Big Hollywood names using their power for genuine good is an all too rare quality, but James Gunn—a noted animal lover—went above and beyond with a social media post combining news about Superman (i.e., something everyone wants to click on) with a warm-hearted message about adopting shelter dogs. Check out the post below, revealing the floofy-eared Krypto sitting next to David Corenswet’s Man of Steel—as well as Gunn’s own (cinematically named) Ozu, who has notably similar floofy ears.
Krypto arrives on screens in Superman this summer. Krypto was inspired by our dog Ozu, who we adopted shortly after I started writing Superman. Ozu, who came from a hoarding situation in a backyard with 60 other dogs & never knew human beings, was problematic to say the least. He… pic.twitter.com/zw8rVqv0n0
— James Gunn (@JamesGunn) October 15, 2024
“Krypto arrives on screens in Superman this summer,” Gunn wrote in the post. “Krypto was inspired by our dog Ozu, who we adopted shortly after I started writing Superman. Ozu, who came from a hoarding situation in a backyard with 60 other dogs & never knew human beings, was problematic to say the least. He immediately came in & destroyed our home, our shoes, our furniture—he even ate my laptop. It took a long time before he would even let us touch him. I remember thinking, ‘Gosh, how difficult would life be if Ozu had superpowers?’—and thus Krypto came into the script & changed the shape of the story as Ozu was changing my life. What better time to debut the not-so-good-good-boy Krypto than #AdoptAShelterDog month. Btw, Ozu today, is, fairly often, a very good boy. #Superman.”
Based on what we know about the plot of Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow, which will follow Superman on the DC Studios cinematic slate, Krypto will be sticking around after his big-screen introduction in Gunn’s upcoming release, with Milly Alcock’s Supergirl being driven to action after the movie’s villain (played by Matthew Schoenaerts, and thought to be comic book villain Krem of the Yellow Hills) harms the four-legged superhero. Krypto first made his debut in comics pages back in 1955, and has since appeared in projects like TV’s Smallville and Titans, and 2022’s DC’s League of Super-Pets, an animated film that saw him voiced by Dwayne Johnson.
Superman will mark his live-action big-screen debut—giving this summer’s canine superhero breakout, Deadpool & Wolverine‘s instant Marvel icon Dogpool, some serious competition in the cuteness realm.
Adopt a Shelter Dog month is, of course, recognized every October—though Gunn and Ozu would surely agree that any month is a good month to adopt a furry friend. Just be sure to put your laptop and any other valuable electronics out of reach! Superman releases July 11, 2025; Supergirl arrives in theaters June 26, 2026.
Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.
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