Don’t expect Batman to show up in Supergirl, and according to director Craig Gillespie, Kara Zor-El wouldn’t care if he did.
Asked whether Supergirl is even aware of the Dark Knight in the DCU during a press interview with Jake Hamilton’s Jake’s Takes (watch below), Gillespie hesitated, laughed, and made it clear the Caped Crusader isn’t on Kara’s radar.
For more details on the upcoming DC Studios movie, check out our Supergirl guide.
“She Just Doesn’t Care”
“She’s so in her own space. She’s running away,” Gillespie said. “In my version of it, you may have heard about Batman, she just doesn’t care.”
Star Milly Alcock agreed: “I don’t think she cares.”
Gillespie continued: “It’s not her problem. It’s not her world. She didn’t ask for it. And that’s where we meet her. Kind of what you love about her, she’s so independent and unapologetically herself.”
In-universe, that tracks with everything we’ve heard about this take on Kara. She’s off Earth, on a cosmic revenge road trip in the Woman of Tomorrow mold, and deliberately self-absorbed, a character running from her own grief, not keeping tabs on Gotham’s vigilante. But there just might be more to the story, covered below.
Gillespie’s comments on Kara’s isolated story also come as the latest cut of the film reportedly trims roughly 25 minutes from the runtime ahead of release.
There’s A Real-World Reason, Too
Here’s the part the press-tour soundbite doesn’t get into: there isn’t a DCU Batman for Kara to care about in the first place.
As we’ve been reporting, our insiders say the DCU’s Batman is currently off the table. Part of that, we’re told, comes down to concern over what James Gunn’s version of the character would look like, with some fans and insiders alike worried a Gunn-led Dark Knight could lean too comedic or offbeat for the character.
It’s not just creative caution.
There’s also the Matt Reeves factor. Reeves is building his own separate Batman corner with The Batman saga, and Gunn has said he doesn’t intend to run a competing DCU Batman at the same time.
With Reeves’ Dark Knight occupying that space, the DCU has been in no rush to introduce one of its own.
Gunn May Not Even Have The Time
Then there’s the timing question.
As we’ve covered, Gunn’s DC Studios contract is reported to run out in spring 2027, which, amid the Paramount-Warner Bros. Discovery situation, raises real questions about how much runway he has left to launch a whole new corner of the universe like a Batman franchise.
And his actual slate backs that up.
Just as our insiders said he would, Gunn has pivoted hard into his Superman Family Saga. He’s currently working on Man of Tomorrow, with a live-action Jimmy Olsen series lined up after that — and no other movie projects officially announced. That’s a filmmaker doubling down on Superman’s corner, not gearing up for Gotham.
The Quote Says More Than It Means To
So when Gillespie says Kara “just doesn’t care” about Batman, it’s a fun character note, but it’s also the in-fiction version of the DCU’s actual reality.
There’s no Dark Knight in this universe’s near-term plans for her to bump into, so of course the movie waves him off.
Supergirl flies into theaters June 26.
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