James Gunn's Superman breathed new life into the Man of Steel's film franchise while setting up plenty of material for the future. For example, future films may explore the fate of Lex Luthor, the formation of the Justice League, and even Jimmy Olsen's relationship with his mutant-toed girlfriend. But most fans missed how the villainous Ultraman's final fate effectively sets up a future film putting Superman against an evil Justice League.
In DC Comics, Ultraman is the name of an evil Superman from a parallel dimension. He originally hailed from Earth 3, a planet where all the traditional heroes are villains and all the traditional villains are heroes. After Ultraman died during the events of Crisis on Infinite Earths, writer Grant Morrison rebooted the character and his Crime Syndicate, an evil version of the Justice League (including nefarious versions of Batman and The Flash) in the graphic novel JLA: Earth 2. The character has been rebooted since then, though Morrison's version remains the most iconic.
Ultraman's Jump From Comic To Movie
What does this have to do with James Gunn's Superman movie? In that film, the only character who can go toe-to-toe with the Man of Steel is introduced as the Hammer of Boravia.
Later, it is revealed that Ultraman is an imperfect clone of David Corenswet's Superman created by Lex Luthor. So far, this character looks pretty different from the Ultraman of the comics because he is explicitly a genetic clone rather than a mirror universe duplicate.
However, Gunn effectively sets up his own Earth 2 movie with the final fate of Ultraman. After realizing that pure brawn won't put his clone down for good, Superman ensures that his superpowered foe is tossed into a black hole. Afterward, moviegoers had every reason to believe they would never see Ultraman on the big screen again.
It's worth noting, though, that this black hole doesn't exactly behave like a black hole in the real world: for example, Superman is able to escape its pull using his super breath. This might have something to do with the fact that the black hole is a man-made phenomenon created by Lex Luthor. But what if this artificial "black hole" ends up being a white hole, one that lands Ultraman in another dimension?
This would give James Gunn or future DCU directors an excuse to create a film in which Ultraman lands on a planet with its own evil Justice League. With his extraordinary powers, Ultraman could quickly become their leader. He would have a significant axe to grind with the original Superman and all of his allies as he seethes in a new universe, dreaming of revenge.
In Morrison's Earth 2 comic, the parallel Lex Luthor is a good guy who comes to Earth 1 to seek help from the Justice League. If a future film utilized this plot, it would be a great opportunity for Nicholas Hoult to play a character just as noble as the original Lex was malicious. Mostly, though, it would allow for a cinematic showdown between Superman's Justice League (which should be fully formed in a few years) and Ultraman's Crime Syndicate.
Honestly, that would be much more entertaining than watching Big Blue fighting everybody's favorite interdimensional imp.
The Greatest Comic Movie Ever?
Done well, this movie has the potential to deliver the greatest on-screen superbattles Hollywood has ever seen.
Remember how fun it was in Captain America: Civil War to see two groups of superpowered characters fighting each other? In an evil Justice League movie, we'd get to see an entire team of the planet's most powerful protectors fighting a gang of supervillains every bit as powerful as they are.
Obviously, it takes more than great fights to make a great movie. But Gunn has shown that he can balance on-screen battles with solid characterization and fan-friendly world-building. If he or a talented director of his choice were to tackle an Earth 2 movie, it could become the DCU's answer to the MCU's classic Avengers: Endgame.
Plus, in terms of beating Marvel, an evil Justice League film would be a great example of using the multiverse for more than glorified cameos.
An evil Justice League movie would be friendly to newcomers and hardcore comics fans alike. Only time will tell, though, if the DCU is successful enough to warrant such an ambitious sequel.
Dr. Chris Snellgrove is a staff writer who joined The Direct in 2025. He is a veteran entertainment writer who has written for a number of national outlets and reputable sites, with his hot takes on movies and TV shows reaching millions of fellow nerds. When he's not busy reading comics and watching the latest in superhero smackdpwn cinema, he loves to cosplay his favorite fandoms at conventions throughout America.
