Superman’s First Tagline Explains Why Superhero Movies Are Struggling, Nearly 50 Years Later

The tagline for Richard Donner’s 1978 Superman: The Movie is still relevant to DC movies and the superhero genre as a whole. With James Gunn’s upcoming Superman: Legacy opening a new era for DC movies, the achievements of previous Superman adaptations serve as reference points for understanding who the Man of Steel really is and what the DCU’s Superman may need to avoid or draw inspiration from. David Corenswet’s Superman will develop his own identity, but the foundations for every live-action Superman are undeniably rooted in previous iterations of the character.

Various movies have been key to the golden age of superhero movies in Hollywood, including Tim Burton’s Batman, Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man, Christopher Nolan’s Batman Begins and The Dark Knight, and Jon Favreau’s Iron Man. And while it didn’t spawn a trilogy or a full-fledged franchise, Richard Donner’s Superman was essential in the rise of superhero movies. Among other feats, the Christopher Reeves-led film proved that superheroes’ larger-than-life abilities could be properly translated to live-action, that morally impeccable heroes could be appealing, and that comic books could thrive in other mediums. But also, it left a hint about what superhero movies should strive to be in the form of its tagline.

What Superman’s Original Movie Tagline Really Meant

Superman’s tagline reads “you’ll believe a man can fly”. Such a simple statement easily sold the idea that Superman would be a revolutionary sci-fi movie filled with breathtaking VFX and action sequences, but it also promised an unprecedented story. At the time, seeing a flesh-and-bone Superman take flight on the big screen was a groundbreaking event. Few high-budget sci-fi movies had featured such a concept by 1978, let alone with that level of quality and in color. The closest a comic book superhero had come to bringing its source material to life faithfully was 1966’s Batman, and yet it vastly downplayed Batman and Robin’s abilities and gadgets.

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Why Superman’s Tagline Isn’t Enough In 2023

The concept of a super strong, fast, and durable man who can fly and shoot lasers from his eyes continues to be appealing to this day, as evidenced by Superman’s undying popularity in the 21st century. But what has diminished the impact of Superman’s concept since 1978 is that countless other superheroes and comic book characters have been taken to the big screen with increasingly ambitious adaptations and ever-improving VFX. Nowadays, not only do audiences believe that men can fly, but they also believe that women can kill ancient gods, trees can talk, and superheroes can travel between universes and talk directly to the audience.

Richard Donner’s Superman didn’t have to compete with a growing full industry of superhero movies in 1978. If it were made today, its basic premise would be overshadowed by films like Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, which not only starred Rocket Raccoon but also told his tragic story and took place across various different planets across the universe; or The Flash, which included cameos by multiple DC actors (including Christopher Reeve himself), featured Wonder Woman and two different Batmen, dealt with the concepts of time travel and the multiverse, and yet it wasn’t enough to win over the audience and make its budget back.

How Superhero Movies Can Get Their Magic Back

Modern-day superhero movies can’t conform with a basic premise anymore. As box office flops like The Flash and The Marvels have proved, big budgets and extravagant action sequences are no longer enough to capture the audience’s attention, whereas innovative, ambitious, or otherwise authentic stories like those of Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse and The Batman can help their respective movies survive the crowded Hollywood landscape. This is precisely why new Superman movies can’t simply retell his origin story and pit him against yet another live-action Lex Luthor or Zod and call it a day.

Instead of injecting more money or adding more CGI to each release, studios must prioritize each superhero movie’s story and focus on what makes them stand out from the rest, be it their tone and format, their innovative take on the source material, their interconnectivity with other movies and shows or lack thereof, or a new look at the main hero’s personality and powers. Fortunately, franchises like Marvel and Sony’s MCU Spider-Man trilogy and Matt Reeves’ The Batman have proved that there are always new ways to portray the same Marvel and DC superheroes who have already been explored multiple times on the big screen and in other mediums.