David Corenswet Pushed Back on James Gunn Over a Pivotal Superman Scene

Here is a little peek behind the curtain: David Corenswet says there was one moment on Superman where he pushed back on James Gunn, and it made the final cut. It is a tiny character beat, but it tells you a lot about how these movies actually get made.

The scene everyone is talking about

Corenswet was chatting with Jonathan Bailey for Variety's Actors on Actors, swapping notes on their latest projects. Bailey brought up his favorite bit from near the end of Superman: the kiss with Lois Lane and the quick chuckle on Clark's face right after she says "I love you too." He called it his favorite moment of chemistry, which is a nice way of saying: that little smile does a lot of heavy lifting.

Gunn wanted solemn. Corenswet did not.

Corenswet said that while filming that final Lois scene, he kept laughing under his breath, and Gunn came over to flag it. The note was simple: it was not working and the beat needed to be solemn. Corenswet felt the opposite.

"No, no, no - the whole point is: I f---ing know that you love me."

He also joked that Gunn will probably remind him of this when they shoot the sequel. And to be clear, Corenswet gave Gunn plenty of credit, saying the director is right about 90% of the time. But on this one, he felt that little chuckle was the honest choice, and Gunn ultimately saw it the same way.

Why the tiny laugh matters

Bailey backed him up, saying that in a massive movie like Superman, those grounded, human beats are exactly what makes a leading man nail it. It is the kind of small, craft-level decision you rarely hear about unless an actor spells it out later, and it explains why that final Clark-and-Lois moment lands the way it does.

For context, this came from their Actors on Actors conversation. The exchange was first highlighted by Elton Fernandes at SuperHeroHype.