One of DC Studios co-head James Gunn’s primary goals in redefining Superman for the big screen was, ironically, to make the ultra-powerful Kryptonian more human. This vision included not only dialing back Superman’s overwhelming power—avoiding the planet-shattering feats that once made the rest of the Justice League feel redundant—but also emphasizing that, despite his extraordinary abilities, Superman ultimately yearns to be just a regular person.
And what’s one surefire way to seem more human? Sharing your life with a dog—a source of companionship, joy, and daily responsibility that reflects some of the most relatable parts of being human. It’s a role James Gunn recently embraced in real life—and one he’s now woven into Superman’s story through the character of Krypto the Superdog. Drawing from his own experiences as a dog owner, Gunn is bringing a dose of warmth and levity to the film with Krypto that’s sure to resonate with audiences.
“The truth is that I committed to writing this thing after years of Peter Safran (Gunn’s co-CEO at DC Studios) badgering me. And at about that time, I adopted a dog,” Gunn said on NPR’s Morning Edition. “His name is Ozu, and he was raised in a hoarding situation. [The previous owner] had about 60 dogs that were living in the woman’s backyard. And they were just laying on top of each other, mottled and messed up. It was a sad situation.”
Gunn explained that it was Ozu’s unique appearance—especially a funky ear that stood out—that first drew him in, even though the dog was initially unfriendly and wildly destructive. He jokingly referred to Ozu as “the world’s worst dog,” but over time, the pup’s unruly, loyal, and courageous nature won him over. Those very qualities, Gunn said, made Ozu the perfect inspiration for Krypto’s first big-screen appearance alongside Superman.
“A rescue organization rescued these dogs, and I went into this room with all these dogs. Some of them were friendly. Some of them were not,” Gunn explained. “And my dog was one of them that was not. But he had this funky ear that stood out. I wanted that dog.”
Gunn continued, “He wanted nothing to do with me. Or my wife. And he just proceeded to destroy my house. Like, literally chewing up all of my furniture. He chewed up all of my shoes. Every time I walked across the floor, he was biting my feet really hard, so I would sit up on the kitchen counter and sit cross-legged and try to get away from him. He ate my $10,000 laptop. He’s completely the world’s worst dog.
And I said, “Well, thank God he doesn’t have superpowers!” And that was like, oh, boom! And so it just started there.”
Gunn added that while giving Ozu superpowers would be a terrible idea in real life, the version of Krypto in Superman is in fact, very much his dog.
“And he IS my dog, by the way. We brought him into the 3D room — there’s like 10,000 cameras in this orb, and my dog was biting people and we put him on the thing, and he’s just sitting there all pissed off. And then we 3D-modeled Krypto after my dog.”
What do you think of how James Gunn’s real life pet inspired Krypto the Superdog? Are you looking forward to seeing Krypto the Superdog on the big screen? Superman hits theaters today on July 11th.
