All of us Superman fans are counting the days for a new suit reveal. Currently, Director James Gunn is in Atlanta filming “Superman,” the new feature DC film set to kick off a new universe in 2025.
Since seeing the “S” on Superman’s birthday in February, fans have discussed a lot in what they want from the new suit.
One of the biggest subjects Superman fans fight over are the trunks, or the outer red wearables that are often referred to as Superman’s underwear. We won’t go into great detail with that but we will discuss the history of the costume and designs, which, of course, includes or excludes the trunks
Starting in ‘Action Comics’
We will touch on some significant changes that were made to the costume overall. My goal is to get you thinking so once the new reveal happens, you’ll have the context to decide upon what you wanted the suit’s fate for Gunn’s film to be.
In 1938 the late great Jerry Siegel and Joe Schuster showed the planet Superman in “Action Comics” no.1. The inspiration for his costume was the true blue American colors of patriotism. But, also in that day, comics coloring was very limited. Primary colors were reserved mainly for the hero as secondary colors, such as , purple, green and orange, were utilized for the villains.
Siegel and Shuster were inspired by the circus strong men for the costume of Superman. Strong men were always muscular and wore tights as a way of showing off their physic. The costume set the tone for all superheroes to follow. Circus performers were always colorful and playful and Superman would be colorful and strong. His symbol on his chest was much more of an actual shield with and S and has its own history, but that’s another history lesson for another time.
This template was kept in comics for a very long time and is still used as the Superman suit, in my opinion. There have been tweaks here and there, but for the most part, it has been the standard.
Leaping tall screens in a single bound
Since we’re talking about the possibilities for the next on-screen super-suit, let’s leap forth from the pages of comics and inwards to on-screen adaptations.
The first live action versions of Superman’s suit, worn by Ray Middleton (1940), Kirk Allyn (1948-1949) and George Reeves (1951-1959) were all cloth based. They used a tighter look and followed that of the comics.
Middelton’s Costume had the triangle version of the crest, as Kirk Allyn in 1948 in his two Serial run was closer to what we know today. George Reeves would come in 1951 with “Superman and the Mole Men,” followed by the multi-season series “Adventures of Superman.”
George also had the pentagon style shield. In the first season and his film, George’s costume was made from darker materials as it showed better in the Black and White footage. In the latter season of the show, the costume was in color showcasing the blue and red.
In 1978, “Superman: The Movie” would debut to the big screen Christopher Reeve as Superman. Reeve’s suit would be the same throughout his four film tenure. There were some small twists and turns, higher boots and a shorter cape.
The shield would also be featured in yellow on the back of the cape. This style would remain prevalent into 1992 with the “Superboy” tv series. The body suit was a type of spandex and a lighter blue was used.
1993’s “Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman” would see a costume with a darker blue, include a longer cape and be completely spandex.
The chest shield was larger mirroring the large symbol on Superman’s chest in the comics. Dean Cain, the actor portraying Superman, was physically fit with the spandex showing off his natural muscular physic.
Sadly we will not discuss 2001’s “Smallville” as it did not have a traditional Superman suit (We all remember that finale).
Superman was to make his way back to the big screen in 2006’s “Superman Returns,” with Brandon Routh as the Man of Steel. I would consider two big things happened in Superhero cinema before “Superman Returns” came to theaters that affect the suit moving forward.
The first being 1989’s “Batman,” directed by Tim Burton and starting Micheal Keaton. The film was a revolution as Batman’s costume was molded black armor. This would carry though the Caped Crusaders live action apprentices until 2016’s “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.”
The second cinematic change would be Sam Rami’s “Spider-Man.” Spider-Man’s suit was true to the comics but had a 3D affect with the webs. It suit was not just standard spandex.
Back to “Superman Return’s:” The air would darken the colors and Superman shield was weaved into the fabric in small form. The symbols were shrunken in on the chest. The suit would also have a more “v” shaped belt that had the crest on it. It was not well liked but not hated because it was what we had.
Now, in 2011 DC introduced the New 52 in comics. This would be the first major change to Superman’s costume in main continuity. This is a big moment for our discussions. The suit lost the trunks, was given a red belt and was made of Kryptonian armor. A collar was added and some triangle bracelet-gauntlet-things were included over the cuff of Superman’s hands. Fans were dived by this choice. The suit made Superman look and feel like he was trying to be tough and edgy. Now hold that thought.
Let’s move on to Henry Cavil in Zack Snyder’s 2013 “Man of Steel” and 2016’s “Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice.” The two suits have slight differences but there is enough similarities to talk about them together. The suit was designed without the trunks and very little red other than the cape.
The concept for the suit was a second skin and that all khryptonians would wear these and would have armor over top of them, however “Man of Steel” had a darker blue that many fans didn’t like. Both of Cavil’s suits were molded so, even with Cavill’s ripped physical form, the suits featured sculpted muscles. The material featured a new synthetic texture created by Micheal Wilkinson, who is the same costume designer who worked on “Spider-Man” (2002).
These suits were to make Superman feel tough and modern. Neither of the suits had a proper belt but there were silver and gold styles added to make the suits appear to possess an idea of a belt.
Meanwhile, back on TV, 2016 would also introduce us to Tyler Hoechlin as Superman on The CW’s “Supergirl.” Hoechlin would later get his own series in “Superman and Lois” and his suit would also be met with criticism. The boots were clunky with some odd choices for the belt. It was round in the mid section, served no purpose and was red and gold.
During the 2019-2020 CW crossover event “Cris on infinite Earth,” Brandon Routh would come back to play Superman. This time his suit would be a comic accurate representation of the comic book “Kingdom Come.” He presented a medium blue, red boots, cape and trunks.
The symbol, which is close to the new one that David Corenswet will be wearing for the upcoming 2025 blockbuster, is ripped right from the 90s comics featuring Alex Ross’ art. This suit is said to be the best ever one film but some fans. The body suit was similar to the body suit from “Superman Returns.”
Tyler would get a new suit in season one of “Superman and Lois.” The suit once again has no trunks. It is padded and molded. The cape is mid size and the boots are shoe like.
In season 3 of “Superman & Lois” Tyler Hoechlin would get a change to his suit making it thinner and darker. A raised emblem, and more classic styled boots would also be featured with no trunks. His bet would be in the style of “The New 52” red.
Tyler did get a cloth costume that was made to look like the Max Fleischer cartoons from the 1940’s (seen above). This suit was light sky blue, made of spandex. In the show, clark said that his mother mother made him.
Up, up, and away: The psychology of the would-be costume
Now that I have touched on all of that, let’s talk about the psychology of Superman’s costume. Superman is to be the most powerful force on earth and his suit is to stand out. The colors are to be bright and draw your attention. Superman’s suit is designed to not be intimidating but could be seen almost as humorous to disarm.
Think of the clothes you wear and the type of image you wish to project. Superman is no different with the idea that his suit makes him seem less scary for a man that can fly. The suit is to not inflict fear.
With the tights, trunks and cape Superman is there to stand out and make you feel comfortable. The hope the character represents is in the suit.
So, what do you want from the new costume? Bright colors, somewhat silly vibes, cloth, spandex, and armor? Or all of the above? (Or none of it?).
How do you think Superman should suit up in 2025?
