James Gunn Confirms Clark Kent Wears Hypnotic Glasses in New SUPERMAN Film

For as long as Superman has existed, there’s been one nagging question fans love to poke at… how does no one realize Clark Kent is just Superman with glasses? It’s been the subject of endless jokes, memes, and arguments, even among diehard fans.

Well, James Gunn hears you, and he’s leaning into a solution straight from the comics with hypno glasses.

While chatting with ComicBook, Gunn addressed the classic identity issue and admitted it used to bother him, too… until comic writer Tom King reminded him that Superman’s eyewear actually does have a super-powered explanation.

Gunn said of the hypno glasses protecting Clark Kent’s identity:

“That’s canon in the comics. It’s kind of been forgotten but that’s from the comics. I was sitting with Tom King, the comic book writer, and I was like, ‘you know the thing that I just don’t really know how to reconcile in myself is the glasses because the glasses always bothered me as a kid.’ They bothered me because I just don’t have that much suspension of disbelief to believe that.”

It turns out, the glasses alter perception. Gunn went on to explain that, yes, David Corenswet’s Clark Kent will look and act differently than Superman, but the idea that the glasses help fool people is interesting, and Gunn went on to saying:

“You know, they’re two different people even though I think out of all the actors that have played Superman, Corenswet looks the most different as Clark Kent to Superman, even more so than Chris Reeve. But he said, ‘you know, there’s an answer for that in the comics, it’s canon that they hypnotize people.’”

If you flip back to Superman Vol. 1 #330 (published in 1978), the comic explains that Superman uses "Super-Hypnosis" through his glasses to subtly manipulate how others perceive him as Clark Kent. It’s weird, sure. but it works, and Gunn is embracing it.

Superman is “set in a world very different from ours and far removed from the DCEU. Heroes have been around for ages, and we'll see how it affected this world's history and has shaped the DCU."

The cast of Superman also includes Nicholas Hoult as Lex, and Rachel Brosnahan as Lois, Skyler Gisondo as Clark’s best pal, Jimmy Olsen; Wendell Pierce as The Daily Planet’s Perry White; Milly Alcock as Kara Zor-El, aka Supergirl; Isabela Merced as Kendra Saunders, aka Hawkgirl; and Nathan Fillion as Guy Gardner.

It also stars Sean Gunn as Maxwell Lord; Edi Gathegi as Michael Holt, aka Mister Terrific; Maria Gabriela de Faria as Angela Spica, aka The Engineer; Sara Sampan as Eve Teschmacher; Anthony Carrigan as Rex Mason, aka Metamorphosis; Frank Grillo as Rick Flag Sr.; Neva Howell as Martha Kent; and Pruitt Taylor Vince as Jonathan Kent.

The movie is scheduled for a theatrical release on July 11, 2025.