Supergirl Release Date and Everything You Need to Know

Supergirl, DC Studios’ second theatrical release under the new DC Universe (DCU) banner, opened in theaters and IMAX worldwide on June 26, 2026. The film arrived as the follow-up to Superman (2025) and Peacemaker Season 2, continuing James Gunn and Peter Safran’s plan to build out a shared DC continuity from the ground up. Marketing leaned into a summer-blockbuster rollout, with the tagline “This summer, find your place in the universe” featured prominently across trailers.

The Path to the Screen

A Supergirl film had actually been kicking around Hollywood for years before this version came together. The character was first reintroduced to the current DC film continuity back in 2018 in development conversations, and she made her live-action debut (played by Sasha Calle) in 2023’s The Flash under the old DC Extended Universe. When Gunn and Safran took over as co-CEOs of DC Studios in October 2022, they scrapped those earlier plans and rebuilt the character from scratch as part of their new DCU slate.

This time around, the role went to Milly Alcock, best known for playing young Rhaenyra Targaryen in House of the Dragon. Alcock actually got a preview run as Kara Zor-El in a small cameo in 2025’s Superman, appearing hungover and searching for her dog Krypto — a scene that doubled as a tone-setter for her standalone film.

Rather than adapting the more familiar, sunnier version of Supergirl from the CW television series or the 1984 film starring Helen Slater, DC Studios chose to build the 2026 movie around Tom King, Bilquis Evely, and Mat Lopes’ 2021 comic Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow. That story is set almost entirely in space and follows a more jaded, world-weary Kara who reluctantly agrees to help a young alien named Ruthye track down the man who killed her father.

Cast and Crew

Milly Alcock as Kara Zor-El / Supergirl
Jason Momoa as Lobo, in a spinoff-adjacent role
Matthias Schoenaerts, Eve Ridley, David Krumholtz, and Emily Beecham in supporting roles
David Corenswet reprising Superman
Directed by Craig Gillespie (I, Tonya, Cruella)
Written by Ana Nogueira
Produced by Peter Safran and James Gunn

Filming took place partly in Iceland, whose stark landscapes were used to stand in for the film’s various alien worlds.

Marketing Timeline

DC Studios built anticipation for Supergirl gradually over roughly six months:

December 2025 — The first teaser trailer and poster dropped, drawing comparisons from several outlets to Guardians of the Galaxy for its irreverent, space-opera tone.
March 2026 — A full trailer followed, reinforcing the “find your place in the universe” summer campaign.
June 2026 — In the lead-up to release, cast interviews revealed small details meant to connect the film to DC’s broader continuity — including that Alcock’s cape was made using material left over from Christopher Reeve’s original Superman costume.

Reception and Box Office

Reviews for Supergirl were mixed-to-positive. The Guardian’s Peter Bradshaw called it a lively and engaging superhero film, though he noted it wasn’t without flaws. Rolling Stone’s David Fear praised it for taking a niche comic storyline and turning it into something broadly entertaining without losing its edge. Empire’s review singled out Alcock’s performance as a highlight, even while suggesting the film didn’t fully commit to its darker premise.

Commercially, the film struggled. It opened domestically with roughly $38 million, a soft number for a major DCU tentpole, and by early July had grossed only around $100 million worldwide against a reported production budget of $170 million. A steep 73% drop in its second weekend made clear the film wasn’t going to have the kind of theatrical staying power DC Studios had hoped for.

Digital and Home Release

Because of that box-office performance, DC Studios reportedly moved quickly to get Supergirl into homes. Multiple entertainment outlets, citing the fan account DC Film News, reported that the studio is targeting July 28, 2026 for a digital/VOD release — just about a month after the theatrical debut. That would make it one of the faster theatrical-to-digital turnarounds for a major DCU release, reflecting the film’s underwhelming box-office run rather than a planned day-and-date strategy. As of this writing, DC Studios had not made an official announcement confirming the date, so it should still be treated as a reported target rather than a locked-in release.

What’s Next for Supergirl in the DCU

Despite the box-office stumble, James Gunn indicated in May 2026 that Alcock’s Supergirl will remain a significant part of the DCU going forward. She’s expected to return in Man of Tomorrow, the Superman sequel slated for 2027, suggesting DC Studios is still committed to the character even if this first solo outing didn’t perform as hoped.

Quick Reference

Milestone	Date
First teaser trailer	December 2025
Theatrical release	June 26, 2026
Reported digital/VOD release	July 28, 2026
Next appearance (Man of Tomorrow)	2027