"Supergirl" Is Getting Dragged By Critics. Here's What Went Wrong.

A year ago, James Gunn's Superman felt like a fresh start for DC. Critics were divided, but there was at least a growing sense that the studio was finally moving in the right direction. Regardless of how you felt about the film, it was a step above DC's previous flops, including Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, The Flash, and Blue Beetle. Expectations were even higher for Supergirl this time around, which starred Milly Alcock as Kara Zor-El, especially after her brief appearance in Superman. 

The movie isn’t out on the big screens yet, but it has already debuted to some of the harshest reviews of any major comic book release in recent years, and it's raising a bigger question: are audiences finally getting tired of the hero movies? Or was this one just that bad? 

Believe it or not, most of the criticism isn't actually aimed at Alcock. If anything, she's one of the few parts critics consistently praise. Variety called her "likable enough" even while arguing the character was written as too one-note to leave much of an impression. Other reviewers echoed that sentiment, saying she captures Kara's rebellious personality but simply isn't given enough material to work with.

Review After Review Says The Same Thing

Variety also called Supergirl "super-horrendous," saying it features "the worst script" the reviewer could remember seeing in a modern comic book movie. The Hollywood Reporter was only slightly kinder, describing it as "more stupor than super" and criticizing its sluggish story, generic action, and lack of emotional depth. The puns practically wrote themselves. 

One complaint appears over and over again across reviews: like a lot of superhero movies, the film feels like it's trying very hard to be edgy. Nearly every major review compares its tone to Guardians of the Galaxy. There's another soundtrack full of rock needle drops, another sarcastic antihero, another collection of bizarre alien creatures, another self-aware sense of humor. A lot of people are saying that this “quirky” formula is more so an imitation instead of inspiration, which leads me to my next question: Are people getting tired of millennial humor?

This idea of Marvel or DC-style quips and snarky dialogue is something fans have been talking about for a while now. The general audience appears to be getting tired of what has become the default blockbuster voice. Superhero movies have leaned heavily on the same style of “quirky” humor for over a decade. Emotional moments are interrupted with jokes, characters constantly undercut serious scenes with sarcasm. It was fun at first, but you can only be served the same meal so many times until you get sick of it.  

Even outside of Marvel, viewers have pointed to similar writing in other franchises, from Fallout to countless streaming originals. The jokes are bad and they’ve become predictable. That doesn't mean "millennial humor" is objectively the problem. Comedy is subjective, and plenty of people still enjoy that tone. Still, when critics repeatedly describe Supergirl as derivative, flat, and overly reliant on quips and needle drops, it's fair to wonder whether audiences are craving something that feels a little less familiar.

The Press Tour

Conservative commentator Lauren Chen went viral after posting a clip from one of Milly Alcock's interviews, where the actress praised Supergirl for not centering its story around romance or a man. Chen argued Hollywood increasingly treats romance as something outdated, asking whether studios now see love stories as a weakness rather than a strength. Some people immediately compared the conversation to Rachel Zegler's Snow White press tour, where Zegler faced months of backlash after saying the remake wasn't about a princess dreaming of true love or waiting to be rescued by a prince.

Unlike Disney's live-action Snow White, Supergirl wasn't rewritten to remove a central romance. The film is based largely on Tom King's 2021 comic series Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow, which was already a revenge story rather than a love story. Alcock wasn't announcing a dramatic reinvention of the character so much as describing the source material she was adapting.

Still, Lauren Chen's point, that Hollywood sometimes seems hesitant to embrace romance, is one we all can probably agree with. We all miss straightforward love stories in blockbuster films, and there's no need to wipe out romantic plots in remakes.

Overall, looking across the reviews, critics are slamming what they see as a weak screenplay, forgettable villains, messy pacing, uninspired action sequences, and a movie that struggles to distinguish itself from countless superhero films that came before it. After nearly twenty years of shared universes, multiverses, ironic one-liners, and increasingly similar visual styles, audiences may simply expect more than another competent superhero adventure.

Ironically, the one thing most reviewers agree on is that Milly Alcock deserves another shot. Many came away convinced she has everything needed to become a great Supergirl, provided she's given a stronger script next time.