With filming for 2025’s Superman well underway, the DCU reboot is poised to reinvigorate enthusiasm for DC’s most popular characters – which is particularly important for Supergirl in Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow. The DCU’s release slate has confirmed that Kara Zor-El, AKA Supergirl, will be debuting in her own solo movie following her cousin’s debut in Superman. The movie is titled after a comic book that sees Kara Zor-El embroiled in a cosmic adventure of vengeance and self-discovery, though details surrounding the exact plot of Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow are still to be confirmed.
What is confirmed, however, is that Milly Alcock has been cast in the titular role, which has garnered widespread approval. This is a positive start for the character’s DCU debut and hopefully precedes a series of positive decisions that will help to rectify the character’s cinematic legacy. The last time Supergirl appeared on film was as a supporting character in The Flash as portrayed by Sasha Calle – but the last time she starred in her own movie was not so well-received.
Following the success of Christopher Reeves’ Superman movies, a Supergirl spin-off was released in 1984 starring Helen Slater in the titular role. It pits Kara Zor-El against the witch Selena, a villain that was created specifically for the movie, who came into possession of the Omegahedron – an item that powers Kara’s home city. The movie’s climax sees Kara fighting an invisible shadow demon after Selena declares herself “Princess of Earth” before being trapped in the Phantom Zone by Supergirl. Suffice it to say, the movie was exceptionally hammy and did not land very well with audiences.
Supergirl preceded the lambasted Superman IV: The Quest for Peace by three years and did not fare any better critically. The movie bombed at the worldwide box office, earning just $14.3m, and boasts a paltry 8% score on Rotten Tomatoes, making it one of the worst-rated superhero movies of all time. Detractors took aim at the movie’s overly campy tone, with Helen Slater’s animated performance as Kara Zor-El rubbing some critics the wrong way. This is, at least, something that Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow is poised to contrast with its presumed plot.
Milly Alcock, who rose to prominence after portraying a young Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen in HBO’s House of the Dragon, is an exceptionally popular pick for the titular role in Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow. Her tenure in the Game of Thrones spin-off series demonstrated her ability to portray a nuanced character who is full of life and fiercely independent. This should marry well with Supergirl’s first solo outing in the DCU, especially if the movie follows the same plot as its comic book namesake, as it flies in the face of Slater’s happy-go-lucky portrayal.
The comic run after which Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow is named depicts Kara Zor-El’s coming-of-age story in a decidedly off-the-wall setting. Instead of confining Supergirl to Earth, the comic sees her journey into space in search of a red sun that would reduce her powers enough to experience inebriation. James Gunn’s proven capacity to tell cosmic stories with offbeat alien characters – whom Supergirl teams up with in the comics – is a promising sign for the movie should it depict the same storyline as its namesake. Story details are likely to remain under wraps for a while yet, however.