James Gunn shares the exact moment he knew David Corenswet was ‘the guy’ to play Superman

One thing about James Gunn — he knows his way around the world of superheroes. After all, he’s the brains behind Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy franchise and the DCEU’s Suicide Squad sequel, The Suicide Squad. A decade later, and having finally found the character within himself that he was ready to write, he’s officially kickstarting his newly imagined DC universe with Superman.

Superman sees David Corenswet in the dual role of Superman and reporter Clark Kent as he navigates the balance between his alien Kryptonian heritage with his human upbringing. Unlike previous adaptations of the character, Gunn skips the origin story. We’re thrown right into the action, within a fully-formed world already riddled with superheroes and villains.

Gunn’s vision for Superman is a vibrant one. At its core, this is a Superman defined by compassion and an unwavering faith in the goodness of humankind. He’s “grounded in real stakes with real people” facing their own challenges, including Rachel Brosnahan’s Lois Lane and Nicholas Hoult’s Lex Luthor.

Rachel Brosnahan, Nicholas Hoult and David Corenswet looking up at camera as their Superman characters, Warner Bros. Pictures

Kicking off Superman’s global press tour in Manila, James Gunn shed light on casting and writing his version of the iconic hero, why a beacon of kindness is the hero we need today, and what it was like to direct a group that, at times, felt like 'a bunch of school kids’.

LB: You both wrote and directed this movie. Is it harder to cast a new Superman or write one?

James: Well, in my case, casting him was pretty easy. So, I would say writing him was more difficult. But, it wasn't really hard to write Superman. It was hard to get to the point where I was ready to begin to write Superman. It was like finding him in me that I was able to finally write him.

But it took a while to get to that point. It wasn't easy, it didn't come immediately. Whereas David [Corenswet] was the second audition that I looked at out of hundreds of people who auditioned for Superman. So from the very beginning, I'm like, “Well, if we don't find somebody better, I think we found this guy”.

LB: When was the moment that you realised that David was 'the one'? Did he walk in the room and you said, "That's him. That's our guy".

I thought it pretty soon [into the auditions], and it was just on tape at first, but I was pretty sure he was 'the guy'.

David Corenswet as Superman, Warners Bros. Pictures

LB: There have been so many iterations of Superman. Why did now feel like the right time to introduce a new version of such a beloved character?

James: I think we're just in a time in our world where the discourse is so mean and the voices are so angry, and people are so angry with each other. Especially because we so often see the world through the lens of the internet and through social networking and things like that. We needed a hero who brought us back to just kindness.

Even if it's considered old-fashioned, what are those basic human values that we stand for? Sticking up for the little person, sticking up for the people that can't defend themselves. That's who Superman is. It doesn't matter if it's not cool. That's the guy who he is, and that's the guy that I feel like we all want in our lives right now.

Nicholas Hoult, David Corenswet and James Gunn on the set of Superman, Warner Bros. Pictures

LB: You’re no stranger to working with an ensemble, but were there any particular moments when directing this cast where it felt like you were wrangling a bunch of school kids?

James: Yes, especially on the days with the Nathan Fillon, Isabella Merced, and Edi Gathegi triplet. They were a handful. Especially Nathan Fillon, my old friend, is always a pain on set. And he was especially a lost puppy on this one.

Nathan Fillon, Isabella Merced, and Edi Gathegi as their Superman characters, Warner Bros. Pictures

James Gunn is setting the foundations of a whole new world of DC heroes in Superman, and he teases what’s next for his universe in an exclusive interview with BuzzFeed Australia.

“This movie comes out in July, and then Peacemaker begins in August. We're getting right into it. We have Supergirl and we have Clayface and we have Lanterns. They're all coming out one after the other. Now that we're starting, it's going to start coming pretty full force at people,” he shared.

As for the future of The Justice Gang and Superman’s return? I guess we’ll just have to wait and see.

Superman soars into HOYTS cinemas from July 10.