At its heart, Supergirl is a movie about grief overshadowed by people’s real hatred of women. I knew this coming into Milly Alcock’s Supergirl. Because anytime that a woman is front and center, especially in the superhero space, people all of a sudden become serious critics with copious concerns about the quality of the acting, story arcs, and action sequences. And while some of those critics are fair, it’s misogyny that will hit this movie harder than any of the choices made by the studios or actors.
Before I dive into the copious problems I have with how people reacted to this movie, I want to talk about the actual substance of Supergirl.
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I cried watching Supergirl. And I cried because I was watching someone destroy themselves as a means of ignoring the pain and grief that they were feeling. That’s the trauma that we only saw a piece of in Superman when Kara appeared drunk at the end of the movie. And in Supergirl, it was front and center, with Alcock playing a Supergirl who is aloof, tired, and jaded. But she’s allowed to be that. Which, real talk, I connected more with Kara’s sense of loss and lack of direction, than Clark’s hunky dory way of looking at life because her pain felt real.
Supergirl also did a good job at using the quiet moments to show and not tell while creating a world that Superman itself only dipped its toes into. Because I know some people were saying that Supergirl was a little bit too Star Wars for them. But Clark is literally an alien. And so is Kara. And I think a lot of people forget that when they see all the creatures that exist in this world of superheroes and aliens. That’s just ignorance on the viewers part because the aliens were unique, had their own clear culture, and told a story every single time in Supergirl.
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This is not to say that Supergirl is perfect as a movie. The comic that it’s based on is beautiful and vibrant while also still being hard and full of edges. And I wish that the movie had leaned into how destroyed Kara was in a world that was still so vibrant. But it also does speak to a Hollywood who really fears color in their movies. But if it can work for Project Hail Mary in 2026, it can work for Supergirl and whatever other superhero movie we have coming next.
Keeping all of this in mind, I’m 100% certain that if it was Superman brooding along the galaxy, drinking, and expressing his pain in the way that Kara did, people would be less hard on this movie.
In fact, people would be swooning over Superman and talking about how he’s misunderstood as if the person watching can fix everything that’s wrong with him. Excuses would be made and people would be more gentle with the actor, the writing, and even the battles. Because men are given the benefit of the doubt and opportunities again and again if their superhero movie flops or has even a single problem. Women aren’t given the same benefit of the doubt.
When it comes to superhero films, women and men are not treated the same.
Look over at the Hulk movies. Those failed and we got another one like nothing. How many Captain America movies have we had, even though more than half of them are pretty bad? Even Aquaman. That first movie wasn’t good but it got a sequel and now Jason Momoa himself is doing another character in the DCU. Even Superman himself has had bad movies, and he’s never gotten the treatment that I’ve seen people give this Supergirl movie.
It really goes to show you how unserious people are when their comments about Supergirl are also focused on Alcock’s physical attributes. Her bust isn’t big enough, she’s not womanly enough, she’s not hot enough, or she’s not pretty enough. The comments keep pouring in and in. And you never see that kind of attitude for male superheroes. It’s just women who have unrealistic standards placed against them where if they don’t succeed in a singular movie, while looking super hot, they’re not worth the investment or the time.
There are even people that are now talking about how Sasha Calle’s Supergirl was the actual best Supergirl. Get out of my face with that because when she appeared, viewers were also trashing her for the short haircut because it was too “boyish” and people couldn’t find her hot enough. As if being hot or adhering to the male gaze is the standard. It’s not. That’s why I feel like Supergirl‘s biggest obstacle is misogyny itself. It’s not the acting, or the dialogue, or even how this was adapted. It’s people’s hate for women.
Supergirl is now in theaters.
