One Sensitive ‘Superman’ Scene Got Cut by James Gunn After Negative Test Screening Response
The new Superman movie is on its way, but one scene didn’t survive the final cut. It had to do with Krypto, Superman’s dog, and according to two of the film’s stars, test audiences just didn’t like it. Director James Gunn, who’s now leading the DC Universe after wrapping up his Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy at Marvel, decided to remove the scene after people reacted badly during screenings.
The movie introduces a brand-new Superman, played by David Corenswet, and brings back big names like Lois Lane and Lex Luthor. There are also a few surprise additions, including Krypto the Superdog, who shows up in trailers and was supposed to have a few action moments.
But in an interview with Jake’s Takes, María Gabriela de Faría, who plays the villain Engineer, and Sara Sampaio, who plays Eve Teschmacher, shared a moment that didn’t make the final version. It involved Ultraman, an evil version of Superman, punching Krypto during a fight. Apparently, the crowd in the test screening didn’t like what they saw.
“They actually cut a worse scene,” said Sampaio during the interview.
“That’s right. That’s right,” added Faría.
“Me and Nick [Hoult] were a little bit pissed about it, but it’s okay,” Sampaio went on.
When asked what got removed, she explained, “Well, they cut Ultraman punching Krypto. Because, apparently, it did really bad in the test screening.”
Faría added, “It’s not okay. You can’t punch a dog… Okay. No, I did not punch the dog. The dog attacked me first.”
James Gunn is no stranger to emotional or tough scenes with animals, just think of Rocket’s backstory in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. But in this case, the scene with Ultraman and Krypto didn’t have the same emotional weight. It was just part of a regular fight scene, and it didn’t land well with the crowd.
Even though that part got cut, Krypto will still be in the movie and will get some action time. Faría mentioned that the dog attacks her character at some point, so the Superdog isn’t sitting this one out. They just decided to take out the part where he gets hit, which test audiences found too harsh.
Superman comes out on July 11, 2025, and stars David Corenswet as Superman and Rachel Brosnahan as Lois Lane. It’s the first movie in the new DC Universe and part of what’s being called Chapter One: Gods and Monsters. The story will focus on Superman trying to figure out how to live between two worlds, his Kryptonian heritage and his life on Earth. Filming took place in Norway, Georgia, and Ohio.
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