Man of Steel was meant to be the foundation upon which the DCEU would be built, but unfortunately, that came at the cost of incredible storylines such as Supergirls, which were set up in that first movie. Before the DCU laid the DCEU to rest, the plan was to create something akin to the MCU. Unfortunately, due to rushing to catch up, too many characters were introduced too quickly, with shortcuts to trying to create team-up movies, and core plots for central characters going completely ignored or unrealized. This is most clearly seen in the case of Zack Snyder’s Superman.
Man of Steel was meant to be the first in a series of movies starring the hero, with plans to have Henry Cavill’s character be explored in more detail throughout his series. However, due to converting the next project in the lineup into a makeshift event film, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, and the subsequent plans for Superman never materializing, the whole framework fell apart quickly. This is even more tragic because of the potential storyline for Supergirl which was being set up in the DCEU, which never came to pᴀss.
Man Of Steel’s Opening Provided A Perfect Setup For The DCEU’s Main Universe To Get Its Own Supergirl
The DCEU Supergirl Could Have Been Profoundly Interesting
The first portion of Man of Steel deals with the imminent destruction of Krypton, similar to how Richard Donner’s Superman: The Movie opened in 1978. But one striking difference is the description that goes into explaining how Kryptonians reproduce. Kal-El, the son of Jor-El, was apparently the first child to be naturally created in a long time on the planet. By this point, it appears that the Kryptonians have settled on creating new members of their species and ᴀssigning them to work and live in specific conditions based on their genetics, before they are ever born.
Evidently, this has wider consequences, such as indicating that Kal-El’s cousin, Kara Zor-El, would be one of these lab-grown kids who was pre-conditioned to fulfill a role in Kryptonian society. This clearly sets up a unique story for the DCEU that is unlike the usual comic book origins for these characters, but also adds more context and intrigue to how their stories could have played out. Kara would likely have had some sort of opinion regarding how Kal was born, and this could have led to some conflict between the two. All things considered, Snyder’s version of Supergirl would have been fascinating to follow.
Having Superman Meet Supergirl After Killing General Zod Would Have Made For A Fascinating DCEU Story
Superman Could Have Gotten A Redemption Arc In The DCEU
The most controversial part of Man of Steel is the fact that Superman killed General Zod. While some viewers loved this darker version of the hero, starting at this low point, others felt strongly that it contradicts everything Superman represents. In either case, a sequel could have built on this foundation and made it more meaningful, and including Kara could have gone a long way towards achieving this. Kara may have been conscripted into the military before birth, which might mean she felt an affinity to Zod, and that would have meant Clark struggles to make a connection with her warrior spirit.
However, Clark getting to know Kara, and the two understanding each other could have been a sort of redemption arc after Clark killed Zod, and helped him to leave that dark moment in his past. In addition, their storyline could have been interesting to follow as Man of Steel revealed that the Kryptonians struggle to adjust to Earth’s sun initially. So Clark could have been a crutch to his cousin, helping her to get through these challenging changes, and learn to control her powers. All in all, this version of the story would have been unique and fun to follow.
The DCEU Took A Very Different Direction For Supergirl That Prevented Us Seeing This Kind Of Movie Story
There Was A DCEU Supergirl In The Flash
However, the DCEU ended up moving in a lot of different directions, with an unclear vision for what should happen next. Between major delays for films, and unfulfilled promises that hinted at big things to come, the DCEU felt like an aimless mess. For instance, Justice League was released in 2017, and at the time, it was intended to be the official jumping off point for the team to work from. However, the DCEU next saw everyone gathered together in 2021, for the same movie, but recut by Zack Snyder and edited into a four-hour version of the same story.
At no point was there room to insert Supergirl into the DCEU until The Flash came out in 2023, after several years of delays, major edits, and changes to who would and would not appear in the movie. The film did include a version of Supergirl, but this character hailed from another universe, and it was not a version that aligned with this vision in any way. Despite this, it highlights the fact that there probably was a version of Kara Zor-El in the DCEU that never made it to the big screen.
The DC Universe Is A Perfect Chance To Provide The Kind Of Supergirl Movie Story That The DCEU Never Got To Use
The DCU Has The Chance To Present The Best Supergirl Story To Date
Now, with the DCU about to kick off in a major way, there is another chance to get Supergirl right. So far, the DCU has already cast Milly Alcock as Supergirl, and her debut solo movie is set to release in 2026. This film is due to follow the comic book storyline by Tom King and Bilquis Evely found in the Woman of Tomorrow series of comics. Now, this may not be a perfect copy of what the DCEU was intending to do with the character, but it will undoubtedly be something special, and part of a larger, more thoroughly mapped-out universe.
We will likely never get to see the Supergirl Zack Snyder could have brought to the big screen in the DCEU, but at least the character will finally get the attention they deserve.
Alcock’s Supergirl is also set to make her debut in Superman, where she will be seen alongside her cousin Kal-El. With all of this in place before the first theatrical film is ever released, it’s clear that the character is being given a greater focus in the DCEU. We will likely never get to see the Supergirl Zack Snyder could have brought to the big screen in the DCEU, but at least the character will finally get the attention they deserve, even after the disastrous developments that came after Man of Steel was released and the DCEU faltered to a halt.
