The Rock Thinks It's Time for a Black Superman on the Big Screen

05:48 - 07 August 2024

The Rock Thinks It's Time for a Black Superman

Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson is thrilled that blockbuster movies are becoming more representative of different people, and he believes that moviegoers are ready for more characters who aren't white. Speaking to Variety at the premiere of Fast & Furious spinoff Hobbs & Shaw, Johnson praised the growing diversity of superhero movies, referring to the success of Marvel's recent hits, and speculated that someday we might even see a black Superman flying into theaters.

"I think they're doing great. I think, obviously Marvel has done a tremendous job in building out," he said. "And also, you know, for me, DC, we're doing Black Adam with Warner Bros. and DC. We're very excited about that. So, I think, you know, as everything builds and grows, and you take the temperament of society and what's happening, and I think here in Hollywood... especially with franchises and characters and publicly traded companies who are sensitive to that sort of thing. So yeah, I think they're doing a great job. Maybe one day we will see a Black Superman... You're looking at him."

The Rock explains why a black superman isn't actually that far off in the future #HobbsAndShaw pic.twitter.com/ivjk8ErLla Variety (@Variety) July 14, 2019

A black Superman would be very cool indeed, and there's precedent in the comics for such a thing, with alternate universe versions of Superman including Earth 2's Val-Zod, and Calvin Ellis, who is based on Barack Obama. However, it's unlikely Johnson will be taking on any of these roles, as he is already locked in to play DC antihero Black Adam in his own solo movie, directed by Jaume Collet-Sera (The Shallows, Jungle Cruise).

"Black Superman" is also, not-so-coincidentally, a nickname given to Idris Elba's character in Hobbs & Shaw; he plays a genetically engineered super-soldier in the movie, which will be released on August 2.