Milly Alcock Confirmed for Man of Tomorrow After Supergirl

Milly Alcock isn’t going anywhere. Just weeks before Supergirl lands in theaters, DC Studios co-CEO Peter Safran has confirmed that the 26-year-old Australian actress will appear in Superman: Man of Tomorrow — James Gunn’s sequel to last year’s Superman — making it her third appearance in the DCU overall.

“She’s a major part of what we’re doing,” Safran told Variety in a cover story interview with Alcock. She’s already set to head to Atlanta to begin filming. The movie reunites Gunn with his Superman ensemble — David Corenswet and Nicholas Hoult co-leading as Clark Kent and Lex Luthor, with Rachel Brosnahan, Isabela Merced, Frank Grillo, and Aaron Pierre (as John Stewart/Green Lantern) all reprising their roles. Lars Eidinger has been cast as Brainiac, the film’s main villain, while Adria Arjona is rumored to be playing Maxima.

So Alcock’s Kara Zor-El is being woven into the very fabric of this new DC universe — not just a one-off cameo, not a franchise obligation, but a genuine throughline. That’s a remarkable position for someone who, not long ago, was seriously considering walking away from the whole thing.

Why Alcock Almost Said No to Supergirl

In the same Variety profile, Alcock got refreshingly honest about how close she came to turning down Supergirl entirely. It was her first time as No. 1 on a call sheet — the lead of a major studio blockbuster — and the weight of that nearly broke her before she even suited up.

“I was like, ‘I have to do all that?! No!’” she said. “Because she’s in, like, every scene. My personal experience of being Milly mirrored Kara’s experience, which was ‘Hide. Run away. Pretend it’s not happening.’ And then you have to face it to heal a part of yourself that you’ve been neglecting.”

But she talked herself into it in the most Milly Alcock way possible.

“I looked at myself in the mirror, and I was like, ‘Who am I to turn down this opportunity?’ I knew that it was what I needed to do, because it scared me. And I thought, ‘Well, I get one big, bad, beautiful life. Why not f**king go for it? Just f**king go for it! What are you, scared? Get over yourself.’”

She also found a deeper connection to the character than she expected. Kara, as written in Tom King’s 2022 comic series Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow — the source material for the film — is someone at war with herself, navigating grief and rage across the galaxy. Alcock says that mirrored something real in her own life.

“What Kara was going through that I was going through is she’s someone who has been at war with themselves. And I think that’s a very universal feeling — especially for women,” Alcock said. “So it’s been a really surprising journey. I never thought taking on a superhero film would do that. But it has! And what a beautiful thing.”

On Trolls, Brie Larson, and “Proving My Point”

Alcock has already gotten a taste of what comes with playing an iconic female superhero in 2026. In a recent Vanity Fair piece, she commented that her time on House of the Dragon made her aware that people have a “weird ownership of women’s bodies” — and the internet responded exactly the way you’d expect.

The backlash drew comparisons to what Brie Larson experienced after Captain Marvel, when her comments about film criticism drew years of coordinated online harassment. Alcock, for her part, seemed more amused than rattled.

“I didn’t even say ‘men’ — I said ‘people!’” she told Variety. “And they got so angry. I was like, ‘You’re proving my point. You’re proving my point!’”

She’s clear-eyed about where the noise comes from. “I guess women know that this is just how it’s always been, unfortunately — it’s from a lot of people whose profiles have no photo, who are burner accounts. Or someone’s name and then ‘Dad of four, Christian,’ which is hilarious to me. But I mean, whose opinion do you really care about? If you’re pissing the right kind of people off, you’re doing OK.”

She also acknowledged the psychological toll of it, even when you know better. “Sometimes people reinforce beliefs that you have about yourself, and you’re like, ‘Now someone’s said it! It’s true!’ And you’ve got to remind yourself that it’s not. It’s something I’m trying to get better at. I’m Gen Z! Yeah, I grew up online, so I’m actively trying not to engage — although how could you not?”

Oh, and she hasn’t watched Wonder Woman, Captain Marvel, or Black Widow in preparation for the role. “Which is probably not great,” she admits. “I should just lie.”

What to Expect From Supergirl

Directed by Craig Gillespie (I, Tonya) from a screenplay by Ana Nogueira, Supergirl follows a 21-year-old Kara Zor-El who, after an adversary strikes close to home, joins forces with a young girl named Ruthye (Eve Ridley) on an interstellar journey of vengeance. Matthias Schoenaerts plays the villain Krem of the Yellow Hills, while Jason Momoa shows up as Lobo — a role that takes the former Aquaman star in a very different direction.

Alcock also teased that fans expecting wall-to-wall cape time might be surprised. “I don’t wear it as much as people will think. It’s a journey,” she said, suggesting the suit takes a backseat to the more grounded, personal story the film is telling.

Fandango debuted a new exclusive image of Alcock in full Supergirl costume as part of their Summer Movie Preview, and it’s a striking look at the character ahead of the film’s release.

Supergirl opens in theaters and IMAX on June 26, 2026 — the first of three DCU projects hitting in the next calendar year, ahead of HBO’s Lanterns and the R-rated horror film Clayface. And after that? Alcock will be back, flying into whatever James Gunn has planned next.