“Supergirl” may have already stumbled at the box office, but a new The Hollywood Reporter postmortem suggests DC Studios saw the trouble coming months before release. According to THR, the film eventually went through a rare studio-director cut “bakeoff,” with the studio’s version narrowly beating Craig Gillespie’s cut in testing.
The report says James Gunn and Peter Safran knew as early as fall 2025 that the film was not working after production wrapped in May. Test scores reportedly never escaped the 60s on a 100-point scale, though one insider said the film reached 70 at one point.
After a December 2025 test screening came back as merely OK, DC reportedly became more involved in post-production. Gunn brought in Jeremy Slater (“Moon Knight”) to help during post, and THR reveals he was the mystery writer behind DC’s unmade “The Authority” feature. The extent of his involvement on “Supergirl” is unclear, but original screenwriter Ana Nogueira reportedly remained involved, and Slater appears to have helped write material for nine days of additional photography.
The biggest revelation came in March, when DC tested two versions of the movie: Gillespie’s cut and the studio’s cut. Gillespie’s version reportedly ran 11 minutes longer and featured more of Matthias Schoenaerts’ villain Krem. The studio cut ultimately scored two points higher and was chosen for release, though Gillespie’s version reportedly tested better in areas such as songs, pacing, and the villain.
THR also says the climactic fight was reworked, with music becoming one of the major points of contention in post-production. A February screening reportedly used a cover of Cyndi Lauper’s “Girls Just Want To Have Fun” during the final set piece before the finished film landed on a cover of Jimmy Eat World’s “The Middle,” a needle drop that has since been widely mocked online as one of the worst of all time. Gillespie later said the team went through around 45 songs for the scene and called it “probably the biggest discussion” in post-production.
The report lands after a disappointing opening for “Supergirl,” which debuted with $38 million domestically and $68 million worldwide against a reported $170 million production budget. Safran has since said the film did not meet box office expectations, while stressing that it remains only one part of DC Studios’ broader long-term plan.
Still, the THR report makes clear that “Supergirl” was not a surprise underperformer. DC knew the film had problems, tested competing cuts, and ultimately picked its own version over Gillespie’s by a very slim margin.
Rodrigo Perez is the founder and editor-in-chief of The Playlist, which he launched in 2008. He has worked in entertainment journalism since 2000, including at MTV, and has written for SPIN, IndieWire, Pitchfork, Complex, Magnet, and various music, film, and entertainment publications over the past two decades.
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