James Gunn's Update About Superman: Legacy's Score Is Proof Of How Baffling Hollywood Contracts Are
A solid update, if not the most transparent one.
The long road to the DCU’s Superman: Legacy has so far been paved with fairly frequent updates from director and DC co-head honcho James Gunn, who’s provided details on the ensemble cast when available, from future Man of Steel David Corenswet himself to the supporting heroes and villains. One of his latest reveals came still shrouded in secrecy, which puts a spotlight on just how baffling Hollywood deals and contracts can be.
While answering some fan questions on Threads, Gunn offered an update on Superman’s costume for the new film, along with the progress that has been made for Superman: Legacy’s score and musical themes. Nothing too amiss here, and it's pretty exciting all in all. In his words:
The filmmaker obviously didn't divulge exactly which costumer elements are still being debated, knowing that fans are dying to see the full and finished look coming to the upcoming superhero movie. And while his score info was certainly encouraging, it sparked someone to ask why the person responsible for composing any of the film's already written pieces hasn't been identified yet.
This is where the Hollywood magic comes into play and requires some suspended logic and disbelief, thanks to Gunn's relatively candid response:
James Gunn himself was clearly aware of how bonkers this order of events sounds, since he offered up an explanation for it right there in the answer. The concept of tackling the majority of a project’s duties before even getting officially hired for that project would be entirely unheard of in the majority of professional industries, at least at this scale.
But I guess the level of weirdness here depends on how much confidence one has about securing a particular gig. In this case, the unnamed Superman: Legacy composer is presumably as close as possible to cementing a deal, with a few details still need to be ironed out, and without any of those details being potential deal-breakers.
That's still not exactly the norm throughout most career paths, and it's something I'll likely never really understand. But so long as Superman: Legacy's score crushes out as hard as the movie itself, not as much attention will be directed to exactly when the themes were crafted in the pre-production process.
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With Nicholas Hoult as arch foe Lex Luthor, Superman: Legacy is currently set to fly into theaters on July 11, 2025.
Nick is a Cajun Country native and an Assistant Managing Editor with a focus on TV and features. His humble origin story with CinemaBlend began all the way back in the pre-streaming era, circa 2009, as a freelancing DVD reviewer and TV recapper. Nick leapfrogged over to the small screen to cover more and more television news and interviews, eventually taking over the section for the current era and covering topics like Yellowstone, The Walking Dead and horror. Born in Louisiana and currently living in Texas — Who Dat Nation over America’s Team all day, all night — Nick spent several years in the hospitality industry, and also worked as a 911 operator. If you ever happened to hear his music or read his comics/short stories, you have his sympathy.