Ultraman, The Hammer of Boravia, and The Engineer: Who Are the Villains of James Gunn's Superman?

The summertime movie play is heating up, and each eyes are connected James Gunn’s Superman. Anticipation for this large surface reboot continues to grow, with Warner Bros. releasing a marque caller trailer that gives america a spot much penetration into the movie’s crippled and the narration betwixt David Corenswet’s Superman and Rachel Brosnahan’s Lois Lane.

But really, it’s each astir the villains. The caller trailer not lone showcases Nicholas Hoult’s Lex Luthor, but besides characters similar María Gabriela de Faría’s Engineer, Gunn’s instauration the Hammer of Boravia, and the mysterious Ultraman.

It each begs the question - who is truly the villain of Gunn’s Superman? Is Lex taking a backseat to immoderate of the DCU’s different baddies? Let’s research the galore villains featured successful Superman and however these characters each acceptable together.

Who Is the Hammer of Boravia?

One of the newcomers successful the latest trailer is simply a hulking, armored quality called the Hammer of Boravia. Don’t interest if that sanction doesn’t acceptable disconnected immoderate DC continuity alarm bells. In this case, Gunn isn’t adapting an existing quality from the comics, but alternatively inventing an wholly caller villain for David Corenswet’s Superman to battle. It’s an absorbing choice, fixed however immense DC’s quality room is and the information that the ample bulk person yet to beryllium touched by the DCU.

This quality was really archetypal teased successful immoderate of DC’s promotional worldly for the film. A faux-Daily Planet paper features the header “‘Hammer of Boravia’ Creates Havoc Downtown.” We look to beryllium seeing that struggle play retired successful the trailer, arsenic the Hammer trades blows with Superman and unleashes a devastating laser attack.

It decidedly appears that the Hammer of Boravia is relying connected exertion to adjacent the playing tract with Superman. This seems to beryllium a worker wearing a weaponized battlesuit. The suit reminds america of thing if not the Zaku from the assorted Gundam series. Interestingly, Gunn has besides referred to the assorted elephantine monsters successful the movie arsenic kaiju. This suggests that the manager and his plan squad person taken a batch of inspiration from Japanese media for their Superman villains, adjacent arsenic Superman himself seems to gully much from the classical Silver Age comics and the graphic caller All-Star Superman. This movie is shaping up to beryllium a unsocial fusion of Eastern and Western elements.

Based connected what Warners has revealed astir the Hammer of Boravia truthful far, we cognize that this quality represents the fictional federation of Boravia, which astatine the clip of the movie has precocious invaded the neighboring state of Jarhanpur. Superman has conscionable intervened to enactment a halt to that war, drafting the Hammer’s wrath upon Metropolis. We tin spot scenes of that penetration playing retired successful the trailer, and we besides get a consciousness of the superior governmental fallout Superman creates by interfering successful said war. Even the US Secretary of Defense is breathing down his neck.

This makes it wide that Gunn’s Superman volition research the challenges Kal-El faces trying to beryllium not conscionable a unit for bully wrong Metropolis, but connected the satellite stage. He’s doing his champion to support each innocents and creating an planetary incidental successful the process. In that sense, the caller movie seems to stock a small successful communal with Zack Snyder’s Batman v Superman, which besides dealt with the unintended consequences of Superman operating extracurricular the boundaries of the US. Let’s conscionable anticipation this doesn’t besides effect successful Jimmy Olsen being changeable successful the caput successful the film’s archetypal act.

María Gabriela de Faría’s Engineer

After hardly appearing successful the archetypal teaser trailer, María Gabriela de Faría’s quality The Engineer plays a overmuch bigger relation successful this trailer. We get a person glimpse of her nanotech-based powers, and it’s wide close distant that she’s nary person of Superman’s.

It’s a spot of a relation reversal for The Engineer compared to her comic publication counterpart. In the comics, she’s a subordinate of a superhero squad called The Authority. The Authority are ne'er painted arsenic outright villains, but they are depicted arsenic a overmuch much proactive and militant alternate to the Justice League. They’re acold little acrophobic with things similar collateral harm oregon nationalist sovereignty. In that sense, it’s casual to spot wherefore Gunn would privation to see The Engineer, aka Angela Spica, successful his film. The caller Superman movie is each astir the struggle betwixt Superman’s marque of old-fashioned heroism and a caller procreation of much cynical heroes. We spot that struggle embodied adjacent successful Superman’s costume, arsenic the angular S logo is borrowed from the graphic caller Kingdom Come, which besides dealt with specified themes.

But again, it’s up for statement arsenic to whether Angela qualifies arsenic a leader astatine each successful the DCU. The trailer makes it plain that Angela is moving for Luthor, and she seems each excessively anxious to instrumentality connected Superman successful the tract of battle. We spot her battling the Man of Steel successful the mediate of a shot stadium, and we besides spot her tearing into Superman’s loyal robot servants successful the Fortress of Solitude. Even Krypto isn’t harmless from her wrath, though helium gets successful a bully deed of his own.

We presume that The Engineer, similar Luthor himself, believes herself to beryllium connected the close broadside and believes Superman is simply a menace to humanity. Will she person her caput changed by the end? Possibly. We cognize that Gunn was astatine 1 constituent readying an Authority movie to rotation retired of Superman, though that task appears to person been enactment connected the backmost burner. Still, we ideate Superman is the commencement of a larger storyline for de Faría’s character.

Is Ultraman successful James Gunn’s Superman?

The Engineer seems to beryllium looking for Lex Luthor successful the movie, but we besides spot her warring alongside a mysterious, masked quality who’s been the root of plentifulness of speculation successful caller months. Is this quality the DCU mentation of Ultraman?

That’s decidedly the prevailing theory, some due to the fact that of the ample U emblem connected his thorax and the information that helium intelligibly has the spot and durability to commercialized blows with Superman himself. But if this is Ultraman, the movie is decidedly taking a escaped attack to the root material.

Traditionally, Ultraman is simply a mentation of Superman from an alternate DC Universe. He hails from Earth-3, a satellite wherever the accepted dynamic betwixt DC’s heroes and villains is reversed. In this world, Ultraman is the person of an anti-Justice League known arsenic the Crime Syndicate of America, a radical that besides includes Superwoman, Owlman, Power Ring, and Johnny Quick. Earth-3’s Lex Luthor is that world’s top hero. Outlandish arsenic it whitethorn seem, we person to wonderment if there’s an constituent to Earth-3 Lex successful Hoult’s version. He evidently sees himself arsenic Earth’s top hero, successful immoderate case.

With everything other going connected successful Gunn’s Superman, we highly uncertainty the movie is going to beryllium delving into the DC multiverse. It’s much apt that Ultraman is being reworked to go thing much akin to Nuclear Man from 1987’s Superman IV: The Quest for Peace, oregon immoderate versions of Bizarro from the comics. He could beryllium a quality who’s been genetically engineered to mimic Superman’s powers. The information that we can’t spot his look oregon immoderate portion of his assemblage whitethorn mean helium was horribly disfigured successful the process… and is the cleanable set-up for a melodramatic uncover with Corenswet down the mask.

Physically, it’s looking similar Ultraman, not Lex, is the endgame villain of Gunn’s Superman. The Man of Steel volition person to contend with a villain who has each of his spot and astir apt nary of his morality. And if erstwhile trailers are immoderate indication, Kal-El is going to get earnestly banged up successful the process.

Superman vs. Kaiju

The caller trailer showcases the monolithic standard of this superhero movie. At 1 point, we adjacent spot buildings toppling implicit similar dominoes. As overmuch arsenic Superman is devoted to redeeming guiltless lives, Metropolis whitethorn upwind up with a assemblage number to rival the climax of Man of Steel if helium isn’t careful.

The occupation is that Kal-El isn’t conscionable warring humanoid villains similar the Hammer of Boravia and the Engineer successful this movie. He’s besides got a elephantine monster problem. We spot him battling a kaiju that would beryllium close astatine location successful Legendary’s Monsterverse bid oregon the Pacific Rim movies.

Another country hearkens backmost to the archetypal costume uncover photograph Gunn released successful 2024. That representation showed Superman suiting up portion a mysterious and precise monolithic monster terrorized Metropolis successful the background. That country volition seemingly play retired successful the movie itself, though based connected these trailers, we cognize that Lois Lane is besides present. We’ll get to the antithetic narration betwixt Lois and Clark successful a bit.

The large question present is wherefore Superman is warring truthful galore kaiju successful the movie. Is determination a crushed these beasts are rampaging done Metropolis? Is this conscionable an mean Tuesday for the DCU, oregon is thing (or someone) summoning them? Hoult’s Lex Luthor seems similar precisely the benignant of feline who would manufacture a kaiju situation to marque Superman look bad.

On that note, let's yet crook our attraction to Lex Luthor himself.

Lex Luthor: Supporting Villain?

The trailer makes it wide that Superman volition person nary shortage of enemies to punch successful his latest big-screen outing. But it doesn’t look that Hoult’s Lex Luthor volition beryllium among them. There’s nary request for Lex to don his iconic greenish and purple armor and instrumentality connected Superman straight erstwhile helium has truthful galore different pawns who tin bash the soiled enactment for him.

Based connected what we spot of Hoult’s Lex successful the trailer, he’s beauteous accepted successful his motivations. He sees himself arsenic humanity’s savior, the lone feline astute capable to pb mankind into a caller era. He doesn’t similar that the nationalist has grown truthful enamored with Superman. He can’t abide the thought of humanity looking to an extracurricular unit to prevention itself erstwhile it should beryllium looking to Lex himself. Superman is surviving rent-free successful this guy’s head, and helium can’t basal it. This Lex is truthful anti-Superman that helium adjacent refers to Kal-El arsenic “it.”

Lex is intelligibly going to large lengths to discredit the Man of Steel successful this movie. It appears helium whitethorn adjacent beryllium moving with ARGUS, suggesting we’ll spot an confederation betwixt Lex and Frank Grillo’s Rick Flagg, Sr. At 1 point, we spot Superman sharing a superhuman situation compartment with Anthony Carrigan’s Metamorpho and being beaten by situation guards. Apparently, Kal-El’s governmental situation grows dire capable that he’s really thrown successful jail.

All of this suggests that Hoult is playing much of a supporting relation successful the movie than fans mightiness beryllium expecting. Lex is inactive ostensibly the main villain of the movie. He’s Superman’s top arch-nemesis, and that’s ne'er going to change, nary substance however galore times the DCU gets rebooted. But helium seems to beryllium moving precise indirectly successful this film, relying connected allies similar The Engineer and Ultraman to bash the existent warring portion helium softly works to tarnish the Man of Steel’s reputation.

Ultimately, Lex volition astir apt inactive look arsenic the last villain of Gunn’s Superman, but much successful a thematic and affectional sense, whereas Ultraman is the premier carnal threat. The movie volition astir surely culminate successful Kal-El proving Lex incorrect and reminding the satellite that kindness, decency, and anticipation inactive person a spot successful our cynical 21st-century world. But don’t expect the 2 to settee their differences with fisticuffs. And don’t beryllium amazed if Lex doesn’t upwind up successful situation by the end, but alternatively sticks astir to play a recurring relation successful the DCU. His decision volition beryllium an intelligence one, not needfully a carnal one.

Lois Lane and Clark Kent’s Relationship

While the villains decidedly hog astir of the spotlight successful this caller trailer, it is worthy taking a measurement backmost to analyse the dynamic betwixt Brosnahan’s Lois Lane and Corenswet’s Clark Kent. The opening country reveals that Lois already knows Clark’s secret. It makes sense. If she’s genuinely the intrepid, superb newsman she’s made retired to be, Lois truly needs to beryllium astute capable to spot done Clark’s flimsy quality disguise.

That opening country is somewhat reminiscent of the 1 successful 1978’s Superman wherever Margot Kidder’s Lois interviews Christopher Reeve’s Superman for the archetypal time. But successful this case, Gunn is downplaying the romanticist hostility successful favour of allowing Lois to truly grill Clark connected the governmental fallout of Superman’s actions. Again, she’s a newsman archetypal and a emotion involvement second.

On that note, it’s capable to wonderment conscionable what the authorities of Lois and Clark’s narration is successful this movie. In the comics, Clark lone revealed his concealed to Lois aft they had already fallen successful love. But here, she’s already figured it out. The code of that interrogation country suggests that the 2 are adjacent friends, but not needfully lovers yet. Though arsenic we spot from their melodramatic buss aboriginal successful the trailer, that volition seemingly alteration implicit the people of the film.

Gunn spoke astir the Lois/Clark dynamic erstwhile IGN visited the acceptable of the movie successful 2024, saying “It's a analyzable narration and we truly get into it and there's agelong scenes that are astir their narration and the mode they subordinate and what it would beryllium similar for a person, who's this incredibly intelligent, strong-headed, stubborn, skeptical journalist, to person a narration with idiosyncratic who tin assistance a skyscraper.”

One happening is wide - contempt the information that Superman volition beryllium contending with villains some quality and monster successful the movie, Gunn is intent connected preventing Lois from falling into the aforesaid damsel-in-distress trap that she truthful often has successful past Superman adaptations. This is simply a quality who, intellectually, tin clasp her ain against Superman each spot arsenic easy arsenic Lex Luthor.

Who bash you deliberation is the existent endgame villain of Gunn’s Superman? Which epic superhero conflict are you astir excited to see? Let america cognize what you deliberation successful the comments.

For much connected the aboriginal of the DCU, spot each DC movie and bid successful development.

Jesse is simply a mild-mannered unit writer for IGN. Allow him to lend a machete to your intelligence thicket by following @jschedeen connected BlueSky.