Supergirl Runtime Confirmed — And It’s a Good Sign

Craig Gillespie just answered one of the bigger questions hanging over Supergirl — and honestly, the answer is a relief. In a new interview with Collider, the I, Tonya director confirmed that his upcoming DCU film will clock in at approximately 1 hour and 50 minutes with credits. That’s lean by superhero movie standards, and for a film carrying this much weight as only the second entry in James Gunn’s newly formed DC Universe, it feels like exactly the right call.

“I feel really great about it. I’m very excited for everybody to see it,” Gillespie said, adding that the team is in the “final stages getting all the effects done” and just completed the final sound mix. “We’re basically at the finish line,” he said — which tracks, given Supergirl hits theaters on June 26.

The confirmed runtime puts Milly Alcock’s solo outing about 20 minutes shorter than David Corenswet’s Superman, which ran 2 hours and 10 minutes when it opened to strong box office numbers in July 2025. Whether Supergirl holds the title of shortest DCU film will depend on Clayface, which arrives October 23 — but for now, Gillespie’s film is keeping things tight.

There’s a real argument to be made that this is the smartest move the production could have made. Kara Zor-El is still a relatively new face to mainstream audiences — Alcock introduced the character in a cameo during Superman — and asking casual viewers to sit through a sprawling two-and-a-half-hour origin story for someone they’ve only glimpsed once would have been a gamble. Bloated runtimes have hurt comic book films before. A tighter movie that earns its ending is almost always the better bet.

Lobo, Krypto, and the Cast Gillespie Can’t Stop Raving About

Beyond the runtime, Gillespie had plenty to say about what’s actually in the film. Jason Momoa’s Lobo — one of the most anticipated elements of the project — came together during production in a way the director clearly didn’t take for granted. “When you see those two go at it in a scene together, it’s just electric,” Gillespie said of Alcock and Momoa’s dynamic on screen. He noted that Momoa joined the production about two months in, and confirmed that the character “stays very true to the comic book” — welcome news for fans of the DC antihero who have waited a long time to see him done right.

DC Studios co-CEO Peter Safran previously shed light on just how enthusiastic Momoa was about landing the role. “He was talking about it when he was doing Aquaman with me,” Safran recalled. “He was talking about, ‘I’d rather be doing Lobo.’ But when the day was announced that we got this job [leading DC], he texted both of us, all caps, ‘LOBO,’ 10 exclamation marks. That was it… And a few Xs.” Safran called him “such a volunteer and not a recruit” — and it sounds like that energy translated directly to the screen.

The film’s full cast also includes Matthias Schoenaerts, Eve Ridley, David Krumholtz, Emily Beecham, and — yes — Krypto the dog, who appears to be in some genuine peril based on what the trailers have shown. The screenplay was written by Ana Nogueira, adapting Tom King and Bilquis Evely’s acclaimed eight-issue comic run from 2021 to 2022.

No Post-Credits Hints — But the Speculation Is Already Loud

One thing Gillespie wouldn’t budge on: any hint about a post-credits scene. When pressed, he was blunt. “I can’t tease that, sorry.” The non-answer is, of course, its own kind of tease. There’s been significant speculation that the scene could set up Man of Tomorrow, the next chapter in the DCU’s ongoing Superman story, though nothing has been confirmed.

It’s also worth noting that Supergirl represents something of a new chapter for DC Studios beyond just the story itself. Unlike every previous DCU title — Creature Commandos, Peacemaker Season 2, and Superman — this is the first project that Gunn neither wrote nor directed. He’s overseen it, but Gillespie is genuinely at the helm with Nogueira’s script. How audiences respond to a DCU film without Gunn’s direct creative fingerprints all over it will be one of the more interesting storylines heading into the summer.

The trailers have drawn largely positive reactions, even if some viewers have noted stylistic similarities to Gunn’s Guardians of the Galaxy work — make of that what you will.

Supergirl opens in theaters worldwide on June 26.