Superman is due to fly into theaters in less than two weeks, and now one of the film’s leading stars has unearthed a major connection between him and a former Clark Kent actor. Juilliard graduate David Corenswet is the latest to take on the role of the Man of Steel in James Gunn’s Superman, following in a long line of stars such as Henry Cavill, Tom Welling, Dean Caine, Brandon Routh, Tyler Hoechlin, and Christopher Reeve, another fellow Juilliard graduate. Collider’s Perri Nemiroff caught up with Corenswet and new Lois Lane actor Rachel Brosnan ahead of Superman, and she asked what it is about Juilliard’s training that so effectively prepares stars like him and Reeve to excel at playing Superman:
“I was astonished. I did not expect it at the screen test to feel, multiple times, that my training at Juilliard had perfectly prepared me for the screen test specifically, and then the role in general. I think there’s a lot at acting school that’s really cool and fun, but you sort of think once you’re out in the world, you’re not going to use a lot. It’s sort of like high school trigonometry. You’re like, ‘Am I really going to use this?’ But then… When do you use trigonometry in real life? I don’t know. You do! I can’t think of it off the top of my head, but pay attention in school, kids. Love trigonometry.”
Brosnahan also joked that the two would be taking shots every time someone asked them a question about Juilliard or Star Wars — pour them up, Clark and Lois. Corenswet then went into further detail about the audition process for James Gunn. Not only did he speak about how the Superman director made the audition feel more like an “old-fashioned screen test,” but also how challenging the stunt evaluation is. Luckily, his time at Juilliard more than prepared him for both:
“Anyway, sorry. First of all, the screen test for Superman was this sort of old-fashioned screen test where we actually did the scene and shot the scene as though it were a scene, whereas most screen tests are more like auditions where there’s one camera and you do it once or twice, maybe get a note, and it all feels over too quick and much more like an audition. James [Gunn] immediately made working on the screen test scene feel like we were going to work, not like we were auditioning. The work felt much more like rehearsing a play than it did like shooting a movie. So, I immediately thought, ‘Well, that’s what I trained for, rehearsing a play.’ I did a lot of that in school.
He also further went into detail about the more physically demanding part of the audition: “Then, when we got up on wires for the stunt evaluation, it’s something I had never done before, but the challenge there was all about having isometric control over your body and your limbs, while keeping a relaxed and hopefully somewhat charming facial expression, although not always. It’s sometimes not necessary or counterproductive. So, again, I thought back to Moni Yakim’s movement classes at Juilliard, where you’d be lying on the floor and he would say, ‘And the right leg up and down and up and down!'”
He wrapped up by recalling feeling like he was “about to die” while hanging from wires and doing stunt work, and recalling, “What does this have to do with acting?” It’s here he remembered that keeping a calm face and level head while flying around on wires has “everything to do with acting.” He even admits wondering, “Did Christopher Reeve think back to training with Moni?” and shares his amazement at just how “directly translatable” everything he learned was to the screen.
Christopher Reeve Has a Special Connection to James Gunn’s ‘Superman’
James Gunn recruited many of his regulars and also some newcomers to star in Superman, but there’s one name that stands out on the call sheet. Christopher Reeve’s son, Will Reeve, has been tapped to play a TV reporter in Superman. This gives the film a touching connection to a different era of Superman stories, while also allowing Gunn to pay homage to one of the original superhero titans who helped move the industry forward. It’s unclear if Reeve’s reporter will show up in another DCU project, but his involvement in Superman is an extraordinary show of good faith from Gunn.
Superman flies into theaters on July 11. Stay tuned to Collider for more updates and coverage of the film, and find tickets below for a showtime near you.
