(Image Source: DC and Warner Bros.)
Much of the early press for Supergirl, the next DCU movie, has credited its source material. Indeed, the film was originally going to use the same title as the graphic novel that inspired it; Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow. However, the first trailer for the film suggests one way the movie will improve on the original comics.
Written by Tom King, with art by Bilquis Evely, Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow offers a darker take on the Girl of Steel. The story is told through the eyes of Ruthye Marye Knoll, whose father was killed by the bandit called Krem of the Yellow Hills. Her search for a champion leads her to a drunken Kara Zor-El. Reluctantly, the Maid of Might agrees to help Ruthye, embarking on a galaxy-spanning quest to seek justice. However, Kara does this not out of simple idealism, but also to make peace with the loss of her own father and Krypton.
The first trailer for Supergirl establishes this same storyline. It also borrows some lines from the original comics. However, the brief montage of action sequences highlights one aspect of the source material that the movie has already improved upon.
DCU Supergirl trailer showcases death of Krypton
(Image Source: DC and Warner Bros.)
“Krypton did not die in a day,” Kara Zor-El notes in the trailer when Ruthye asks about her world’s destruction. “The gods are not that kind.” This line is taken directly from the text of Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow #6. However, while the comic does explore this momentous moment, it is far from thorough in doing so.
The narration by Ruthye discusses how Supergirl watched Krypton die, as her father, Zor-El, saved their city of Argo City in a dome. It also outlines how the ground beneath them became radioactive and his plan to put lead shields over the ground failed. With resources limited, he built a rocket modeled on his brother Jor-El’s designs and sent his daughter into space.
(Image Source: DC Comics / Bilquis Evely)
However, while this description of Supergirl’s origins is complete, it largely plays out over an unrelated scene. Some brief flashback panels show Krypton and Argo’s destruction, but they mostly show Kara Zor-El and Comet the Super-Horse flying through space to evade a deadly magic artifact. Most of the details are left to the imagination of the reader.
It is debatable how effective this kind of “tell, don’t show” scripting is in a visual medium like comics. Regardless, it would defy all logic for the Supergirl movie to try the same trick. Given that, it seems likely that the DCU adaptation will offer better visuals than the Woman of Tomorrow comics.
Supergirl arrives in movie theaters on June 26, 2026.
