James Gunn Clarifies Claim That Superman: Legacy Cut Baseem Youssef for Comments on Israel

Superman: Legacy director James Gunn clarified that TV host Bassem Youssef was written out of the movie before the commentator had a viral interview. There was chatter that he was taken out of Superman: Legacy because of negative comments about Israel in a Piers Morgan interview. IGN now reports that the TV host character was removed from the script before that interview aired. On social media, Gunn confirmed that this was the case. Variety also has sources that indicate that the director talked to Youssef about a role, but never extend him a formal offer. On social media, fans are weighing in on the situation and you can read the TV personality's comments for yourself down below.

"I was kind of very sad, like why, in the United States of America, you can talk about Joe Biden, and you can talk about Donald Trump, but you cannot criticize a foreign government? Which is kind of very sad," Youssef said during the interview. "Because of that, I was cast in the movie, Superman, and then they told me, 'We changed the script,' after this Piers Morgan interview.'"

This is accurate. https://t.co/oXc23gvq0E

— James Gunn (@JamesGunn) February 16, 2024

James Gunn Is Directing Superman: Legacy

On social media, gun has been very open about his vision for superman: legacy. When it was announced that he would be the director in charge of the production, he wrote a small post explaining the decision. The president argued that his family was a major motivating factor.

"Yes, I'm directing Superman: Legacy to be released on July 11, 2025. My brother Matt told me when he saw the release date he started to cry. I asked him why. He said, 'Dude, it's Dad's birthday.' I hadn't realized," Gunn wrote. "I lost my Dad almost three years ago. He was my best friend. He didn't understand me as a kid, but he supported my love of comics and my love of film and I wouldn't be making this movie now without him."

The filmmaker continued, "It has been a long road to this point. I was offered Superman years ago — I initially said no because I didn't have a way in that felt unique and fun and emotional that gave Superman the dignity he deserved. Then a bit less than a year ago I saw a way in, in many ways centering around Superman's heritage — how both his aristocratic Kryptonian parents and his Kansas farmer parents inform who he is and the choices he makes."

Warner Bros. Discovery Has Full Faith In James Gunn

The comic book Internet shook when DC comics announced that James Gunn and Peter Safran were named presidents of their film division. Almost immediately, fans wondered what gotten vision for the Man of Steel would be. DC Studios, dropped their description for the upcoming movie. "Superman: Legacy tells the story of Superman's journey to reconcile his Kryptonian heritage with his human upbringing as Clark Kent of Smallville, Kansas. He is the embodiment of truth, justice and the American way, guided by human kindness in a world that sees kindness as old-fashioned."

"We got James Gunn and Peter (Safran) working very hard on DC, which is going to be a very big growth driver for this company," Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav told the press last year. "We are very bullish on DC. The Superman script first draft is done. Gunn is on a mission from god. It is a really good moment to prove out on DC what we got and how strong it is globally for long-term sustainable growth."

What do you think of this Superman: Legacy news? Let us know down in the comments!