Friday, July 11, 2025

It's a bird. It's a plane. It's Superwoke?

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Fri Jul 11 2025

A billionaire who doesn't like an undocumented immigrant roaming freely might hit too close to the country's raw nerve, but writer-director James Gunn's doesn't duck the topic in the new Superman film debuting on July 11.

Hi there, Phillip M. Bailey, Chief Political Correspondent, along here with Savannah Kuchar, Congress and Campaigns Reporter, for your weekly This Is America newsletter.

As you might have heard there's a new interpretation of the iconic comic book character who crash lands in Kansas after leaving another planet and eventually has a big beef with business tycoon Lex Luthor, who thinks the Man of Steel is a threat.

Gunn, who is co-CEO of DC Studios, said in a recent interview that the movie is "the story of America" and explicitly about "an immigrant that came from other places," which is bound to cause a stir given the Trump administration's crackdown.

Director James Gunn poses at a photo call for the film Superman in Culver City, California, U.S., June 28, 2025. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni

Mario Anzuoni, REUTERS

"We don't go to the movie theater to be lectured to and to have somebody throw their ideology on to us," Kellyanne Conway, a former top adviser to President Donald Trump, said in a July 7 Fox News interview.

The White House, for now at least, is playing nice. It put out a mock poster of Trump dressed as Superman on Instagram, saying the president was the "symbol of hope."

But Gunn isn't shying away from how the film will be viewed through political lenses.

"Yes, it plays differently," he told The Sunday Times. "But it's about human kindness and obviously there will be jerks out there who are just not kind and will take it as offensive just because it is about kindness. But screw them."

Check out USA TODAY's review.

If you're as big a Superman fan as our editor and want to read more:

•	'Dad energy' and abs of steel: 'Superman' David Corenswet brings out DC hero's human side
•	Is new 'Superman' suitable for little kids? Our guide for parents

MAGA kryptonite?

Some of the president's most fervent supporters are voicing discontent with Trump − or at least his administration and top law enforcement officials − over apparent U-turns and missteps six months into his second term.

U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi listens as U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to the media in the Press Briefing Room at the White House in Washington D.C., June 27, 2025.

Ken Cedeno, REUTERS

The MAGA-on-MAGA feuds have emerged over various pressure points, from immigration amnesty talk to Epstein-related conspiracy theories.

•	Agriculture Sec. Brooke Rollins has taken the heat from conservative pundits and voters alike, after Trump seemed to float the idea of giving farm and hospitality laborers leeway in immigration crackdowns.
•	Attorney General Pam Bondi has been on the receiving end of social media bashing, after the FBI and DOJ released a new memo denying the existence of a much-anticipated Jeffrey Epstein "client list."
•	Trump has earned some Republican head shakes over his moves abroad, including strikes on Iran last month. Yet there remains a hesitance about criticizing the president directly.