James Gunn Affirms 'Supergirl's' Core Is Tom King's Morally Bankrupt And Disastrous 'Woman Of Tomorrow' Story
James Gunn affirmed that the upcoming Supergirl film does indeed adapt Tom King’s disastrous Woman of Tomorrow graphic novel noting that “it has a lot of the core of that there.”
During an appearance on the Awards Circuit podcast with host and woke activist Clayton Davis, Gunn said, “Supergirl is [director] Craig Gillespie’s vision and it’s very much-. … And I love Milly Alcock in the movie. And it’s, you know, a space fantasy, which is like Guardians in a way.”
Despite claiming it is Gillespie’s vision, he then affirmed, “But it’s based on the Tom King book. It doesn’t follow it religiously, but it has a lot of the core of that there. And I’m just really excited to see it and to see Milly.”
When Gunn initially announced the Supergirl film, he said it would adapt King’s Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow series. He shared, “One of my favorite comic book series from last year was Tom King’s run on Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow. So, we’re going to turn that into a big, science fiction, epic film.”
He added, “Now, Superman is a guy who was sent to Earth and raised by loving parents, whereas Supergirl in this story, she is a character who was raised on a chunk of Krypton. She watched everybody around her perish in some terrible way so she’s a much more jaded character.”
In the first issue of Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow, Supergirl meets a woman by the name of Ruthye Marye Knoll who recruits her to hunt down and kill Krem of the Yellow Hills, who killed her father.
By the end of the story, Ruthye has tracked down Krem of the Yellow Hills, but is unable to execute him. Instead, he was imprisoned in the Phantom Zone for over three centuries, where he eventually began “working hard at making up for what he’d done. Like, he had a different heart. Like he was a different man.”
Supergirl eventually frees him and upon being freed he begs forgiveness from Ruthye saying, “You…Ruthye Marye Knoll. I… I have thought of nothing but you and your…I’m so…so sorry,. Please…Forgive me. I beg you…Forgive me… Forgive me…Forgive me….”
Ruthye, now an elderly woman, then murders him with her cane with Supergirl clearly acting as an accessory.
It was rumored back in January 2024 by Variety’s Tatiana Siegel, that the Supergirl film would see Supergirl go “on a murderous quest for revenge.”
Siegel reported, “In the new iteration, Supergirl travels across the galaxy to celebrate her 21st birthday with Krypto the Superdog.”
“Along the way, she meets a young woman named Ruthye and winds up on a murderous quest for revenge,” she added.
A traditional Supergirl would never accept to go on a quest for revenge, but rather a quest for justice. She might be duped by someone, but upon discovering the truth would pursue justice and prevent the act of vengeance being carried out.
Mongoloid Alcock.
The revenge angle instead of justice angle is interesting here. King's version where Supergirl basically enables murder undermines what makes the character work in the first place. I got why some folks liked the darker tone when it came out, but seeing it adapted to film makes the problemsmore obvious. Hope Gunn figures out a way to balance it better.