainly been generated since the movie’s release. What exactly does David Corenswet’s Superman know or not know about his homeworld? With that in mind, here’s everything James Gunn’s Superman reveals about Krypton, and some big questions about what we still don’t know.

9

Krypton Was Destroyed

Leaving Only A Handful Of Survivors

Of course, the first and most important thing we know about Krypton is that Superman’s world is no more. Having fallen into ruin, the destruction of the DCU’s Krypton was likely due to the instability of the planet’s core. This would align with most of DC’s continuities.

In its wake, there are believed to be only a small handful of survivors. While there could be more, the only confirmed Kryptonian survivors are those who were in James Gunn’s Superman. This includes Superman himself, Kara Zor-El’s Supergirl, and Krypto the Superdog.

8

Superman Was Sent To Earth 30 Years Ago

Following Krypton’s Demise

In the opening text of James Gunn’s Superman, it’s confirmed that Kal-El was sent to Earth by his biological parents 3 decades prior to the events of the new DCU movie. This also confirms Superman’s current age in this new cinematic universe. Likewise, the text goes on to confirm that Kal-El has only been Superman for three years, while metahumans have existed for 3 centuries.

7

Supergirl Was Also Sent To Earth

The Details Are Still A Mystery

Thanks to the end of Superman, it’s confirmed that Kara Zor-El’s Supergirl has also made her way to Earth. Played by Milly Alcock, Supergirl was presumably sent from Krypton to survive its destruction as well. Based on the comics, it’s likely that Kara was similarly tasked with protecting her baby cousin Kal-El, only for her own spacecraft to get lost in space.

When Supergirl finally arrives on Earth, Kal-El’s already an adult as Superman, Earth’s greatest protector. Seeing as how her appearance in Superman was key setup for her own movie set to release next year in 2026, it’s quite likely we may learn much more about Krypton from Kara than we have from Corenswet’s Superman. After all, she actually had a life on their shared homeworld before it was destroyed.

2026’s Supergirl is based on the Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow comic. It’s an incredibly dynamic and compelling series that opens with Kara feeling purposeless, that the reason she was sent to Earth no longer matters, and an inability to evade the shadow cast by her cousin’s light. She’s also dealing with the trauma of Krypton’s demise. As such, perhaps Supergirl is the movie where we get flashbacks to Krypton.

6

Krypto Came With Supergirl To Earth

A Kryptonian Canine

By the end of James Gunn’s Superman, we know that Kal-El was just looking after Krypto the Superdog for his cousin. After all, he told Lois Lane earlier in the movie that it was more like “a foster situation”. Sure enough, Kara’s drunken arrival at the Fortress of Solitude in the movie’s final scenes sees her asking Superman where her dog is.

This suggests Krypto was likely sent to Earth with Kara, rather than being sent from Krypton on his own by Jor-El in a test rocket, like in prior comics continuities. Supergirl being drunk and collecting Krypto is all set up for 2026’s Supergirl, as the movie’s opening will likely be a strong adaptation of Woman of Tomorrow’s first issue. However, the scene confirms that Krypto very much belongs to Kara.

5

Superman Was Sent To Conquer And Rule Earth

Bringing About A “New Krypton”

Naturally, one of the biggest revelations we get about the DCU’s Krypton from Superman involves Kal-El’s parents and why they sent him to Earth. Sharing their love and hopes for their son in a message that came with Kal-El’s ship, Superman never heard the second half until Lex Luthor got his hands on it and had the Engineer recover the message (which he then promptly broadcast across the world).

Believing he’d been sent to serve humanity and do good, the second half of the message from Jor-El and Lara reveals they intended their son to rule over Earth. Kal-El’s parents encouraged him to eliminate anyone who defied him or was too weak. They also wanted him to take as many wives as possible to create a “New Krypton” on Earth.

Naturally, Superman was devastated by this idenтιтy-shattering news. While this idea has been explored in the comics to a degree with alternate universes and the like, it does paint a darker light on Kryptonian civilization than we’ve seen in more predominant DC continuities. For all of their love and hope for their son, they apparently wished Superman to conquer what they believed to be a primitive species.

4

Was The DCU’s Superman Still Guided By Jor-El’s AI?

It Definitely Seems Doubtful…

Because his parents’ full intentions came as such a shock in Superman, it’s doubtful Kal-El has the artificial consciousness of his father to guide him. In the comics, and with past live-action Men of Steel, Jor-El’s AI has been within the Fortress to help his son from beyond the grave. It was through this AI that Kal-El learned about Kryptonian civilization and how to use his powers.

Without Jor-El’s ongoing guidance, it stands to reason that the DCU’s Superman doesn’t know much of anything at all about Krypton and his history, especially if he had no idea about why he was sent to Earth.

3

Kryptonite Exists In The DCU

But Why Is It So Limited On Earth?

Kryptonite is confirmed to exist in the DCU. Despite being ᴅᴇᴀᴅly to Superman as radioactive pieces of his homeworld, James Gunn’s Superman confirms that nearly all known deposits of the mineral on Earth are no more, explaining Lex Luthor’s need for Metamorpho to create it after imprisoning Superman. As such, one has to wonder what happened to all the kryptonite if it’s now so limited.

2

How Was The Fortress of Solitude Created?

What About The Superman Robots?

In James Gunn’s Superman, the Fortress of Solitude already exists and is full of Superman Robots. These are mechanized attendants and caretakers of Superman’s remote Arctic sanctuary, largely inspired by Grant Morrison’s All-Star Superman. In the background, machines with various robot parts can be seen, confirming that the robots can create themselves using advanced Kryptonian technology.

Mirroring the comics, the technology and means to create the Fortress must have come with Kal-El in the spaceship that brought him to Earth as a baby. While we don’t see it, one can ᴀssume that the DCU’s Superman was also given a crystal or some sort of guidance to motivate his journey to the Arctic, just like with past iterations both on the screen and page.

1

Did Supergirl Share Anything With Superman About His History?

We Don’t Know The Specifics Of Their Relationship…

Lastly, we don’t specifically know how long Supergirl has been on Earth compared to her cousin. Considering Kal-El has only been Superman for three years, it’s a pretty good guess that her arrival is fairly recent within that period. Taking into account Supergirl’s drunken behavior and generally being a “mess” as James Gunn noted in a recent interview, perhaps Superman and Supergirl don’t yet have the closest of relationships.

While conjecture, a current distance between Supergirl and Superman does seem like the most justifiable reason for Kal-El not knowing about his parents’ true intentions for him on Earth. At any rate, it’s going to be fascinating to learn more about the DCU’s Krypton from the perspective of Supergirl when her movie releases next year.

James Gunn’s Superman is now playing in theaters from DC Studios.