Superman is the first big screen entry into the DCU. It releases this summer, July 11, and features tons of characters. Superman and Clark, obviously, Ma and Pa Kent, Lois Lane, Lex Luthor, Green Lantern, Hawkgirl, Metamorpho, Mister Terrific, Krypto, The Engineer, possibly Supergirl, and some other unidentified villain that many people believe is Ultraman. I believe it would be a monumental mistake and a waste of a great character to introduce Ultraman this early in the DCU and simply as a minor villain when his threat is so much greater.
We’ve seen brief shots of the possible Ultraman in the trailer, but set photos give us a much better look at the character.
For those that don’t know, Ultraman is Earth-3’s version of Kal-El, but his name is Ka-Il. His backstory is similar to Earth-Prime’s, but there are some distinctions that turn him into a villain. To start, his parents sent him to Earth with a vengeful mission against the Anti Monitor. While in the pod that brought him to Earth, he was shown what is essentially propaganda that causes him to value power, the lack of weakness, and violence over hope and kindness. When he lands on Earth, he is adopted by the Kents, but it’s not their choice. Kal-Il forces the Kents to be his parents for the first seven years of his life, then eventually murders them. Kal-Il eventually takes over the entire planet and forms the Crime Syndicate, an evil version of the Justice League. If you want to familiarize yourself with Ultraman, I recommend reading the Forever Evil and Darkseid War stories from the New 52. He’s also featured in more recent comics, but those are stories I have not read.
If Ultraman was reduced to a simple goon of Lex Luthor, or a clone of Superman like Bizarro, it would be a complete disservice to the character. There’s really no way to do Ultraman justice without the inclusion of the Crime Syndicate and the multiverse. Even if they were to include that in some way, it would likely be a throw away line as the movie must also introduce quite a few other characters unknown to audiences. Maybe, if the unknown villain with the U on his chest truly is Ultraman, Gunn is setting him up for a future villainous role or changing the character’s backstory entirely, which would also do Ultraman a disservice. For these reasons, I hope the character is not Ultraman at all.
There is simply too much going on in the movie to introduce a character with a backstory like Ultraman’s. This movie is starting a brand new cinematic universe. It holds the job of introducing us to new characters most moviegoers know, as well as introducing us to characters never seen on the big screen before. It may even be setting up an early version of the Justice League with some of those characters. We’ll need the backstories and motivations for two villains, Luthor and The Engineer, show us Clark’s career as a reporter, evolve his relationship with Lois, and much more. Introducing a multiversal villain is probably too much for the movie.
If you look at those set photos, one can see why many fans are assuming the character is Ultraman: he has a big U on his chest and a belt similar to the one Ultraman wears. However, that’s it. Ultimately, I think this character is someone else entirely.
One of the first movies announced for the DCU was The Authority, a film centered around the anti-hero team with the same name. The Authority consists of, at various times, Jenny Sparks, who is essentially immortal and has electrical powers, Apollo, whose powers are similar to Superman’s with the added ability to release energy anywhere from his body, The Doctor, a magical being, Midnighter, who is comparable to Batman if Batman’s usual advantages were powers, not trained skills, The Engineer, who will be a villain in Superman, Rose Tattoo, whose strange powers allow her to conjure up anything to do with killing, lots of other characters, and Ulysses, a character with a big U on his chest.
It is entirely possible that the character many are assuming is Ultraman could actually be Ulysses in disguise. Ulysses absolutely has the physicality and powers to take on Superman. Like Superman, he can fly, has super strength, speed, invulnerability, and enhanced healing, but he can also manipulate energy. The Engineer, another character associated with The Authority, is already in Superman, so it would make sense that more than one character from the team is in it. On top of that, Gunn has said that he was at least thinking about and planning his next movie which very well could be The Authority. It’s been theorized for months that The Authority will be the next movie Gunn personally works on, and, hopefully, the unidentified villain with the U on his chest is Ulysses, not Ultraman, and will play into the film.
What do you think of the idea of Ultraman or Ulysses' presence in the film? Let me know!