Superman's best scene

Created 18 Jul 2025 4:00 PM

I just went to watch the new Superman and, hey, it's pretty good, did not regret going. Definitely enjoyed it more than any of the Snyderverse movies, I'll say that much.

I want to talk about my favourite scene in the film, and I cannot do that with spoiling some of it. I will say that the scene in question is maybe a quarter of the way in, and it's most about interpersonal stuff rather than the nitty-gritty of the film's main plot, so; if you're happy to accept that, read on, otherwise, thanks for coming this far.

Onwards!

In this continuity, Clark and Lois have been dating for a few months, and Lois knows Clark's secret identity. In the scene, Clark agrees to have an interview with Lois as Superman... a promise he immediately regrets when she asks to have it right then. What follows is a very clever, well written, perfectly paced scene that is so multi-dimensional that I wanted to focus on all the layers of this very complex discussion (and I mean complex here in regards to the circumstances around it, not the topics being discussed). I am working from memory here, I obviously don't have a recording of the scene, so this is going to be broad-strokes.

So, why is this discussion so complicated? Let us count the ways...

1. Clark and Lois are in a personal relationship.
2. Clark and Lois are in a relatively new personal relationship.
3. Clark and Lois are in a secret personal relationship.
4. Clark and Lois have a professional relationship, but Superman and Lois do not.
5. Clark and Superman are secretly the same person.
6. Clark is being asked genuinely difficult questions about his actions as Superman.
7. Lois and Clark do not have entirely compatible stances on Clark's actions.
8. Lois's personal views and professional responsibilities are not completely compatible.

The beauty of the scene is that these are just abstract elements that a viewer might think about, they're all things the film thinks about. Lois and Clark have clearly not yet set strong boundaries around all these things, or at least haven't consistently built them into how they act in the relationship.

Throughout the scene, both characters are repeatedly arguing over what are and aren't valid questions. They stop and start the recorder, fighting over it at least once. They argue about what is and isn't on- and off-record. It's not clear how much of the doubt Lois' questions point to are just a reporter interrogating a subject for a meaty story, and how much is personal doubt she has about the things Superman has done.

Every single one of the things on that list above is important to this scene at some point, and as far as I remember, none are directly stated out loud. The scene just trusts you as the audience to understand how many directions both characters are being pulled in at once... and you do.

Looks, it's cool to see Superman fight a monster or hurl a meteor out of orbit or do cool super-stuff, but scenes like this are what really build a character, a scene, a film. I really hope I get to watch someone do a deep-dive on it once this hits homes.