DC Studios head James Gunn shared new HD photos of the official logo, motto, and artwork of one fan-favorite Superman villain. Gunn's new vision for the DCU made its big-screen debut this past summer with the release of the long-awaited Superman reboot. This new high-flying adventure starring DC Comics' boy in blue saw the Man of Steel come up against several terrifying villainous threats, including Lex Luthor, a towering Ultraman, and Vasil Ghurkos (the evil president of the fictional nation of Boravia).
Now, months later, Superman director James Gunn has shared a new look at one of the movie's big bads. In a new post on X, Gunn shared some behind-the-scenes snippets from Supeman production, revealing some new pieces of art focused on Zlatko Burić's Vasil Ghurkos.
This series of images came with the caption, "Bits and pieces from the Boravian palace," showcasing the fearsome foe's official logo, motto, and surprisingly humorous portrait.
The first image highlighted the Superman villain sitting atop a horse, with a small squirrel in his hand. This rendering of the Boravian president appears to draw inspiration from classic portraits of various leaders from around the world.
The next debuts the official Boravian crest and slogan. The slogan reads, "Sciurus Non Servi." It seems the squirrel motif continues here, as that translates from Latin to "The Squirrel Does Not Serve."
This particular crest is made up of a pair of squirrels looking at one another, holding some acorns, and looking upon the Boravian castle.
Lastly, Gun shared another official logo of the Superman big bad, with the phrase "Domovina ujedinjena u pobjedi" splayed across it. This is Boravia's official motto from the comics, and translates to, "Homeland united in victory."
It also features a different logo for the Boravian president, depicting a pair of squirrels back to back, with the country's crest positioned below them.
Vasil Ghurkos is not expected to return in Superman 2, considering he was killed in a particularly violent death at the hands of Isabela Merced's Hawkgirl during Superman's final act.
Superman is now streaming on HBO Max. The new film from the Guardians of the Galaxy filmmaker debuted David Corenswet's take on the Man of Steel to the world, following the iconic DC hero as he took on the villainous, metahuman-hating Lex Luthor (played by Nicholas Hoult).
Superman has been confirmed to appear in an upcoming sequel to his 2025 blockbuster, Superman: Man of Tomorrow, written and directed yet again by James Gunn. Man of Tomorrow is scheduled for release in theaters on July 9, 2027.
Will Vasil Ghurkos Ever Return to the DCU?
It is interesting that Gunn is doing a deep dive into Vasil Ghurkos now, considering his future within the franchise is not all that bright. The Superman villain is one of the few big bads from the movie to get introduced and then promptly killed off within the same film.
While names like Lex Luther and The Engineer were left standing, Vasil did not get the same treatment, being dropped from several stories up by Justice Gang member Hawkgirl. However, that does not mean the character's presence will not continue to be felt across the franchise. Superman and the Justice Gang's success during the battle for Jarhanpur will almost surely come back later in the DCU.
Even though Boravia is off the board as a potential threat, Lex Luthor, the evil super genius who allied himself with Vasil and his plans of invasion, is still out there. Now, behind bars, Lex will be forced to team up with Supes in Man of Tomorrow to take on a common enemy (assumed to be Brainiac).
Considering how the last time these two met on-screen went, as Lex's Boravia-based plans fell apart before his eyes, this partnership will likely not be all sunshine and rainbows.
Additionally, Vasil himself may return in some form within the new DC franchise. Gunn has been clear that his DCU will jump around the timeline at points, meaning any sort of prequel project has the chance to bring characters dead by the end of Superman back to life.
