All the way up until I was sitting in the theatre, I was still unsure of what to expect when I sat down to watch James Gunn’s Supergirl. Well, I say James Gunn; it was actually directed by Craig Gillespie, but there was a lot of input/interference, however you want to put it, by James Gunn by the time the final product hit our screens. I had heard nothing but bad things about this, but I enjoyed Superman, and I have wanted a live-action Lobo for years, so I did have a little bit of hope.
Where to Watch Supergirl (2026)
Supergirl (2026) was released on June 26, 2026. You should be able to stream it soon from HBO Max. Check out also our review of Supergirl from 1984.
The Movie Review
High Hopes for Jason Momoa’s Lobo
On the drive to the cinema, I was actually given a little more hope; one of the bus stops I drove past had a Supergirl ad on it and it actually had Lobo on it! If I am being honest, Jason Momoa as Lobo was the main reason I made the effort to see this in the theatre, instead of waiting for it to hit HBO Max. Well, turns out what we see of Lobo in the trailer is pretty much most of what we see in the actual movie!
Was Lobo awesome? Yes, would I kill for a Lobo movie or even a Lobo series on HBO Man? Absolutely I would. But this was not a Lobo movie; this was a Supergirl movie. Not just that, it was the second big release of the new James Gunn DC Universe, after the super fun Superman from 2025. We got a tease of Milly Alcock’s Supergirl in that movie, and I thought she looked cool. Not only that, but the poster that has her in her gear, in the trench coat, also made her look cool too. I honestly thought that she was cast really well; sure, she was no Helen Slater from the 80s Supergirl movie, one of my earliest crushes, but that is a very hard act to follow.
A Major Misfire for the DC Universe
Ok, I have held it off long enough, Supergirl…… is not a good movie. I would go as far as to say that I think Supergirl is actually a pretty bad movie, up there with the likes of Catwoman and Trank’s garbage Fantastic Four movie! Actually, I would say that I like Supergirl better than both of those, but this is easily one of the worst superhero movies I have seen in a very long time, certainly since Trank’s Fantastic Four in 2015.
An Unlikable Lead Character
Where to start, ok, how about our protagonist Kara? Kara is one of the most unlikable main characters I have seen in a movie in a very long time. Sure, she is dealing with trauma, but she is an unlikable asshole. She is sarcastic, a jerk, and just generally unlikable and not in a “she does what she wants, she is so cool, she doesn’t care what anyone thinks” kind of way. She is just not an easy character to gravitate towards.
Cliches and Depowered Superpowers
The plot just did not grab me at all! I did like the idea of her looking for revenge for Krypto, as who doesn’t like Krypto, but our main villain here is about as forgettable as it goes, and the overall plot has every superhero cliché you could imagine. Oh, I am pretty sure she gets depowered and then gets to use her powers about three times in the damn movie!
Found-Footage Camera Work and Poor CGI
Also, this movie looks terrible too! I have no idea what they were going for with the fight scenes, but the fight and action scenes are shot in this very strange way that is almost like we are watching it through a handheld camera or someone filming it with their phone; it is almost found footage style now that I think about it. The CGI is not that great; some scenes are just way too hard to make out what is happening, and the cover of the awesome Jimmy Eat World’s The Middle is up there as one of the worst covers I have ever heard.
Final Verdict: Watch Something Else Instead
With my expectations not being all that high, I thought that Supergirl may surprise me and be fun. Yes, it was awesome to see a live-action Lobo and Jason Momoa was perfect casting, but the rest of this movie sucked. I could not see myself ever watching this again; even when it comes to HBO Max, there are way better things you can watch on there than this. Hell, watch 2025’s Superman again or the fantastic Melissa Benoist Supergirl TV series. Sure, it is a massive commitment as it is part of the Arrowverse, but it is way, way better than this!
