Jennifer Holland Believes ‘Man of Tomorrow’ Might Be Hubby James Gunn’s Best Film Yet
Supergirl might not be a huge indication, but the next installment in James Gunn’s DCU Superman Saga is starting to win people over, even if those folks happen to be connected to the project. One of them is Gunn’s wife and leading lady, Jennifer Holland, who is returning as Harcourt in Man of Tomorrow (now in production).
She had such high praise that she already considers the upcoming film a contender for his best to date. “I can tell you that I have seen an enormous, enormous portion of the movie, and I am so excited for Man of Tomorrow,” Holland said on the record recently.
“It is different…I don’t wanna say this. Ugh. It might be James’s best… my favorite movie of [James’s], and I haven’t even seen the whole thing yet. I’m just… I love the movie. I’m really excited about it. It feels like a step up to me in a lot of ways. I’m excited for people to see it, and he’s not done filming it yet,” she continued.
Holland also previously shared how much she likes Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 3, which is Gunn’s last major success for Marvel. Lex Luthor actor Nicholas Hoult also had high praise for the next Superman film by Gunn. Hoult glowed about the script, saying it’s “awesome” and filled with “some really fun stuff.”
If they set a trend, these remarks might set expectations for Man of Tomorrow even higher, at least for those who haven’t totally given up on the DCU experiment after Supergirl flopped harder than The Flash or Morbius. Factoring that in, Man of Tomorrow has a steep hill to climb.
However, James Gunn’s Superman sequel has the advantage of revolving around a core character – the most famous superhero ever – for one more flight. While Gunn’s greatest success came when he reinvented niche characters from the comics like Star-Lord, Yondu, and the rest of the Guardians, as well as Peacemaker a decade later, he can give that tactic a rest finally.
This fact is a blessing in disguise. The tormented, half-satirical arc of Christopher Smith and his mission of peace at any cost was only good for one movie (The Suicide Squad, in this case) and a season of a spinoff series. The second season left viewers more divided than the first, and most seem to have moved on from that interdimensional chapter of the DCU.
The appeal of fringe deconstructed fringe characters got old fast. Gunn consequently may have been smart initially to focus on Supergirl as the next big release. She has more visibility (no pun intended this time) than any other character he’s worked on.
Saying that, we must recognize Kara has always been niche in her own way, just not as badly as the other characters I mentioned. That’s despite a consistent presence in comics, TV, and animation for the better part of 30 years, in defiance of her first disaster in the 80s and DC editorial killing her off in Crisis on Infinite Earths.
Kara and Milly Alcock will have a shot at redemption when they return in Man of Tomorrow, which is slated to touch down in theaters this time next year.
