My readers probably won't like what I'm about to say, but I think it needs to be said.
The Man of Steel has become the newest front in the culture war thanks to director James Gunn making comparisons to Superman's origin story and the immigration issues happening today.
Gunn has been a controversial figure in the past, even getting fired from Disney at one point for old over-the-top edgy tweets he made long ago. He was welcomed back due to fan backlash against Disney, and he would go on to finish his stint there with Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol 3. From there, he would be hired by Warner Bros. to revamp the DC film franchise, which leads us here today. Super man is set to release this Friday, and instead of everyone being hyped about it, we're fighting over immigration.
As Bonchie covered, Gunn brought up that Superman is, in fact, an immigrant, and that Superman's story is "the story of America." Most conservatives heard the common warbling you'd get from leftists in Hollywood with quotes like "Yes, it’s about politics," which in turn caused conservatives to immediately go on the offensive.
Read: Director of the New 'Superman' Movie Decides to Burn It to the Ground Right Before Release
But the entirety of the quote is, as presented through Variety, reads like something you wouldn't typically hear from Hollywood leftists:
Gunn acknowledged that the movie’s themes may be interpreted differently across political groups, especially considering the current nationwide unrest around immigration. However, Gunn stands by the ideals embedded in “Superman,” and added that he doesn’t care if anyone takes offense.
“Yes, it plays differently, 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,” he said.
He continued, “Yes, it’s about politics. But on another level it’s about morality. Do you never kill no matter what — which is what Superman believes — or do you have some balance, as Lois believes? It’s really about their relationship and the way different opinions on basic moral beliefs can tear two people apart.”
The moment I saw that quote, I knew conservatives had probably jumped the Gunn.
The thing is, leftists aren't usually capable of this level of nuance or introspection, and honestly, throwing Gunn into the column of hard leftist was probably not something I would have advised if consulted. This is the same James Gunn who came to Christ Pratt's defense on multiple occasions against the left, especially when it came to prayer to God. Pratt is a proud and open worshiper of Jesus Christ, and takes many an opportunity to encourage people, including children to seek Him. Gunn has come to Pratt's defense twice over it when Pratt is attacked by leftists for his faith.
I say this because Gunn has demonstrated two things, and some conservatives are probably not going to be happy to hear either of them. One, he's not blinded by the left's forced political dichotomy. Gunn is capable of seeing both sides of the coin, and he'll flip the left off when they're going too far.
Secondly... James Gunn is actually a pretty good director. He understands story, character arcs, and emotional beats far better than many modern directors do. Guardian's of the Galaxy: Vol 3 was a huge flex in this regard. Keep in mind that Disney/Marvel had really poisoned the well at this point, and GoG3 was outstanding in spite of the complications.
Read: 'Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3' Review: The Last Marvel Movie
And this is important to keep in mind, because the likelihood that Gunn was very careful to make Superman a good movie is going to be high. This film is going to kick off his own DC film universe, and he needs to put his best foot forward if he's going to generate goodwill from an audience that only expects the worst from superhero movies.
If Americans go and see it, and it ends up being a solid film that isn't as woke as Fox News advertised, it's not going to look good on conservatives. We'll have effectively become the raging left who reacts to everything without too much thought. This is bad at a time when converting normies to the right-leaning way of thinking is integral.
It might not seem like that big of a deal, but remember that the left was leading in the culture war for so long because of little victories that piled up, and lost because it let those victories go to its head.
Gunn currently has the advantage in terms of this debate between him and conservatives, and if I'm being blunt, the winning move here from conservatives is not to play.
Or at the very least, wait till the movie comes out and see if Gunn actually did go as political as conservatives are claiming he did.
