SUPERMAN Director James Gunn Responds To Rumor That Warner Bros. Demanded Cuts

SUPERMAN Director James Gunn Responds To Rumor That Warner Bros. Demanded Cuts

With Superman's runtime officially revealed, director James Gunn has responded to a question about Warner Bros. supposedly demanding at least 20 minutes worth of cuts...

By MarkCassidy - Jun 05, 2025 04:06 PM EST
Filed Under: Superman

Yesterday, an AMC Theater listing revealed that Superman will have a final runtime of 2 hours and 9 minutes. Director James Gunn would later confirm, while clarifying that this would be "inclusive of credits/post credits."

A recent rumor claimed that the movie would actually clock-in at around 2 hours, 20 minutes, which seems to have led to speculation that Warner Bros. asked for the runtime to be trimmed down. As far as we can tell, this stems from a recent report that the studio demanded cuts after negative test-screening reactions.

Last-minute changes for any major studio tentpole are normal, but we had heard that some pretty major alterations were made, with up to 20 minutes trimmed from an earlier version of the movie that was said to "lean heavier on humor." There have also been reports of editor and composer shuffles, and a significant restructure of the plot.

Wherever the runtime rumor sprang from, it's now been put to bed. "Zero truth to that," Gunn said in response to a fan on Threads. "And they couldn’t even if that’s something that they wanted to [do]. It’s a DC Studios film."

In related news, Smallville star Michael Rosenbaum has revealed that he will have a minor voice role on the movie.

"James asked me to do something fun, so I have a couple of lines that I voice," the former Lex Luthor told Screen Rant. "It's funny, in a way... he's the head of DC, so I think he can stick me in a movie or something"

Superman stars David Corenswet as Clark Kent/Superman, Nicholas Hoult as Lex Luthor, Rachel Brosnahan as Lois Lane, Isabel Merced as Hawkgirl, Edi Gathegi as Mr. Terrific, and Nathan Fillion as Green Lantern Guy Gardner.

Sara Sampaio is on board as Lex's assistant/lover Eve Teschmacher, Pruitt Taylor Vince and Neva Howell will play "Ma" and "Pa" Kent, and Milly Alcock's Supergirl has been confirmed to make her debut ahead of her own Woman of Tomorrow movie.

"And that’s a wrap," Gunn posted last year when filming concluded. "God bless our cast and crew whose commitment, creativity, and hard work have brought this project to life. I set out to make a movie about a good man in a world that isn’t always so much. And the goodness and kindness and love I’ve encountered on a daily basis on the set has inspired me and thrust me forward when I felt too spent to move on my own.

Thank you all from the bottom of my heart. It has been an honor. The destination has been Superman, but the journey has been the toil and the laughter and the emotions and ideas and magic we’ve shared together on set - and for that I am forever grateful."

You can check out a synopsis for the movie below.

"In his signature style, James Gunn takes on the original superhero in the newly imagined DC universe with a singular blend of epic action, humor and heart, delivering a Superman who’s driven by compassion and an inherent belief in the goodness of humankind."

About The Author:
MarkCassidy
Member Since 11/9/2008
Mark Cassidy is a writer, photographer, amateur filmmaker, and Rotten Tomatoes-approved critic from Dublin, Ireland.
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