Superman trailer #2 breakdown: 7 big details and Easter eggs you definitely missed

Date:
Thu, 15 May 2025 12:49:02 +0000

Description:
From Kryptonite bullets to DC comic creator tributes, Superman's latest trailer is full of missable moments.

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The latest trailer for James Gunn's Superman movie has taken flight and, hoo boy, is it a doozy.

There's quite a lot to unpack from the forthcoming comic book film's newest teaser, not least the fact that Supes will battle yet another villain who's not who everyone thinks they are (in my opinion, anyway). In fact, so much is crammed into trailer #2's two-minute runtime that there are numerous key details and Easter eggs you'll definitely have missed upon first viewing.

Below, I've rounded up seven of the biggest secrets hidden in Superman 's latest round of footage. Potentially big spoilers immediately follow for the upcoming DC Universe (DCU) flick, so proceed with extreme caution. 1. Paging Walter Cronkite The subtle vocal change between Kent and his superhero alias is also noticeable during this scene (Image credit: DC Studios/Warner Bros. Pictures)

The DCU movie's official trailer begins with David Corenswet's Clark Kent/Kal-El agreeing to be interviewed as Superman, no less by his perennial love interest and fellow Daily Planet reporter Lois Lane (played here by Rachel Brosnahan).

It's a sequence that appears as though it'll start out as a fun idea, but
soon turns into a more much dramatic affair. Indeed, as Lane politely interrogates the titular hero over recent incidents he's been involved in
that haven't exactly put him or the US government in a good light, Kent gets increasingly agitated over her questioning of the good he's doing on his adoptive home, aka planet Earth.

Before the love birds' (if the rumors are to be believed, they've been secretly dating for three months by the time this film starts) interview becomes fraught, though, Kent playfully calls Lane "Cronkite" as the recorded conversation begins.

This is a tribute to the late and legendary US broadcast journalist Walter Cronkite, who anchored CBS Evenings News almost 50 years between 1937 and 1981. He reported on some of the biggest real-life events of the past 50 years, too, including the Vietnam War, the assassinations of JFK and Martin Luther King, the 1969 moon landing, and the Watergate scandal. 2. War never changes Superman intervenes in an ongoing conflict between two nations in his self-titled DCU film (Image credit: DC Studios/Warner Bros. Pictures)

Part of the reason why Kent and Lane's interview quickly turns sour is their supposed disagreement over Superman's involvement in stopping a war in what appears to be the Middle East.

Now, there are obvious parallels between this conflict and one currently playing out in the real world, but this isn't the time or place to get into the political and humanitarian weeds of that. All I'll say is, in light of what's going on right now, I'm curious to see how much of Superman's
fictional war we'll see in this Gunn-directed flick.

But I'm getting off-topic. What war did Supes stop to draw so much ire from the US government and other interested parties? According to X/Twitter fan account DCU Updates , plus an Instagram post from actor Fahim Fazli, who has
a minor role in Superman (thanks to Reddit for the catch), the fictional nations of Boravia and Jarhanpur will be the countries involved in this conflict.

By all accounts, it seems Kal-El's intervention stopped the former from invading the latter, too. If true, it's not surprising that the so-called Hammer of Boravia would track down Superman and engage in a bout of
fisticuffs in the skies above Metropolis. 3. Planting a Flag in a new government role Frank Grillo returns as Rick Flag Sr, who he voiced in Creature Commandos last December, in Superman (Image credit: DC
Studios/Warner Bros. Pictures)

Frank Grillo's Rick Flag Sr has dealt with a lot before and since his DCU introduction. Not only was his son was murdered by Peacemaker in 2021's The Suicide Squad film (a movie many now consider to be a progenitor to the DCU's creation), but he was duped by Princess Ilana and almost beaten to death by Clayface in season 1 of Max 's adult animated show Creature Commandos .
Simply put, he deserves to catch a break.

Nevertheless, I don't think anyone of us expected him to be installed as the US' latest Secretary of Defence. Again, this is seemingly revealed during
Kent and Lane's stress-inducing interview, with the trailer cutting to a
brief shot of Flag Sr when Lane says "Secretary of Defence".

Now, this could be a bait and switch on Gunn's part. This wouldn't be the first time that some trailer trickery has been employed to suggest one thing (e.g. Flag Sr being Secretary of Defence) but mean another (e.g. he's not really). If he is, though, it'll be a surprise promotion for Grillo's gruff army veteran and one I certainly didn't seen coming. 4. Where the streets
have many names You can just make out the name 'Ross' on the street sign in the top right hand corner of this image (Image credit: DC Studios/Warner
Bros. Pictures)

Walter Cronkite isn't the only individual to be honored with a blink and you'll miss it mention in the DCU Chapter One movie's latest trailer.

In shots where Corenswet's Man of Steel protects a child from falling debris and he's arrested by ARGUS chief Rick Flag (with the aid of Angela Spica/The Engineer and Ultraman (more on this duo later)), the names 'Ross' and 'Waid' can be seen on two street signposts. The Waid Street sign is even more
obvious in this picture (Image credit: DC Studios/Warner Bros. Pictures)

These are clear tributes to Alex Ross and Mark Waid, two of the most famous artists and writers who've worked for DC Comics since 1993 and 1985, respectively. 5. Engineering an entrance Maria Gabriela de Faria will portray Angela Spica in her live-action DC comic book movie debut (Image credit: DC Studios/Warner Bros. Pictures)

But let's return to two of Superman 's aforementioned villains: The Engineer and Ultraman.

The former was largely conspicuous by her absence in Superman 's first official trailer indeed, save for a missable moment where she's standing on the bridge that connects Luthercorp's two skyscrapers together in that
teaser, she didn't feature as much as many people expected her to.

Thankfully, Maria Gabriela de Faria's nanotech-infused antagonist earns more screentime in trailer #2. She's seen going to town on the jaw-dropping Fortress of Solitude 's android staffers before receiving a swift paw in the jaw from the adorable yet boisterous Krypto the Superdog. Spica can be
spotted later in the trailer, too, when she's seen battling Superman
alongside Ultraman. Ultraman (second right) will surely be unmasked in the movie's third act, right? (Image credit: DC Studios/Warner Bros. Pictures)

Speaking of Ultraman that's the name that fans have given this mysterious, black-clad villain, anyway it seems he's going to have a more integral role in the story than many suspected.

Initially, it seemed he was going to be the muscle that Nicholas Hoult's Lex Luthor employs when things are about to get physical. However, some observers believe Ultraman will not only wind up being the primary villain in one of 2025's most anticipated new movies , but will also be unmasked as none other than a genetically-engineered clone of the eponymous Son of Krypton himself.

I've already sifted through much of the evidence that backs up this fan
theory in my main Superman trailer #2 article, which I linked to in this piece's introduction. But, there's one more sign that suggests this
hypothesis isn't as outlandish as it sounds. How does Lex break into the Fortress of Solitude? (Image credit: DC Studios/Warner Bros. Pictures)

This trailer confirms that Luthor and company will gain access to the
Fortress of Solitude at some point. However, in the comics, there are only
two ways that someone can enter Supes' secret hideout.

The first, which was used in the early years of Superman literature, involves finding and then using a giant key. Kal-El is the only being strong enough to lift it in the comics, though, and we already know this method won't be used in Superman's latest big-screen reboot. Indeed, the Fortress of Solitude clip article I linked to earlier confirms Krypton-originating individuals, such as Kent and Krypto, can gain entry to it via some form of vocal command.

I don't think that's the only way for anyone to enter the DCU's take on Superman's Arctic-based HQ, though. That's because, in the comics, the second method usually involves some form of highly advanced security system.

This is where Ultraman comes into play. If he is a clone of Kal-El, he could simply remove his face covering in front of the Fortress' likely hidden security cameras. They'll surely recognize him as Superman and allow him
(plus Spica, Luthor, and the latter's girlfriend Eve, who can be briefly spotted when the group enters the Fortress) to set foot in it. It's that, or Ultraman utters a command that only Kryptonians would know, which would
unlock the Fortress' front door. Either way, he seems key to the group's successful attempt to make their way inside. 6. Journeying to the Phantom
Zone Is this our first look at the DCU's take on the Phantom Zone or another pocket universe? (Image credit: DC Studios/Warner Bros. Pictures)

Later on in the teaser, we see Lane and Edi Gathegi's Mister Terrific exploring what appears to be a cavernous, underground lair.

What if this isn't an Earth-based location, though? Instead, what if it's one of our first glimpses at the DCU's take on Pocket Universes (essentially, alternate realities that are tied to another dimension) and, more
importantly, one called the Phantom Zone that Kryptonian criminals are banished to?

This isn't as big a stretch as you might think. For starters, Superman 's two main trailers have included shots of him being incarcerated in an undisclosed location. It's likely that he's jailed following his arrest by Flag and company, too.

However, human prisons wouldn't be able to hold him. As such, I predict that, under Luthor's orders, Kent will be sent to and imprisoned in the Phantom Zone, i.e. a place where nobody should be able to find him. Well, unless you're a roving investigative reporter like Lane and a scientific genius like Mister Terrific... 7. Not faster than a speeding Kryptonite bullet Anthony Carrigan's Metamorpho can create any element or substance he desires (Image credit: DC Studios/Warner Bros. Pictures)

The Phantom Zone should be the least of Superman's worries, mind you, because it seems he'll be injured by an Kryptonite bullet at some stage, too.

Before you scoff at the idea, hear me out. First, consider what Anthony Carrigan's Metamorpho one of Supes' fellow imprisoned metahumans is
creating in the trailer. For the uninitiated, Metamorpho is a superpowered being who can make any substance in the known universe, so it's not
outlandish to assume that he'd be able to craft Kryptonite (Superman's one
and only major weakness) out of thin air. Metamorpho is being forced to make some Kryptonite here, isn't he? (Image credit: DC Studios/Warner Bros. Pictures)

Next, take a good look at the above image. More importantly, look at Metamorpho's left hand. Why is it glowing green? There's only one logical solution: he's created a small amount of Kryptonite, whose primary color is yep, you guessed it green.

That's not all. In both trailers, we see Luthor brandishing a revolver whose cartridge chamber he's seen spinning. If Metamorpho has reluctantly crafted a Kryptonite bullet, it's logical to assume that Luthor would load his weapon with it and play a rigged game of Russian Roulette with Superman. If Supes works out that Luthor isn't playing fair, that could be the catalyst for him punching his way out of his glass box-based cell. Again, we see this in both trailers. I'd be surprised if this scene doesn't occur after Kent is injured by Luthor's Kryptonite bullet (Image credit: DC Studios/Warner Bros.
Pictures)

However, to paraphrase a classic Superman line from the comics, it seems he isn't faster than a speeding Kryptonite bullet.

Another clip in trailer #2 shows Kent's adoptive parents watching over their bed-bound surrogate son. Take a closer look at the upper left side of Kent's head, and you'll see what appears to be a bullet wound and some form of infection around his left temple.

This has to be the aftermath of not only Supes' escape from the Phantom Zone, but also the Kryptonite bullet striking the titular superhero. It's a good job, then, that Lane and Terrific seem to be on hand to help Supes escape and make his way back to the Kent residence to rest and recuperate. You might
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Link to news story: https://www.techradar.com/streaming/entertainment/superman-trailer-2-breakdown -7-big-details-and-easter-eggs-you-definitely-missed


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