Superman, the iconic last son of Krypton, has long been celebrated as the Man of Steel, a hero often seen as untouchable, with his invulnerability standing out as one of his most defining traits. Yet, the latest trailer from the upcoming Superman movie (directed by James Gunn and on schedule for a 2025 release) shows the unthinkable: Superman falling from the sky, visibly injured and bleeding. Unable to stand up, he whistles for Krypto the Superdog to come to his aid and take him home, presumably to his Fortress of Solitude.
The trailer for the upcoming movie showcased much more; we also saw Hawkgirl and Guy Gardner’s Green Lantern with his iconic bowl cut, among all the other things. But Superman bleeding really stands out, not just as a cinematic shock, but a deliberate, purposeful narrative choice that raises some questions about the deconstruction of Superman’s invulnerability that has defined the character since his debut eight decades ago.
Ever since he first appeared in Action Comics #1 in 1938, Superman’s powers have often been synonymous with perfection. Initially, the character possessed only super-strength, speed, and invulnerability. Other powers (such as X-ray vision and limited super-hearing) were introduced in subsequent releases, along with the basic elements of his origin story, which initially contained numerous details that contradicted themselves. All of this made Superman look like an ideal protector from the get-go, mainly due to his super-strength and invulnerability.
However, it also led to criticisms that Superman is “too perfect” and completely unrelatable to the readership, as he was basically presented as a demigod whose conflicts with the villains, either superpowered or human, rarely felt grounded. This brought about the decision to make Superman near-invulnerable; he’s still invulnerable when compared to humans, but he’s just another average Joe compared to other Kryptonians or extraterrestrials. In fact, some of those have wiped the floor with Man of Steel.
This decision humanized Superman, making his struggles more visceral and relatable to readers and viewers, challenging the notion of his invulnerability over the years. One of the first challenges was the introduction of Kryptonite, a green crystalline material originating from Krypton (fragments of Superman’s broken home world) that emits a unique, poisonous radiation that can weaken and even kill Kryptonians. This brought about the notion that Superman isn’t all that super on Krypton. In fact, the only reason he has his powers is his exposure to the radiation of our yellow sun.
And if his physical characteristics and powers on Krypton mirror those of humans on Earth, it only stands to reason that he’s not completely invulnerable and indestructible — he only seems that way because of our own definitions of strength and vulnerability. Subsequent releases and storylines introduced even more weaknesses, and Superman became susceptible to the effects of magic, or in the case of Poison Ivy, her pheromones, which helped her control Superman’s mind.
Since then, many stories have explored Superman’s weaknesses; magical forces have used his susceptibility to magic, while Lex Luthor and other villains have relied on Kryptonite and Kryptonite-based weaponry. However, none of them was a match for the Man of Steel; most villains either employed technology or intellect (often both) to outmaneuver him or had some natural advantage against him. So, the writers decided to create a new foe with great physical power to match that of Superman: enter Doomsday.
The original Doomsday was a Kryptonian experiment that spiraled out of control, resulting in a highly adaptable creature that, once killed, resurrected itself and adapted to overcome whatever object, force, or condition had originally killed it. The creature eventually came to Earth, where he battled Superman in a massive dust up that resulted in one of the most iconic Superman stories ever, The Death of Superman, which saw Doomsday and Superman beating each other to death — the story was cinematically adapted in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.
There were other stories that dealt with Superman’s vulnerability, his death, and even his mortality. In 1996’s Kingdom Come, which is set in a dystopian future, Superman is shown to be emotionally vulnerable, loses his faith in humanity, and retreats to his Fortress of Solitude, where he spent more than a decade in isolation. 2003’s Red Son reimagines Superman as a Soviet hero, exploring how his morality and values would be shaped by his environment and how those values can be exploited.
Another interesting storyline is the 2005 All-Star Superman run, which deals with Superman’s mortality after his cells begin to deteriorate due to overexposure to solar radiation. So, seeing the Man of Steel bleed isn’t really a novelty for comic book fans; what makes the bleeding in the trailer unique is the apparent lack of a contextual explanation. What did the Man of Steel go up against that resulted in him crash landing in what seems to be the Arctic and barely mustering enough strength to signal Krypto to come and get him?
Superman in the comics has not often shown fear, but he has experienced moments of doubt and apprehension when faced with truly formidable challenges, showcasing a nuance to his character that is rarely explored in cinematic adaptations. Stories like Superman: Lost highlight his emotional depth, portraying his struggles with trauma and vulnerability in ways that humanize him without diminishing his heroism. Gunn now has the opportunity to bring this layered version of Superman to the screen — a hero who, though not immune to pain or fear, perseveres in the face of adversity. Perhaps it’s not his invulnerability that makes him the Man of Steel, but his unwavering strength to rise above what makes him vulnerable.