In James Gunn’s upcoming Superman reboot, which will arrive in theaters on July 11, 2025, the iconic "Lois doesn’t know" reveal will be air-dropped. This marks a bold and welcome departure from the classic arc in which Lois slowly deduces Clark's identity.
Incoming Lois Lane actress Rachel Brosnahan confirmed in an Entertainment Weekly (EW) cover story that when the movie opens, Lois and Clark (David Corenswet) aren’t just dating—they’re already deep in a relationship. And, yes, she already knows Clark is Superman. Gunn jumps past the flirty mysteries and awkward discoveries and starts the film in the middle of their story. Lois is fully aware of Clark’s dual identity, and they’ve been together for months already.
By making this single choice, Gunn has redefined the emotional core of his Superman film. Here, there’s no slow-burn tension over whether and when Lois will realize that her coworker, boyfriend, and Metropolis’ superpowered hero are one and the same. It also eliminates the popular but overdone trope of superhero love interests not being able to trust their significant other because they keep secrets.
Instead, the film seems to center on how a couple built on transparency survives as Superman steps fully into the spotlight, battling political distrust, facing off against Lex Luthor (Nicholas Hoult), and navigating a world where metahumans have existed openly for 300 years.
Gunn intentionally zeroes in on the pair’s mutual trust for one another. In earlier films, the identity reveal arcs were built upon suspense and secrecy. But here, Gunn trusts that audiences are grown‑up enough for Lois to already know, so the story now pivots to what comes next.
Superman Actors Describe Their Characters’ Dynamic With Each Other
The scene that establishes Lois and Clark's dynamic was the first that Brosnahan shot for the film and was also the scene that she and Corenswet performed for their chemistry tests before they were cast in Summer 2023. Brosnahan told EW:
"We're meeting them at a point where they've been together for about three months, which is the point in a relationship where you're like, was this a really great fling or is this more serious, possibly forever?"
Brosnahan confirming that the iconic comic book couple have been together for about three months by the time the film starts gives them a history that serves as a comfortable foundation for new emotional stakes and high-stakes choices.
Not only does the scene establish Lois and Clark’s relationship timeline, but it also dives into an aspect of their relationship Brosnahan calls "foundational." In the scene, Lois calls out her reporter boyfriend over the ethical issues with him "interviewing" Superman since they are one and the same. Lois’ solution is to interview Clark, on the record, as the iconic hero, and according to Brosnahan, the conversation quickly becomes passionate. In her story with EW, Brosnahan describes this as something she "love[s] about their love story:"
"It's a combination of them both clicking into, in some ways, their super alter egos. But that's also juxtaposed with their great love for each other... I don't know if she would call it that quite yet, but they care about each other. When you start doing an interview, this is Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Lois Lane, and he's Superman, who's also the subject of this interview. They both feel very strongly about the stance that they're taking in that scene. It's one of the things that I love about their love story. While they have totally opposite worldviews, they complete each other, and they kind of need each other."
According to Corenswet, mentioned during the same EW story, this exchange between the two is quite different from another iconic Superman interview scene between Christopher Reeve and Margot Kidder and has its own emotional stakes attached:
"This isn't like the interview in the Donner movie where Lois doesn't know that he's Clark. Lois knows everything about him, so he's in a very vulnerable position. He's madly in love with this woman and desperately wants her to understand him and appreciate him and love him back."
Clark & Lois’ Relationship in Previous Iterations
This contrasts sharply with the couple's dynamic in previous Superman films and television series. In the films starring Reeve and Kidder between 1978 and 1987, Lois doesn’t learn Clark’s secret until the second installment of the four-part series, 1980’s Superman II. Similarly, in the 1993-1997 ABC series Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman, Lois (Teri Hatcher) finally learned that Clark (Dean Cain) was Superman in the Season 2 finale, leading to the two separating in Season 3 after Lois expresses distrust over Clark keeping his identity a secret from her.
The champion of the Superman identity long game belongs to the 2001-2011 WB/CW series Smallville, which introduced Lois (Erica Durance) as a recurring character at the beginning of Season 4. Lois doesn't deduce Clark’s (Tom Welling) secret identity until the Season 9 finale, long after other characters on the long-running series, including ex-girlfriend Lana Lang (Kristin Kreuk), childhood friend Chloe Sullivan (Allison Mack), and even friend-turned-mortal-enemy Lex Luthor (Michael Rosenbaum).
However, in more recent Superman adaptations, Lois discovers Clark’s secret fairly early on. In 2013’s Man of Steel, Lois (Amy Adams) learns Clark’s (Henry Cavill) identity after tailing him while on an assignment. In the 2021-2024 CW series Superman & Lois, the series begins with Lois (Elizabeth Tulloch) and Clark (Tyler Hoechlin) already married with children, and Lois having known her husband’s secret for years.
Gunn’s movie seems to align more with the Superman & Lois take, but closer to the beginning of their storied relationship.
What This Means for Superman’s Story & Fans
By starting with a couple already aligned, Gunn doesn’t waste screen time on detective work or awkward meet‑cutes. Instead, he sets up major dramatic tension around what happens after Superman reveals himself. How does Lois cope with world-ending threats? How does she maintain a relationship with a hero whose worldview is diametrically opposed to hers? How is their relationship tested under world-altering stakes?
Better yet, by removing a trope that’s been played out, Gunn’s version stakes a claim on new territory that allows viewers to relax into a fresh take on a familiar story. It gives them a solid starting point that re-centers Lois as an equal to Clark—a partner in love rather than a reporter in the dark. This setup begs the question: Now that the usual conflict between the two is nonexistent, can they weather what’s to come, and if so, how? Fans will find out when James Gunn’s Superman hits theaters in July.
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