Few upcoming DC movies have the level of hype that James Gunn's 2025 Superman has. As such, fans of the Man of Steel are scouring the web and checking out every little picture or clip that surfaces, whether it's official or not. I thought reactions were all over the place for the first official look at David Corenswet's Superman, but that doesn't hold a candle to the wild discourse we're seeing over Clark Kent's hairstyle.
DC Film News has shared a set photo showing Clark Kent on the set of Superman and people can't get over the look of his curly hair. Some have likened it to the popular "broccoli cut," which is one of the trendy haircuts for younger men currently. That seems to make people feel a certain way, and amidst the memes and criticism, I'm here to tell everyone why they need to relax and just roll with it.
He's Seemingly A Younger Superman
We've known for a while that James Gunn is doing things a little differently when it comes to Superman. While he's not making a "Young Superman" movie, Gunn has gone on the record that Supes may be "a few years younger" than Batman. If we're talking about the hero in The Batman, Matt Reeves said to THR the character is written to be 30. If we take that literally and believe Gunn's hint that Superman "might" be a few years younger, that would put the character around 27.
Look at someone in the age range currently, and you'll see more than a few people rocking that type of haircut. Let's face facts: the new Superman might be an elder Gen Z or a Zillenial at best. If that is the case, wouldn't it be super accurate for him to rock some type of hairstyle like the one people are making a fuss about?
Let's be honest: if we saw a guy in 2024 rolling around town with slicked-back hair, he'd get clowned on. This isn't the 1940s anymore, and there's nothing wrong with taking away the gelled-down curly q when he's not actively Superman.
In fact, if I were a hiring manager for the Daily Planet, I'd immediately dump the application of the guy who comes in with the slicked-back hair. I need a man who is with the times, not one who rocks the same haircut as his grandpa. Rocking a cut like that shows you're not a guy with his finger on the pulse, and not Daily Planet material in my eyes.
Superman Has A History Of Leaning Into Trendy Haircuts
Everyone is making such a big show of Clark Kent having odd hair like Superman hasn't tried to experiment in the past with different styles. How quickly we all forget the Death and Return of Superman storyline, in which we saw Clark Kent make a miraculous return after being killed by Doomsday. Supes was rocking a mullet of steel in those comics, and it stuck around for a time.
And while the super-mullet never made it to live-action, it wasn't for a lack of trying. Zack Snyder admitted he wanted to give Henry Cavill's Superman a mullet, but it didn't happen. Honestly, we should be thankful because it wouldn't have made much since. With the mullet back in style in the modern era, why not throw one on David Corenswet's iteration?
I bet many would be ok with the broccoli hairstyle, with that option in serious contention. When it comes to trendy haircuts making the rounds for young people, there could be worse. I don't want to throw any shade beyond pointing out the aforementioned mullet, but people can search trending hairstyles on their own and figure out the ones I'm talking about.
My point is that even if the hairstyle ages poorly, what does it matter? The point is that Clark Kent is supposed to be a bit of a dope. In your headcanon, you could even make the argument that he deliberately chose the hairstyle as a means of looking goofy so people wouldn't make the connection that he's the world's greatest superhero.
The Less Clark Looks Like Superman, The Better
Revisit Christopher Reeve's Superman movies on streaming with a Max subscription, and you'll notice something we don't discuss enough. Reeve's Superman, perhaps more than others, gets called out for the glasses being a big part of masking his true identity. That's not true because he also had a godawful right part that looks uncool. It's not just the glasses that sell the fact that Clark couldn't possibly be Superman; it's the whole ensemble.
Curly hair or not, as long as David Corenswet is slumped over, fumbling with his papers, and going the whole nine yards to convince some of the best professional journalists in Metropolis that he is not the superhero they've covered for years on a daily basis, he's doing his job. The less that he looks like Superman, the better it's going to be. Rocking a part wouldn't be enough to get the job done these days, so I think adding the fluff to the hair is a nice touch.
I should close by saying that if the hair is make or break for people on whether or not they can enjoy Superman, don't even turn up to the theater. Let's not forget how many people immediately wrote off Daniel Craig as James Bond because he had blonde hair, and how many of them were eating crow by the time the credits rolled in Casino Royale.
There are too many valid things to judge an actor's performance on compared to how they look in the role. I'll concede that because we aren't getting any trailers or scenes of Corenswet as Superman, there isn't much else to talk about. Hopefully, once we have more to talk about concerning Superman, the talk about the hairstyles and everything else will fade into the background in favor of more important things.
Superman is due out in theaters in July 2025, and I think we're all eager to see if James Gunn can keep his hot streak of giving life to superheroes alive with the most iconic hero of all time.
