‘Superman: Legacy’ Lois Lane Casting Finalist Phoebe Dynevor On Heroine’s Role In Upcoming Reboot: “She’s The Brains; She’s Actually The Fearless One”

Lois Lane stands defiant against the Invisible Mafia on John Romita Jr.'s cover to Action Comics Vol. 1 #1025 "The House of Kent, Part Four" (2020), DC

Lois Lane stands defiant against the Invisible Mafia on John Romita Jr.'s cover to Action Comics Vol. 1 #1025 "The House of Kent, Part Four" (2020), DC

In a tease that’s unlikely to be taken well by any fan hoping for a cinematic return to form for Big Blue, according to actress Phoebe Dynevor’s first-hand experience with the film’s script, Superman: Legacy will flip the script by having Lois Lane be the one who “saves Superman”.

Lois Lane strikes a familiar pose on Yasmine Putri’s variant cover to Lois Lane Vol. 2 #7 “Enemy of the People, Part Seven” (2020), DC

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Dynevor, perhaps best known for her roles as Daphne Bassett in Netflix’s Bridgerton and Clarice Cliff in Sky Cinema’s The Colour Room, provided this insight into James Gunn’s upcoming kick-off to the new cinematic DCU during a January 2024 interview given to Variety.

Emily (Phoebe Dynevor) watches on as her now-former co-worker smashes up his office in Fair Play (2023), Netflix

Amidst a discussion primarily centered on her new film Fair Play, Dynevor was eventually asked by the outlet’s Angelique Jackson as to how she felt about losing the chance to portray the titular Kryptonian’s love interest, a role for which she was briefly a final contender before it ultimately went to The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel star Rachel Broshnahan.

In turn, the actress recalled, “It was a whirlwind and then I realized that it was over, but it was great.”

Lois Lane seeks out her next scoop on Kamome Shirahama’s variant cover to Lois Lane Vol. 2 #8 “Enemy of the People, Part Eight” (2020), DC

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Further, Dynevor admitted that particular one take-away she had from the entire affair was the fact that, in the future, she wanted to play more characters like Lois.

Ostensibly recalling to the intrepid reporter’s portrayal within Gunn’s script, the actress affirmed that she found Lois’ appeal to be the fact that “She saves Superman. She’s the brains; she’s actually the fearless one.”

Lois Lane offers her help to Superman in Heroes in Crisis Vol. 1 #4 “Part 4: $%@# This” (2019), DC. Words by Tom King, art by Clay Mann, Tomeu Morey, and Clayton Cowles.

Now, in the interest of fairness, it should be noted that there does exist a handful of distinct possibilities regarding Dynevor’s statements that do not automatically spell identitiy-politics-laden doom for Superman: Legacy.

For example, there’s a chance that the actress’ reference to Lois ‘saving’ Superman was meant to come across more metaphorically than literally, a possible reference to the heroine either helping to free the hero from a sticky situation in order to fight a big bad or her feelings for him serving as the spark which inspires him to push past his limits.

To this end, it’s conversely possible that in the second half of her statement, Dynevor used overtly literal language to refer to the iconic comic book pairing’s historic relationship, wherein Lois’ bold, refuse-to-take-no-for-an-answer attitude – a.k.a. her “brains” and her “fearless”-ness – serves as both an inspiration and an indispensable in-the-field-assistive asset to both of Clark’s respective careers.

Lois Lane makes a surprise appearance at Clark’s doorstep in The Man of Steel Vol. 1 #4 “Enemy Mine…” (1986), DC. Words by John Byrne, art by John Byrne, Dick Giordano, Tom Ziuko, and John Costanza.

But given that this statement was made amidst the West’s current, sociopolitical-charged entertainment climate, there remains a high probability that the above hedging will remain as nothing more than wishful thinking and Lois will ultimately be subjected to the same ‘strong female’ rewriting that has torpedeod the characters of so many fictional heroines before her.

Ultimately, the only thing standing in the way of such an outcome is Gunn himself – and whether or not he’ll hold firm presently remains anyone’s guess.

Lois Lane prepares to undergo a peculiar experiment on Curt Swan, Murphy Anderson, and Gaspar Saladino’s cover to Superman’s Girlfriend, Lois Lane Vol. 1 #106 “I Am Curious (Black)!” (1970), DC

As of writing, Superman: Legacy is set to leap its way into theaters on July 11th, 2025.

NEXT: James Gunn Switches Up His DCU Plans Yet Again, Adds Matt Reeves’ ‘The Batman’ Spin-Off Series ‘Arkham’ To Mainline DCU

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