New Superman Trailer Includes Easter Egg for One of the Best DC Writers of All Time

Comic book adaptations often find ways to pay tribute to the artists and writers behind their source material, and the new trailer for Superman features a shout-out to legendary writer Mark Waid. At the 46-second mark, there’s a shot where Superman is being perp-walked through the streets with his hands behind his back. The sign over his head marks “Waid Street,” though it’s unclear which city he’s supposed to be in at the time. Mark Waid is best known for his work at DC Comics, including some iconic Superman stories. So far, Waid has not commented publicly on this Easter egg, but fans have already taken notice.

Wednesday’s new trailer for Superman showed the Man of Steel in custody, though the circumstances aren’t clear. We see Superman walking across Waid Street with his hands bound, flanked by Rick Flag (Frank Grillo) and Angela Spica, The Engineer (María Gabriela de Faría), with Ultraman keeping a firm grip on his cuffs. They’re heading into some kind of large public building, but before they can get there, we see The Engineer slamming Superman’s face into the pavement.

This might all happen in Metropolis itself, since a fictional city seems like the best place to add a fictional street name. They could be headed into an office or a lab for LuthorCorp, or perhaps a company run by Maxwell Lord. It could also be a courthouse or TV studio, as the villains seem intent on destroying Superman’s public good will.

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Whatever the case, a street name for Waid is a fitting nod to the writer’s contributions to DC Comics lore. When it comes to Superman, Waid’s first big claim to fame was the graphic novel Kingdom Come published in 1996, which explored the future of the DC universe and the place of its biggest heroes in it. He was later credited with reviving the popularity of the Justice League, and in 2003 Waid took on an individual Superman project with the limited series Superman: Birthright.

Easter eggs like this are pretty common for comic book adaptations, and are a great reminder of where the these stories started and a fitting honor the people who created them. Unlike some other comic creators, Waid has never taken a Hollywood credit as a writer, producer, or consultant, though it’s not clear if this is by choice or not. Superman hits theaters on July 11th, kicking off the DCU’s live-action storyline in earnest