Hollywood wants you to believe Ana Nogueira just appeared out of nowhere with the keys to Supergirl. That is not what happened. She worked as an actor. She wrote plays that got attention. Warner Bros. hired her under a previous regime to develop a different version of Supergirl tied to Sasha Calle. That version collapsed along with the old DCEU.
Then the reset came. Her deal expired. She stepped away to have a child. James Gunn and Peter Safran took over and wiped the slate clean. Nogueira had to compete again. She won. Backed by Chantal Nong Vo and supported by DC leadership, she landed Supergirl and later picked up assignments for Teen Titans and Wonder Woman.
But here is the truth buried under the headlines. She is not locked into anything. She is working project to project. Even she admits those films are in “very different stages” and still early. That is industry code. It means nothing is guaranteed.
And now Supergirl has landed with a thud. A B- CinemaScore. Rotten critic territory. A $38 million domestic opening and $68 million worldwide against a massive budget. Some of the criticism goes too far, but the overall response is not what DC needed.
Nogueira and director Craig Gillespie will take the hit. That is how this works. James Gunn hired them, approved the script, and produced the film. He is also the studio head. He will be insulated. Freelancers rarely are. So yes, Nogueira is still writing Wonder Woman and Teen Titans. Today. But neither project is greenlit. If Supergirl continues to underperform, DC can quietly move on without a public break. That is not cruelty. That is standard operating procedure.
On a side note, I have never seen so much hilariously cringey cope:
Let’s make this clear. Ana Nogueira is a brilliant writer and that Supergirl ending is empowering, shocking and cathartic. It was the best choice to cement the film’s message.
The fact that it’s different from the comic is a GOOD thing! Adaptations should bring a new lens. pic.twitter.com/J3I9lfj6Y1
— DCU Brief (@DCUBrief) June 28, 2026
But the problems with Supergirl are not just about one writer. Take the now infamous use of The Middle by Jimmy Eat World. A slow cover plays while Supergirl fights through murky CGI chaos that another character can barely see. The song is about self-acceptance. What does that have to do with this climactic moment? Nada. Reports say dozens of songs were tested before landing on that choice. Gillespie credited Gunn for the decision. Read that carefully. When responsibility gets passed upward like that, what is really being said?
This is what happens when films chase emotional beats instead of building them. The industry keeps swapping clarity for tone, structure for mood. It is part of a larger trend. Call it the softening of storytelling. Call it the feminization of Hollywood. Either way, audiences notice when a film feels ungrounded.
To be fair, Warner Bros. did this film no favors. They dropped Supergirl one week after Toy Story 5 and just before Minions hit theaters for the Fourth of July. That release window was always going to be brutal. But scheduling alone does not explain the gap between this and Superman, which opened to $125 million. Supergirl could have been something great, and it wasn’t.
The uncomfortable truth is simpler. Supporting characters struggle to carry entire franchises. Supergirl is well known, but recognition is not the same as urgency. Audiences did not feel the need to show up, and the terrible script isn’t going to give this flop any momentum.
Why is DC building outward before locking in its foundation? This is not Iron Man leading into The Incredible Hulk. Marvel built momentum step by step. DC is trying to hold attention while juggling second-tier characters and an unfinished core. And all of this is happening as corporate pressure builds. With a potential Paramount acquisition looming, Gunn and Safran need DC Studios to look stable and profitable. A weak second release does not help that case.
Peter Safran says the goal is to rebuild trust with audiences. That sounds right. But trust is not built through interviews. It is built through consistent decisions. And DC has spent years doing the opposite. The studio announced a reboot while films like Shazam! Fury of the Gods, The Flash, Blue Beetle, and Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom were still rolling out. Audiences were told those stories did not matter before they even hit theaters. Then the studio expected people to buy tickets anyway.
You cannot keep telling fans thate the product is irrelevant and then act surprised when they stop showing up. The confusion has not gone away. The Suicide Squad and Peacemaker carry over elements from the past. A new Batman exists outside the main timeline while another Batman is planned inside it. Superman gave DC a strong start. Supergirl just showed how fragile that progress is.
If Clayface also stumbles, how long will audiences keep waiting for the characters they actually want? Do audiences want more body horror and bathroom humor with weird needle drops? Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman are not optional. They are the foundation of this universe. Instead, DC keeps asking for trust without offering clarity. What’s the plan? Where’s the anchor? A Superman who gets saved by others, kicked in the balls, and pissed on by his cousin’s dog? The message feels like scattered mockery, and audiences have already shown what happens when that kind confusion starts to get baked in.
Can Gunn and Safran fix it before the window closes, or are we watching another reset unfold in real time?
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English (US) · 