James Gunn Admits the Issue With Female-Led Superhero Movies

James Gunn makes superhero movies for a living, and he possesses a clear-eyed view of one of the genre's persistent blind spots. Speaking at a press conference in December 2025 to celebrate the debut of the first Supergirl trailer, Gunn identified an issue that has quietly shaped how female-led superhero stories get told, and why he believes his version of Kara Zor-El breaks from that pattern.

Addressing a question submitted from Brazil, Gunn turned to Alcock: 

"What does your version of Supergirl represent for a new generation of girls and women who love superheroes and want to see themselves on screen?"

Alcock's was candid about what Supergirl represented, highlighting how Kara "so beautifully leans into her flaws":

"I think that what Supergirl represents for young women, especially, is that you can be flawed, that you can be openly... and you don't have to be perfect in order to come to some internal self-resolution. I think that we're kind of thrusted upon this narrative, especially women, that you have to be perfect in every aspect of your life. And I think that Kara is someone who so beautifully leans into her flaws. And I think that's really special."

Gunn agreed, then turned the conversation toward a broader observation about the genre, noting how female leads are portrayed as "perfect" while male characters like "Tony Stark and Star-Lord are such messes":

"Yeah, I agree with you. That's really what spoke to me both in the book and on a script is that a lot of times for some reason, our female superhero leads are just so much more perfect than our male. Tony Stark and Star-Lord are such messes and yet that isn't always the same thing for our female superhero leads and seeing somebody who was just so imperfect and such a mess, but just really a beautiful soul." 

Director Craig Gillespie built on that. "And an understandable mess at that," he said. "She's got some serious baggage that she's dealing with." Gunn replied in agreement: "Totally. Yes. That was what excited me."

Gunn also noted what made the DCU's iteration of Supergirl, who is a "reluctant hero," stand out from other female heroes: 

"One of the cool things to me about the movie is that most of the movies we've had with female-led heroes have been pretty much like the 'perfect badasses.' And the Supergirl is not that. She's a reluctant hero. I don't think she wants to necessarily wear that costume, or even be a hero."

Kara Zor-El Is the Flawed, Reluctant Hero Female-Led Superhero Films Have Been Missing

The pattern Gunn put his finger on is real, and it runs deep. The superhero genre has long been comfortable letting its male heroes fall apart. Tony Stark spends three films managing trauma he never properly deals with. Thor gets stripped of his power through arrogance, then loses his family and nearly loses himself. Peter Quill is emotionally stunted, makes catastrophic decisions, and pays for them. Their dysfunction adds weight to the story being told and essentially makes them more relatable,

Female superhero leads have largely not been given the same room. Carol Danvers in Captain Marvel starts with a few internal struggles and ends the film as an unambiguous force. Diana in Wonder Woman is idealistic and principled from the start. These are strong characters, but they often come across as almost flawless.

Kara Zor-El is something else. She watched Krypton die as a teenager, unlike Clark Kent, who was a baby when the planet was destroyed. She remembers her home, her family, and every person she lost. She arrived on Earth too late to fulfill the one purpose she was sent with. Supergirl is such a mess; she gets drunk on a planet with a red sun, somewhere she can actually feel the effects, adrift and resistant. She does not want to be a hero. She is dragged into one.

It is in that state that she crosses paths with Ruthye Marye Knoll, a young alien girl whose father was murdered by a mercenary named Krem of the Yellow Hills. Ruthye approaches Kara to kill Krem on her behalf. 

They eventually team up, and what starts as someone else's quest for justice becomes Kara's own reckoning, pulling her across the galaxy and forcing her to confront who she is when everything she's been avoiding finally catches up with her.