The Death of Superman (film)

Superman has become a popular superhero in Metropolis and the world. After foiling an attempted abduction of the mayor by Intergang, he takes a piece of their technology to S.T.A.R. Labs for analysis. Following this, Superman is interviewed by Daily Planet reporter Lois Lane about his family heritage and the origins of how he came to Earth. Later that night, Lois meets Clark Kent's adoptive parents. Because of her little knowledge about Clark's personal life, Lois leaves upset and reconsiders their relationship.

At S.T.A.R. Labs, Dr. Silas Stone and Dr. John Irons examine the technology from the Intergang attack and confirm it to be of mixed Apokoliptian{{refn|group=N|A planet that invaded Earth in the 2014 film Justice League: War.}} and Earth origin, leading Superman to suspect that his archenemy Lex Luthor might be to blame, though Luthor denies his involvement. Meanwhile, in space, astronauts Hank Henshaw, his wife Terri, and their crew are suddenly impacted by a meteorite, killing Terri and the crew and leaving Hank's fate unknown. After the meteor crash-lands in the ocean, Luthor and Atlantis separately send crews to investigate, where they are attacked and killed by a large being in a containment suit.

The unknown being heads toward Metropolis, attacking everything and everyone it sees in a mindless rampage until the Justice League arrives to confront it. Despite the heroes' efforts, the being injures Hawkman, Green Lantern, and the Flash in a relatively short time, then takes down Aquaman, Cyborg, Martian Manhunter and Batman. Suspecting that the Justice League may not be able to prevail, Luthor plots to seize the glory of destroying the monster himself. At a restaurant owned by Superman fan Bibbo Bibbowski, Clark confesses to Lois that he is Superman and that he loves her before he leaves to aid his comrades in the Justice League.

The being then enters Metropolis, where it fights and nearly kills Wonder Woman before Superman intervenes, destroying its suit with his heat vision. The being emerges from its suit and is revealed to be a gray-skinned, white-haired monster with incredible strength, stamina, and invulnerability. The creature, dubbed "Doomsday" by Lois, engages in a fierce battle with Superman across Metropolis, their blows causing seismic disruptions demolishing various infrastructure. When they land on a bridge leading out of the city, Superman manages to tie down the monster, but he is forced to rush to rescue several civilians, giving it the chance to escape and throw him at the news helicopter containing Lois and Jimmy. Superman recovers and manages to catch the helicopter and land it safely back in the city, but he has to return to combat Doomsday because he is the only one who can.

Superman tries to force the rampaging beast out of Earth's atmosphere, but is unable to sustain his attack, allowing Doomsday to crash on top of Superman and cause a decimating crater back in Metropolis. Doomsday emerges from the debris preparing to attack Lois, but Luthor arrives in a new mechanized suit{{refn|group=N|His previous mechanized suit was destroyed by Superman in the 2016 film Justice League vs. Teen Titans.}} and bombards it with an energy weapon. Despite having the upper hand, Luthor lets down his guard as he gloats, allowing Doomsday to destroy the suit and nearly kill Luthor, only for him to be narrowly saved by Superman. Heavily injured, Superman engages Doomsday once more in the wreckage of the Hall of Justice, but he is quickly defeated. Doomsday pounds him into the ground until Lois arrives and despairingly distracts the beast, professing her love for Superman. As Doomsday prepares to kill her, Superman flies at full speed and strikes Doomsday in the face at full power, snapping Doomsday's neck and finally ending the monster's violent rampage. Superman is victorious, but is stabbed through the chest in the process and dies in Lois' arms, with the tragedy broadcast to the world by Jimmy.

In the aftermath, a state funeral is held for Superman, and Luthor speaks at the funeral on behalf of the Justice League. The Kent family welcomes Lois in their shared love for Superman. Luthor tries to gain possession of Doomsday's body and Superman's Kryptonian rocket ship before they are sent to S.T.A.R. Labs, but the latter flies out of a government facility on its own. Sometime later, Jimmy brings Lois back to Superman's memorial, where his coffin is empty. As Lois watches alongside a recording Jimmy, a figure resembling Superman flies away.

Meanwhile,{{refn|group=N|Setting up the 2019 film Reign of the Supermen.}} a clone of Superman survives numerous failed experiments from LexCorp, Dr. Irons forges his own Superman suit from steel, Superman's rocket buries itself in the North Pole, resulting in the creation of the Fortress of Solitude, and a Superman-like cyborg flies to Earth.

Mera, Alfred Pennyworth, Damian Wayne, Hawkman, Kate Kane and others appear in non-speaking cameos during Superman's funeral.

The Death of Superman is the 32nd installment in the DC Universe Animated Original Movies line, the 11th film in the DC Animated Movie Universe, and is based on the 1992—93 DC comic book storyline of the same name. The story had previously been adapted in the 2007 film Superman: Doomsday, but the film greatly altered and condensed the story to fit it within a 75-minute runtime, including the events associated with the return of Superman and that sequel-based comic. The Death of Superman was written to be much more faithful to the original story; according to DC's Tim Beedle, the film is "much less condensed" and includes many of the fan-favorite moments from the story that were left out of Doomsday.{{cite web|last1=Beedle|first1=Tim|title=The Death and Return of Superman Gets a Two-Part Animated Movie|url=https://www.dccomics.com/blog/2017/07/21/the-death-and-return-of-superman-gets-a-two-part-animated-movie|publisher=DC Comics|access-date=April 16, 2018|date=July 21, 2017|archive-date=April 17, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180417025118/https://www.dccomics.com/blog/2017/07/21/the-death-and-return-of-superman-gets-a-two-part-animated-movie|url-status=live}} The film is co-directed by Jake Castorena and produced by Warner Bros. Animation and DC Films.{{cite web|last1=Holbrook|first1=Damian|title='The Office', 'The Librarians' & More TV Faves Join 'The Death of Superman'|url=https://www.tvinsider.com/676471/the-death-of-superman-movie-jerry-oconnell-rebecca-romijn-rainn-wilson/|website=TV Insider|access-date=April 16, 2018|date=March 26, 2018|archive-date=July 4, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180704153034/https://www.tvinsider.com/676471/the-death-of-superman-movie-jerry-oconnell-rebecca-romijn-rainn-wilson/|url-status=live}} According to supervising producer James Tucker, a primary theme of the film is relationships and their impact on Superman's world.{{cite web|last1=Cecchini|first1=Mike|title=The Death of Superman Trailer Arrives|url=http://www.denofgeek.com/us/movies/superman/266530/the-death-of-superman-trailer-arrives|website=Den of Geek|access-date=April 16, 2018|date=March 29, 2018}}

The Death of Superman had its premiere at San Diego Comic-Con on July 20, 2018{{cite web|url=https://comiccon2018.sched.com/mobile/#session:81496dfe770b268e9628ddd4eb7936c6|title=Comic-Con 2018|website=comiccon2018.sched.com|access-date=August 16, 2018|archive-date=August 23, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230823203519/https://comiccon2018.sched.com/#session:81496dfe770b268e9628ddd4eb7936c6|url-status=live}} and was released in direct-to-video on August 7, distributed by Warner Bros. Home Entertainment on DVD, Blu-ray, and on digital distribution platforms on July 24.{{cite web|url=http://www.comingsoon.net/movies/trailers/946361-death-of-superman-trailer/amp|title=The Man of Steel Meets His Match in Death of Superman Trailer|website=comingsoon.net|date=May 16, 2018|access-date=May 16, 2018|archive-date=August 23, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230823203533/https://www.comingsoon.net/movies/trailers/946361-death-of-superman-trailer?amp|url-status=live}} The film was also released in a limited theatrical release alongside Reign of the Supermen on January 13, 2019. The film was re-released on home video, edited together with its sequel, on October 1, 2019, as The Death and Return of Superman.{{cite web|url=https://comicbook.com/dc/2019/07/31/the-death-and-return-of-superman-complete-film-collection-gets-a/|title=The Death and Return of Superman Complete Film Collection Gets a Release Date|website=comicbook.com|access-date=August 25, 2018|archive-date=August 23, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230823203602/https://comicbook.com/dc/news/the-death-and-return-of-superman-complete-film-collection-gets-a/|url-status=live}}

On Rotten Tomatoes {{RT data|score}} of the critics liked the film with an average rating of {{RT data|average}} based on {{RT data|count}} reviews.{{cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_death_of_superman|title=The Death of Superman|website=Rotten Tomatoes|publisher=Fandango|access-date={{RT data|access date}}|archive-date=August 5, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180805194734/https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_death_of_superman|url-status=live}} Kat Calamia of Newsarama called the film "One of DC's Best Animated Films in Past 5 Years", praising its epic scope and the emotional effect it invoked.{{cite news|url=https://www.newsarama.com/41044-advance-review-death-of-superman-animated-film-8-10.html|title=Advance Review: DEATH OF SUPERMAN 'One of DC's Best Animated Films in Past 5 Years'|last=Calamia|first=Kat|work=Newsarama|date=July 23, 2018|access-date=July 27, 2018|archive-date=August 23, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230823204119/https://www.gamesradar.com/tag/superman//|url-status=live}} Evan Narcisse, writing for i09, praised Superman's character arc, his relationship with Lois, and the manner in which DC Universe Movies adapted pre-Crisis storylines into the film's continuity to explore different permutations of those storylines, and effect a sense of threat.{{cite web|url=https://io9.gizmodo.com/the-death-of-superman-movie-changes-up-a-classic-dc-com-1827775139|title=The Death of Superman Movie Changes Up a Classic DC Comics Story Just Enough to Work|last=Narcisse|first=Evan|publisher=io9|date=July 22, 2018|access-date=July 27, 2018|archive-date=August 23, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230823204104/https://gizmodo.com/the-death-of-superman-movie-changes-up-a-classic-dc-com-1827775139|url-status=live}} Jim Vejvoda, writing for IGN, pointed out that the film was the third time in 11 years that a DC film killed off Superman. Vejvoda found a "tedious" re-use of an old premise, even while conceding that the film presented that plot point in way that was more faithful to the comics storyline than either 2007's Superman: Doomsday or 2016's Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.{{cite web|url=http://www.ign.com/articles/2018/07/22/the-death-of-superman-review|title=The Death of Superman Review|last=Vejvoda|first=Jim|publisher=IGN|date=July 22, 2018|access-date=July 27, 2018|archive-date=August 23, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230823204044/https://www.ign.com/articles/2018/07/22/the-death-of-superman-review|url-status=live}}

The Death of Superman peaked at #1 on the Top Ten Blu-ray Sellers for Week and the Top Five Home Media Sellers for Week, scoring a very strong Blu-ray market share of 78%.{{cite web |url=https://www.blu-ray.com/news/?id=23791 |title=Blu-ray Sales, August 5–11: Death of Superman Triumphs on Home Media |publisher=Blu-ray.com |access-date=August 17, 2018 |archive-date=August 23, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230823204104/https://www.blu-ray.com/news/?id=23791 |url-status=live}} The film earned $1,081,703 from domestic DVD sales and $6,529,102 from domestic Blu-ray sales, bringing its total domestic home video earnings to $6,527,374.{{cite web |url=https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Death-of-Superman-The-(2018)#tab=summary |title=The Death of Superman (2018) The Numbers Listing |publisher=The Numbers |access-date=January 22, 2019 |archive-date=December 8, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171208231536/https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Teen-Titans-The-Judas-Contract#tab=summary |url-status=live}}

The Death of Superman was nominated for the Golden Reel Award for Outstanding Achievement in Sound Editing – Sound Effects, Foley, Music, Dialogue and ADR for Non-Theatrical Animated Long Form Broadcast Media award.{{cite web |last=Giardina |first=Carolyn |title='Bohemian Rhapsody' Wins Pair of Trophies at Sound Editors' Golden Reel Awards |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/lists/mpse-golden-reel-award-nominations-2019-complete-list-winners-1181255/feature-animation-7/ |website=The Hollywood Reporter |access-date=June 29, 2022 |date=February 17, 2019 |archive-date=June 29, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220629205156/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/lists/mpse-golden-reel-award-nominations-2019-complete-list-winners-1181255/feature-animation-7/ |url-status=live}}

In August 2018, DC released a 12-part digital comic series titled The Death of Superman: Part 1,{{cite web|url=http://www.dccomics.com/blog/2018/08/01/dc-announces-a-comic-tie-in-series-for-death-of-superman-animated-movie-available|title=DC ANNOUNCES A COMIC TIE-IN SERIES FOR DEATH OF SUPERMAN ANIMATED MOVIE, AVAILABLE TODAY|date=August 1, 2018|access-date=August 16, 2018|archive-date=August 8, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180808074630/https://www.dccomics.com/blog/2018/08/01/dc-announces-a-comic-tie-in-series-for-death-of-superman-animated-movie-available|url-status=live}} by veteran Superman writer Louise Simonson. In the US, retailer Best Buy offered an exclusive "Deluxe Edition" Blu-Ray containing a hardcover graphic novel titled "The Death of Superman: The Wake".{{Cite web|url=http://www.bestbuy.com/site/the-death-of-superman-blu-ray-dvd-graphic-novel-only--best-buy-2018/6260232.p?skuId=6260232|title=The Death of Superman [Blu-ray/DVD] [Graphic Novel] [Only @ Best Buy] [2018]|website=Best Buy|access-date=November 1, 2022|archive-date=November 1, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221101232044/https://www.bestbuy.com/site/the-death-of-superman-blu-ray-dvd-graphic-novel-only--best-buy-2018/6260232.p?skuId=6260232|url-status=live}} The Best Buy graphic novel includes the last four chapters of Simonson's digital comic series.{{citation needed|date=November 2021}}

• The Death of Superman: The Wake (ISBN 1-77950-113-7/978-1-77950-113-4, 2019-11-20{{Cite web |url=http://www.dc.com/graphic-novels/the-death-of-superman-the-wake |title=THE DEATH OF SUPERMAN: THE WAKE |access-date=November 1, 2022 |archive-date=November 1, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221101232048/https://www.dc.com/graphic-novels/the-death-of-superman-the-wake |url-status=live}}): includes The Death of Superman: Part 1 #1-12.

{{Main|Reign of the Supermen (film)}}

A sequel titled Reign of the Supermen, was released on DVD and Blu-Ray on January 15, 2019. It is based on the second part of the storyline. The cast includes Cameron Monaghan as Kon-El / Conner Kent / Superboy and Charles Halford as Eradicator.{{cite web|last1=Bonomolo|first1=Cameron|title='Death Of Superman' Animated Movie First Look Released|url=http://comicbook.com/dc/2018/02/25/death-of-superman-DC-animated-movie-first-look/|website=ComicBook.com|access-date=April 16, 2018|date=February 24, 2018|archive-date=April 16, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180416201236/http://comicbook.com/dc/2018/02/25/death-of-superman-DC-animated-movie-first-look/|url-status=live}}{{cite web|last1=Matadeen|first1=Renaldo|title=Death of Superman Animated Film Debuts First Image|url=https://www.cbr.com/first-look-death-superman-animated-movie/|website=Comic Book Resources|access-date=April 16, 2018|date=February 25, 2018|archive-date=April 16, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180416200747/https://www.cbr.com/first-look-death-superman-animated-movie/|url-status=live}}

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{{Wikiquote}}

• {{Official website|https://www.warnerbros.com/death-superman}} (Warner Bros.)
• {{Official website|https://www.dccomics.com/movies/the-death-of-superman}} (DC Comics)
• {{IMDb title|7167658|The Death of Superman}}

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{{DC Animated Movie Universe}}

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