In Superman (2025), writer/director James Gunn sure throws a lot at the titular hero. He starts the film bruised and bloodied after losing his first battle. From there, it’s an onslaught of giant monsters, deranged billionaires, and a clone of himself – heck, Superman even gets into a fight with his girlfriend. However, the most devastating blow to Superman comes when the hero learns the true nature of the message his Kryptonian parents, Jor-El and Lara, sent him to Earth with. In the first half of the video message, the Kryptonians express their love for their son and urge Superman to serve the people of Earth. However, after Lex Luthor’s accomplice, The Engineer ( María Gabriela de Faría), repairs the file, we learn, as does Superman, that Jor-El and Lara intended for their son to be a “god among men” on Earth and expected him to restart the Kryptonian race by taking several wives.
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While the revelation came as a total shock to Superman and the residents of Metropolis, fans of Smallville weren’t quite as flabbergasted. Jor-El’s less-than-pure intentions for his son on Earth (which also takes its roots in the post-Crisis era of DC comics) were a major through-line and one of the richest sources of conflict over the ten seasons of the show.
The concept was first introduced back the Season 2 episode “Rosetta”, one of Smallville‘s best and most memorable episodes since it was also the first time fellow Superman Christopher Reeve guest-starred on the show. Reeve played Dr. Swann, an astronomer and satellite communications magnate who taught Clark about his true heritage as the last son of Krypton. Similar to Superman, Jor-El and Lara’s message to their son was bifurcated. Swann revealed that in 1989, the same year Clark came to Earth on Smallville, his satellites picked up a transmission that read: “This is Kal-El of Krypton, our infant son, our last hope. Please protect him and deliver him from evil. We will be with you, Kal-El, all the days of your life.”
Clark used his newfound knowledge to unlock his spaceship that the Kents had stashed in their storm cellar since his arrival with his adoptive father, Jonathan. However, when they did, Clark discovered a message of a different nature from Jor-El: “On this third planet from this star, Sol, you will be a god among men. They are a flawed race; rule them with strength, my son. That is where your greatness lies.”
Sound familiar? Similar to Superman, Smallville’s Clark was distraught by his biological father’s mission for him on his adoptive planet. Both versions of the character undergo an existential crisis as a result, yet Clark’s on Smallville is much shorter since Jonathan is right next to him while he learns the news. Just as Pa Kent comforted his son in Superman, telling Clark that his actions and choices make him the man that he is, Jonathan talks the teenage Clark down in a similar fashion.
“It’s you who decides what kind of a life you’re going to lead,” Jonathan urges Clark. “Not me, not your mother, not your biological parents.”
Though Smallville sidestepped the whole “procreate and continue the Kryptonian race” bit (at least with Jor-El), the show took the character’s turn further. On Smallville, the ship and later the Fortress of Solitude housed a version of Jor-El’s consciousness as an AI. Jor-El became an antagonist to Clark, who often clashed with his biological father’s ideas of how he was meant to realize his destiny. While at first the reveal of Jor-El’s intentions for Clark made for a riveting twist to the show and served as the perfect introduction for more Superman lore in Smallville, there were definitely periods throughout the series’ run where the Clark and Jor-El dynamic came across as overwrought and tiring. Especially since the AI Jor-El had quite a bit of real-world power that was never fully explained.
Even though Gunn may have borrowed this twist from Smallville, unintentionally or not, he did make an important distinction in how Superman hears the message. He puts Superman in public to receive the news. On Smallville, Clark had the opportunity to learn of Jor-El’s intentions for him with his adoptive father right by his side, allowing him a chance to process the information and make a choice about how he wanted to proceed in private. Superman isn’t afforded that luxury. Lex makes the complete message from Jor-El and Lara international news, successfully putting the hero on his back foot for the entirety of the movie’s second act. In doing so, we get to see more of Superman’s struggle with who he is and who he’s supposed to be as he faces the monsters, billionaires, and lovers’ spats. The delay also allows Superman’s heartfelt discussion with Pa Kent later in the film to serve as a meaningful moment of redemption for the character. Though the issue is explored differently with Superman in different stages of his life, both Smallville and Superman effectively use Jor-El to underscore the character’s humanity and his power to choose, inspiring us in the process.
Superman is now playing in theaters, and Smallville is available to stream on Hulu.
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Image courtesy of Netflix
