In a new interview, Superman director and DC Studios co-CEO James Gunn shared his take on one of the most divisive fan theories coming out of the movie: Was Jor-El's message to Clark real or fake? This video message shared from the Man of Steel's parents to him has become a staple of Superman stories; however, Superman 2025 put a unique twist on it. Instead of being the inspiring thesis from which the character derives his superhero-ing ways, Gunn's version featured a hidden twist as Bradley Cooper's Jor-El and Angela Sarafyan's Lara Lor-Van told their son to conquer Earth rather than save it.
This information was uncovered by the film's villain, Lex Luthor (played by Nicholas Hoult), as the message had, to that point, been corrupted following the typical Kryptonian message of hope. Lex uses this unearthed message to twist public opinion on David Corenswet's titular supe, and thrust the movie into its epic narrative crux. However, despite the film explicitly saying this secret warcry from Lara and Jor-El was authentic and had just been hidden, that has not stopped fans from speculating over its credibility.
Thankfully, James Gunn has swooped in (like the last son of Krypton himself) and provided his definitive opinion on whether the Jor-El message was doctored or not.
Appearing on Joshua Horowitz's Happy Sad Confused podcast, Gunn laughed, "How can someone not think it's real?" He explained that three separate times in the film, characters confirm the authenticity of the message for audiences:
"How can someone not think it's real? I don't understand. In the test screenings people said, 'With AI, no one trusts anything.' So, okay, in the movie Mister Terrific says, 'I know those computer forensics guys, there is no way.' That's Mister Terrific, he's as smart as Lex Luthor. Then I have Mori, the Secretary of Defense, say, 'Think whatever you think about Luthor, but it's real.' And then the clincher is that Ghurkos and Lex are walking together and Ghurkos say, 'Ahh you doctored the message. This is great.' And Lex says, 'It's not doctored. It's real, and who thought it would be his own parents to bring him down?'"
Superman is now playing in theaters worldwide, officially ushering in the DCU on the big screen. The movie follows its titular Man of Steel as the public turns against him thanks to a concerted campaign from the villainous Lex Luthor. It stars David Corenswet in the title role along with big names like Nicholas Hoult, Rachel Brosnahan, and Nathan Fillion (read more about the Superman cast here).
Could Superman's Video Message Come Back in Superman 2?
These comments from James Gunn are huge, dispelling various fan theories that Lex Luthor doctored the Jor-El message, and it was not always there, hidden by some unfortunate data corruption.
Yes, this changed Superman canon, but it ultimately provides an opportunity to define this version of the character in a way unique to the DCU.
When asked if the video message could ever come back to play into another future DCU story, James Gunn said, he does not think so, as Superman "deals with it in this story," teaching the Man of Steel he does what he does because of what is within rather than some noble cause passed on from his parents:
Honestly, I think he deals with it in this story pretty much. This story, at the heart of it, is a story about a guy who is doing things for reasons he thinks outside of himself, but comes to realize through the love of his parental figure, his mother and father, that he is not doing things because of someone outside himself. He is doing things because that's what he believes."
This will likely be the last we ever hear about this message in the DCU. If anything were to come back in Superman 2, it would more likely be the tear-jerking chat that Pa Kent had with Clark on the porch heading into the third act.
This is where Pa delivers what is essentially the thesis statement of the new movie, telling Clark he does what he does because of what is inside himself and not because of some way of honoring his Kryptonian heritage.
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