Avengers: Doomsday getting delayed may have been the best thing that could happen for the DCU's Supergirl movie, opening up a potential opportunity for Marvel's biggest rival. Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow is set to soar into theaters on June 26, 2026, marking the second big-screen release of James Gunn's new vision for the DC brand.
However, Supergirl was not the only superhero movie set to release next spring, as Marvel Studios' Doomsday was also initially set to debut right in that window. That is no longer the case, though, as the new Avengers film was pushed from May to December, leaving Milly Alcock's Woman of Steel as the lone comic book movie of spring/early summer 2026.
While Avengers: Doomsday's delay may be disappointing to MCU fans, it could leave the door open for the DCU's Supergirl movie to succeed in some specific way if Warner Bros. is willing to do it.
Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow stars House of the Dragon actress Milly Alcock as the titular Kryptonian. As Kara Zor-El (aka Supergirl), Alcock will traverse the cosmos on a soul-searching journey across the stars, as seen in Tom King's Supergirl story of the same name.
The new film comes from I, Tonya director Craig Gillespie, and screenwriter Ana Nogueira (who is already working on the Teen Titans movie for DC Studios). It also stars Matthias Schoenaerts as Krem of the Yellow Hills and Jason Momoa as the dastardly Lobo.
Here Is Why Avengers: Doomsday's Delay Could Help Supergirl?
Before the delay, Avengers: Doomsday was initially set to hit theaters on May 1, 2026, just eight weeks before Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow comes to the big screen on June 26, 2026. The Avengers team-up was then moved from that early May date to December 16 of the same day.
Supergirl and Doomsday would have very lightly stepped on each other's toes at the box office, both being big-name superhero films released around the same time. There is only so much oxygen in the space, after all.
However, Doomsday's delay opens up an opportunity for DC that is even bigger than simply avoiding another super-powered juggernaut at the ticket window. In fact, Supergirl should take that original Doomsday spot, using that May 1 date rather than coming out later in June.
At present, Supergirl's road to box office glory is going to be a tough one. It has potential $1 billion movies on either side of it, with Toy Story 5 and Minions 3 releasing on June 19 and July 1, respectively.
Just given the size of these two animated titans, Supergirl feels like it is starting at a disadvantage from the get-go.
If the film could move out of June and into that May 1 date (ideally), it would be out of the way of both Toy Story and Minions and have a reasonably open road to kick off the summer box office season.
As it stands, the only major competition coming out on that May 1 date is The Devil Wears Prada 2 from Disney, which will likely not take away too much of the same audience who would be going to see Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow. After that, the next biggest release comes three weeks later, on May 22, with The Mandalorian & Grogu (read about the new Star Wars movie here).
This would give Supergirl some breathing room away from its most significant competition and optimize any box office earning potential that Warner Bros. may be leaving on the table.
Of course, Warner will want its new DC film to make as much money as possible, but with the DCU still being so early in its life (Supergirl is only the second film in the franchise), getting off on the best financial foot will be key in the universe's long-term future.
Yes, this particular move would make the post-production timeline for Supergirl tighter, but that may ultimately not even be a problem. Just look at the upcoming Superman movie (in which Milly Alcock's Supergirl is reportedly making her DCU debut).
James Gunn's DC Studios kick-off movie recently locked its final edit more than six weeks before the film soars into theaters. Seeing as production on Supergirl has already wrapped (just under a year before the proposed May 1 release date), there is a pretty good chance that it could be ready before May 2026 anyway.
So, why not move the movie up, getting away from steep competition in June/July, and take over that spot that Avengers: Doomsday has left open?
