Superman: Legacy writer-director James Gunn has seemingly confirmed that the Man of Steel’s canine sidekick, Krypto, will appear in the upcoming DC Universe film.
While speaking with the Toronto Sun, Gunn — who is also the writer and director of Marvel Studios’ Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 — jokingly offered the role of the DCU’s Krypto to Marvel Cinematic Universe actor Chris Pratt. “I was hoping I could cast you as Krypto… the Superdog,” Gunn told Pratt. “But you’d have to be like Maria, and you’d have to do motion capture on set, and walk around on your hands and knees.” (Gunn refers to Maria Bakalova, who plays Cosmo the Spacedog in Guardians 3.) After a brief back and forth, Pratt said, “So, it sounds like there’s going to be a character called Krypto in Superman — breaking news.” Interviewer Mark Daniell chimed in with, “That’s a scoop for me,” to which Gunn responded, “It is a scoop, I guess, huh?” Pratt then joked, “Way to go. You’re fired. Back to Marvel.”
Interestingly, this isn’t the only time recently-appointed DC Studios co-head Gunn has alluded to the possibility of adapting Krypto for his and Peter Safran’s rebooted DCU. During a recent interview with Rolling Stone, Gunn was asked if his success with Rocket Raccoon (Bradley Cooper) in the Guardians of the Galaxy films made him more interested in bringing a live-action version of Superman’s dog to the big screen. “I think I would have an interest in a live-action Krypto whether or not I had anything to do with Rocket,” Gunn replied.
It has also long been known that Gunn and Safran’s DCU would include not only movies and television shows, but also video games. Back in February, Gunn offered a potential example for how this would work. “It’s more like we’ll have the Superman film come out, then maybe two years later, we have the Supergirl movie coming out. So, what’s the story in between there? Is there a Krypto game that we can play that comes in between them? Something that’s still set in the world with these characters, but is its own thing.”
Furthermore, while Gunn appears to have offered Pratt the role of Krypto in jest, such a thing actually isn’t outside the realm of possibility. After all, Gunn is already known to cast some of the same actors in both his Marvel and DC projects. More to the point, the filmmaker recently confirmed that at least one Guardians of the Galaxy cast member would feature in Superman: Legacy. (Gunn has also confirmed that Pratt will not be playing Superman in the film.)
Who Is Krypto the Superdog?
Created by Otto Binder and Curt Swan, Krypto first appeared in Adventure Comics #210, cover-dated March 1955. A Kryptonian dog, Krypto boasts many of the same abilities as Superman himself. The character went on to star in his very own animated series, Krypto the Superdog, which ran on Cartoon Network for two seasons from 2005 to 2006. Ed, Edd n Eddy star Samuel Vincent voiced the super-powered canine in the show. More recently, Krypto was voiced by Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson in the theatrically-released animated film DC League of Super-Pets.
As far as live-action is concerned, a dog inspired by Krypto appeared in an episode of Smallville in 2005. Krypto later appeared in the streaming series Titans as a companion to Superboy (Joshua Orpin). That said, if Krypto is indeed in Superman: Legacy, it will mark the character’s first live-action appearance on the big screen. Notably, the upcoming film is expected to follow a relatively young Superman as he learns to balance his Earthly upbringing with his Kryptonian heritage.
DC Studios’ Superman: Legacy opens in theaters on July 11, 2025.
Source: Toronto Sun, via Twitter
#James #Gunn #Teases #Krypto #Superman #Legacy
