DC Studios pulled back the curtain on Bradley Cooper's Superman cameo. Having worked with director James Gunn at Marvel Studios in voicing Guardians of the Galaxy's Rocket Raccoon, Oscar nominee Cooper joined the DCU in Superman. The actor played Superman's Kryptonian father, Jor-El, alongside Angela Sarafyan as the hero's mother, Lora Lor-Van, in a hologram. In the message, the Kryptonians reveal the real reason David, Superman's Superman, was sent to Earth: to conquer the world and continue their bloodline.
VFX studio Framestore posted a complex, in-depth behind-the-scenes video on the making of Superman's twisted Kryptonian message. Beyond the intriguing details of how the hologram scene was created, the VFX breakdown offered the best look yet at Bradley Cooper's DCU costume.
While many fans still speculate that Superman's parents' message was a fake, crafted by Nicholas Hoult's Lex Luthor to destroy his reputation, James Gunn has been clear that those are Jor-El's actual words, putting a unique spin on DC lore.
The message served as a dying plea from a desperate civilization, and this year, Supergirl will finally explore how that world ended, complete with Kryptonians wearing regal white robes similar to those worn by Jor-El and Lara in Superman.
Over seven months on from Superman's theatrical release, DCU diehards can finally see Cooper's minimalist, fluorescent white Kryptonian robes from all angles.
Framestore confirmed that Cooper and Sarafyan acted "inside the 4D capture stage surrounded by 192 machine cameras." The hologram was "remotely directed" by Gunn, with only attempts required for the "continuous two-minute take" of the full message.
The technology recreated the scene digitally while preserving the performance and lighting, enabling "virtual reframing." This tool allowed the message to be refilmed in post-production from any angle without actually reshooting.
When the Kryptonian message appeared corrupted, Framestore could even manipulate the recording data to create real glitches, blending them with "animated sections" that could then preserve the captured light details.
Despite only having a few minutes of screentime in Superman through a somewhat distorted lens, it's clear that the production team was dedicating an original, modernized take on Jor-El's costume, not to mention the choice to use such unique VFX technology to enhance the hologram scenes.
While Superman's time in theaters is done and the DCU's first blockbuster has moved to HBO Max, its Supergirl spin-off will dive further into Kryptonian lore on June 26, while the Man of Tomorrow sequel will arrive on July 9, 2027.
The full video can be seen below:
Will Bradley Cooper Return to the DCU?
Despite James Gunn's insistence that Jor-El's message was real, indicating the DCU's Kryptonians were less selfless than what has appeared in past adaptations, some fans still refuse to believe that it wasn't doctored in some way.
There is some basis for this, as a crawling news ticker in Superman stated that "Luthor was behind the false images of Superman's parents' message." That said, that might be inaccurate reporting from Metropolis' local news station, hoping to reframe Superman as a hero again while slamming Lex Luthor.
Fans may learn more in June as Supergirl star David Krumholtz confirmed the DCU spin-off will be "further clarifying what the House of El is all about." Sadly, moviegoers shouldn't expect to see Bradley Cooper back as Jor-El this year, with the focus shifting to Kara Zor-El's side of the family and her parents, Krumholtz's Zor-El and Emily Beecham's Alura In-Ze.
There is a chance that Gunn could fit Superman's parents into next year's Man of Tomorrow, especially as past iterations of the Fortress of Solitude featured a Jor-El AI that Kal-El could turn to for advice and inspiration. However, it's tough to imagine the DCU's Superman wanting much input from his Kryptonian parents after the twisted truths he just learned about them.
