The new Superman movie has performed incredibly well in the U.S. box office but is facing some unexpected turbulence in the rest of the world. The writer-director James Gunn says that the superhero’s global performance is being held back, and the possible reason is the growing anti-American sentiment overseas.
In an interview with Rolling Stone, Gunn opened up about why audiences outside the U.S. may not be welcoming the movie as warmly as Americans.
“Superman is not a big, known superhero in some places like Batman is. That affects things,” he said. “And it also affects things that we have a certain amount of anti-American sentiment around the world right now. It isn’t really helping us.”
The film, starring David Corenswet as Superman, Rachel Brosnahan as Lois Lane, and Nicholas Hoult as Lex Luthor, has made an impressive earning of $253 million in the United States of America so far. Globally, the Superman movie has earned $426+ million, and there is only $173 million coming from international markets, according to BoxOfficeMojo.com.
Despite the prevailing challenges, Gunn remains optimistic. “Internationally is also rising and having really good weekday numbers in the same way we are [domestically],” he said. “Word of mouth is very positive both here and everywhere else.”
Some countries are also showing strong support. He added, “There are certain countries in which it’s really performing well: Brazil and the U.K.” Still, the global response to the film is disturbed due to political and cultural differences. It is point to note that even superhero franchises can’t escape the factors.
James Gunn, who now heads DC Studios alongside Peter Safran, is rebooting the entire DC Universe under a new storyline called “Gods and Monsters.” The journey began with Creature Commandos. It will continue with Superman and the second season of Peacemaker.
“Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow” will be released on June 26, 2026.
