Ben Shapiro Declares James Gunn’s Superman “Super-Meh” in Grumpy Guru Breakdown
Oh great, another hot take from someone who thinks telling the obvious counts as revolutionary commentary. Ben Shapiro has labeled James Gunn’s new Superman installment “super-meh,” and he’s not holding back. The political commentator turned film critic rolled his eyes at claims that the movie functions as a progressive manifesto about immigration or kindness. Shapiro insists audiences worried about preachy politics can settle down. According to him, this film is about a caped alien-hero, not illegal immigration, ICE, the Russia-Ukraine conflict or the Israel-Palestine situation.
Shapiro singled out a fleeting scene that some deemed anti-ICE sentiment—he calls that moment “really weak”—and accuses vocal viewers of deliberately misinterpreting any political subtext. He makes it clear: “This is not a movie about illegal immigration. This is not a movie about ICE, Russia-Ukraine, Israel and the Palestinians … there may be references there if you have politics on the brain, but other than that, I really don’t think there’s much of this there.” That line comes from his exclusive review for TMZ, where he trolls Gunn’s promise that Superman would stand for the immigrant experience and reclaim a lost sense of human kindness in America.
But let’s be blunt. Shapiro’s biggest gripe isn’t the lack of deep political discourse—it’s that James Gunn was the wrong director for this comic book icon. He essentially accuses Gunn of shooting yet another Guardians of the Galaxy movie, except this time it’s Superman wearing that red cape. Even so, Shapiro begrudgingly acknowledges the cast’s effort. David Corenswet steps into Clark Kent’s boots, Rachel Brosnahan attempts to hold her own as Lois Lane, Nicholas Hoult brings his smirk to Lex Luthor, and Edi Gathegi plays Mister Terrific with flair. “The stars do their best with bad material given to them by James Gunn,” Shapiro admits, offering the only real compliment in his review.
Despite the lukewarm critique, Superman opened strong at the box office. It scored a $56.5 million opening day haul and, according to The Wrap, is projected to bank about $122 million by Sunday. The film faced a wave of conservative backlash ahead of release over Gunn’s immigration remarks, making prognosticating its success a guessing game. Even original TV Superman Dean Cain chimed in via TMZ, predicting a dent in ticket sales but nonetheless rooting for the Man of Steel’s triumph.
So here we stand: a blockbuster lauded by fans for spectacle, dismissed by Shapiro as half-baked theatrics with just enough political seasoning to spark a mild Twitter war. If you came for heart, you might leave thinking you should have stuck with the X-Men reboot. And yes, the cape may still fly—but the script clearly needed more oomph.
Sources: Celebrity Storm and TMZ, The Wrap
Attribution: Creative Commons Licensed
