Though Superman is a relatively self-contained movie, writer/director James Gunn does include quite a few cameos that could set up future projects in the DCU.
Most of these characters were either confirmed or rumored to appear in the buildup to the film's release, but there was one surprise that Gunn and co. managed to keep under wraps.
Bradley Cooper as Jor-El and Angela Sarafyan as Lara Lor-Van
The cameos that prove to be most pertinent to this movie's plot are Jor-El (Bradley Cooper) and Lara Lor-Von (Angela Sarafyan), who appear via a holographic message that plays when Krypto brings Supes to the Fortress of Solitude following his defeat at the hands of the Hammer of Boravia.
We learn that the second part of the message was damaged when the infant Kal crashed to Earth, but Lex Luthor and The Engineer manage to decipher the details later on, using the shocking revelation that Superman's parents actually sent him to Earth as a conqueror to turn the public against the hero.
John Cena as Peacemaker
In the only cameo that wasn't rumored beforehand, John Cena's Christopher Smith appears on a TV screen to berate Superman shortly after Luthor releases the entire message. We know that members of the Justice Gang will appear in Peacemaker season 2, and after Gunn revealed that the show will also feature another "huge cameo," speculation mounted that David Corenswet may also show up as the Man of Steel.
Though not a "cameo," as such, Frank Grillo also has a few scenes as Rick Flag Sr., who seems to be a supporter of Superman and appears to be happy about the outcome of the final battle. How/if these events inform his Peacemaker season 2 role remains to be seen.
Sean Gunn as Maxwell Lord
Like Cena's Peacemaker, Sean Gunn shows up as Maxwell Lord on a TV screen after Lex Luthor is arrested and sent to Belle Reve following the final battle. Lord, who funds the Justice Gang and owns the team's Hall of Justice HQ, tells a reporter that the "one thing liberals and conservatives can agree on is that Lex Luthor sucks."
Lord will return in Peacemaker season 2, but we're still not sure if he will turn out to be as ruthless and duplicitous as his comic book counterpart.
Milly Alcock as Supergirl
Milly Alcock's Supergirl makes her DCU debut in a fun scene towards the end of the movie. When Supes returns to the Fortress of Solitude after saving the day, his cousin Kara drops (well, crashes) by to pick up Krypto. The Girl of Steel has been partying on a planet with a red sun (the only way a Kryptonian can get drunk), and is not too steady on her feet. After playing around with her super-pooch for a bit, Kara departs with a "thanks for watching him, bitch."
Alcock will return as Supergirl in her own movie, which will adapt Tom King's Woman of Tomorrow comic series.
Superman stars David Corenswet as Clark Kent/the Man of Steel, Rachel Brosnahan as Lois Lane, Nicholas Hoult as Lex Luthor, Isabela Merced as Hawkgirl, Nathan Fillion as Guy Gardner, Edi Gathegi as Mr. Terrific, and Anthony Carrigan as Metamorpho.
The cast also Pruitt Taylor Vince and Neva Howell as "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."