‘Superman’ exclusive clip stars Rachel Brosnahan, David Corenswet
Lois Lane (Rachel Brosnahan) has constructive criticism for Clark Kent (David Corenswet) at the Daily Planet in an exclusive scene from “Superman.”
Jimmy Olsen is our hero.
Sure, the Man of Steel is cool and all, and there’s plenty of superpowered derring-do in the new “Superman” (in theaters July 11). Yet there’s also some darn fine journalism in writer/director James Gunn’s film.
In one harrowing scene, when Metropolis is in danger, reporters for the Daily Planet newspaper – packed into a moving vehicle, no less – work to break a major exclusive story on deadline and there’s Jimmy (Skyler Gisondo), typing like the Flash on his laptop.
“That was my mission, man, to bring some real journalistic integrity to the whole thing,” Gisondo says with a laugh.
The Daily Planet and its journalists have been a staple of Superman comic books, TV shows and movies for decades: Lois Lane first appeared in the same 1938 “Action Comics” issue that introduced the Man of Steel. “Those were actually my favorite days on set, shooting the Daily Planet,” Gunn says.
David Corenswet debuts as the latest movie Superman, who dons glasses in disguise as reporter Clark Kent. Here is an exclusive sneak peek at who else is in the newsroom at the Daily Planet:
Rachel Brosnahan put in the work to play ‘punk rock’ Lois Lane
The latest “Superman” launches a revamped new DC movie universe, and this time around, Gunn was committed to showing Lois as “an actual journalist.” So was Rachel Brosnahan, who spoke to real investigative journalists to see what made them tick before playing the iconic Lois. “They want to be able to move the needle in some way,” the actress says.
She worked in the details from those convos into the movie, from Lois’ wardrobe to her vices. The character is famously a smoker, which they couldn’t depict on screen, so she “became an accidental pen chewer.” (Lois also puts a lot of sugar in her coffee.)
Lois tells her boyfriend, Clark, that she’s “punk rock” and he’s not so much – they’re a few months into their relationship and she knows his secret. But her competitive nature doesn’t turn off even at home. Lois talks Clark into letting her interview him as Superman, and there are no softball questions. “The ethics of journalism and her own journalistic integrity are really important to her,” Brosnahan says. “She takes issue with the fact that Clark takes some liberties there. She feels like it’s important to show him how to be a good journalist, too. And, yes, it’s an intense interview, but it’s also foreplay.”
Skyler Gisondo’s Jimmy Olsen is Metropolis’ hottest bachelor
Gisondo’s journey to the Daily Planet began in “this really sweet way,” he recalls: Fans posted on message boards online that he would make a good Jimmy Olsen. Gunn agreed. “James just kept saying, ‘You are Jimmy Olsen. Whatever you do, you’re it.’ ”
The latest Jimmy is less of a goofball than in previous incarnations – he’s a serious journalist who works his well-placed sources and gets a lot of key information. “With all of this crazy stuff going on, Jimmy’s just like a guy trying to do his job,” Gisondo says. He’s also, inexplicably, the object of obsession for pretty much every woman in Metropolis. “That joke is even funnier if I’m just like the normal-est guy ever,” Gisondo adds. “It’s less funny if I’m too goofy because there’s almost something charming about that.”
Beck Bennett gets obnoxious as sports guy Steve Lombard
Since Beck Bennett played many a sporty character during his tenure on “Saturday Night Live,” casting him in the role of Steve Lombard was a slam dunk. First appearing in the comics of the ’70s, Steve was a quarterback who played in the Super Bowl before becoming the Planet’s resident sports reporter, and Bennett wanted to put a less confident, “little bit sweatier” spin on him. “He’s this man-child guy who thinks he is really hot stuff and is really insecure and trying to be as big of a man or cool as possible in the office,” Bennett says.
Steve also ribs Clark a lot, calling him “loser,” but Bennett insists his sports guy isn’t mean: He’s just an alpha who sees Clark as “his little buddy” in their group. “I like playing these obnoxious guys who are actually kind of sweethearts underneath everything.”
Wendell Pierce revives Perry White’s cigar-chomping attitude
When he was cast as Daily Planet editor-in-chief Perry White, Wendell Pierce did a deep dive into the comics and was fascinated to discover that villainous Lex Luthor had an affair with Perry’s wife and one of the editor’s children was Lex’s. “Whenever I inquired about Lex Luthor, that was foremost in my mind,” Pierce says.
But more importantly, he wanted to play Perry as a bit of a curmudgeon who loved his employees: “If we’re going on a mission, everybody gets to go. Come on. He cares for his people, that’s what a leader is supposed to do.”
One aspect that Pierce made sure to bring back was Perry’s cigar, which never gets lit but is usually in his mouth for a good chomping. “You can’t smoke in buildings nowadays. That leads to my grumpiness,” the actor says. “I’ll at least keep my stogie with me. That is his defiant take on the modern world.”
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