Supergirl’s Best Krypto Twist Is Actually Improving the DC Comics Masterpiece It’s Based On

The DC Universe’s Supergirl movie is adapting a fantastic story from DC Comics, and looks to be making it even better. After the debut of Milly Alcock’s Supergirl in 2025’s Superman, Kara Zor-El will be flying off on her own solo adventure this summer. It promises to be a different movie, with a different hero, from James Gunn’s blockbuster, and will mark the pivotal next step as the new DCU is fleshed out on the big screen.

The new trailer for Supergirl gives a much better look at what to expect, and a clearer idea of its plot. That comes from the comic book run Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow, which was written by Tom King with art from Bilquis Evely. In broad terms, that finds Kara at a low ebb, and drawn into an intergalactic revenge mission with a girl named Ruthye Marye Knoll (played by Eve Ridley in the movie), who wants vengeance on the villainous Krem of the Yellow Hills (Matthias Schoenaerts). At the center of this for Kara, though, is Krypto, the superdog who debuted in Superman.

Supergirl Is Giving Krypto A Bigger (& Better) Role Than The Woman Of Tomorrow Comics

As in the comics, the movie is also using Krypto as the launchpad for the narrative. In both, the dog is poisoned with arrows fired by Krem, with Supergirl joining Ruthye on her quest so that she can secure an antidote and save his life. Ominously, the trailer notes that Krypto only has three days to live. That leads them on to a journey through several planets, and run-ins with various aliens, monsters, and, in a change from the comics, Jason Momoa’s Lobo, a badass space biker and bounty hunter.

In the comics, that’s pretty much where Krypto’s involvement finishes. Saving the dog is ostensibly Kara’s driving force on the page, and is referenced a few times, but he himself doesn’t reappear, either in the present or via flashbacks, until the very end. The movie is changing this by putting a much greater focus on the bond between Supergirl and Krypto, in ways that look both heartwarming and potentially heartbreaking, with far more scenes of them together before he’s poisoned. He is her one true companion, a representation of home.

We’re going to be seeing flashbacks to Krypto as an adorable puppy on Krypton, meaning we’ll likely be seeing just how he came to be in Kara’s life, and the important role he’s played since. It will make Krypto being by her side intrinsically linked with her ongoing grief and pain over the destruction of their homeworld, which is another core part of her story here. By fleshing out just how much she cares about him, and, in turn, making audiences care about him even more, it increases the stakes of the story and gives it an even stronger emotional core.

This is a sensible way of building upon Superman. Krypto was one of the best parts of that movie, and some would argue the very best (it’s me, I’m “some”). There’s already an attachment there, and now it’ll be deepened and linked to Supergirl herself, which will allow audiences to empathize with her even more quickly, while giving us the world’s cutest superpup. Gunn may not be directing this one (it’s helmed by Craig Gillespie and written by Ana Nogueira), but it does feel straight out of the Guardians of the Galaxy playbook, and that’s not a bad thing.

Does Krypto Die In Supergirl? Comic Book SPOILERS Ahead

Of course, while we know we’ll see plenty of Krypto in flashbacks, there is still the matter of whether the pooch will survive the poison. Based on the trailer, things don’t look great, but surely they wouldn’t actually kill him off… would they? Based on the Woman of Tomorrow comics, we do have an answer.

Thankfully, [Gonzo-as-Charles-Dickens-voice] Krypto, who does NOT die, is completely healed by the end of the story. Better than fine, in fact, as it is revealed he was never in serious danger, and it was something of a ploy by Kara in order to go with Ruthye and teach her some valuable life lessons. If Gunn et al were to change this and kill Krypto then I, for one, would never forgive them, but there’s nothing to suggest they’d actually do that. Krypto is already one of the DCU’s best characters and, with the Super Family set to be a big part of things going forward, he should remain as such for many years to come.

Supergirl will be released in theaters on June 26th, 2026.

What did you think of the Supergirl trailer? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!

Superman’s Cameo in Supergirl Officially Avoids a Big Man of Steel Problem