The James Gunn-produced superhero horror Brightburn isn’t the first time the genre has been used to tell such a dark tale, but this may be the highest-profile case of it. The film is basically reimagining the entire Superman origin as if the Kryptonian grew up someone to be feared rather than the Man of Steel and protector of innocents.
Directed by David Yarovesky with a script by Mark and Brian Gunn, the film stars Gunn favorite Elizabeth Banks, David Denman, Gregory Allen Williams, Matt Jones, Meredith Hagner, and Steve Agee. Here’s the synopsis:
What if a child from another world crash-landed on Earth, but instead of becoming a hero to mankind, he proved to be something far more sinister?
With Brightburn, the visionary filmmaker of Guardians of the Galaxy and Slither presents a startling, subversive take on a radical new genre: superhero horror.
Not exactly “radical” or “new”, but I get they’re trying to sell this thing by appealing to Gunn’s audience, who have stuck with him following his exit from Marvel. While I’m still intrigued by this trailer and everything I’ve seen from Brightburn, I’m not sold that it will be anything more than another “evil child” movie.
Brightburn opens on May 24th.
