‘The villain is Israel?’: James Gunn’s ‘Superman’ set to ruffle feathers as early viewers realize it’s entirely pro-Palestine

James Gunn’s Superman is shaping up to be the film of the summer. The movie hits theaters this week with strong box office expectations bolstered by extremely positive reviews. As of writing, it’s sitting at 85% on the Tomatometer and is certified “Fresh”, with strong word-of-mouth from regular people who’ve seen it.

But there’s controversy brewing. Superman has already become a target of MAGA hate after James Gunn said he wanted to showcase: “An immigrant that came from other places and populated the country” and that he wants to encourage audiences “basic human kindness” towards their fellow man.

Fox News was already hissing and spitting like an angry cat at this “kindness” stuff, but they’re almost certainly going to melt down once they realize what the movie’s actually about. Many early reviews have identified that a core plotline in the movie not only appears to be a thinly veiled allegory for the Israel/Palestine conflict, but one that definitively paints Israel as the villain.

The central conflict for Superman involves the nations of Boravia and Jarhanpur, which feel like fictional versions of Israel and Palestine, respectively. As one reviewer explains: “The crux of the film is an evil country in the Middle East filled with white people that has been a US ally for decades trying to invade a neighboring country to genocide its people and steal their land”.

Well, that does sound pretty familiar… Without getting into spoilers, what drives the drama is Superman trying to help the people of Jarhanpur as Boravia attacks them, much to the displeasure of the U.S. government and media.

Expect drama

Opinion is already split online, with those sympathetic to Palestine loving it:

SUPERMAN BY JAMES GUNN IS REALLY ANTI-ISRAEL FILM OMG, AND IT WAS REALLY GOOD😭😭😭😭 pic.twitter.com/kJYCAaQJpF

— rezel* (@repxkomh13) July 9, 2025

#Superman is a powerful and clear commentary on the senseless genocide towards Palestinians in Gaza and parodies the inhumanity of the world and Israel against them. Its a film about humanity and how no matter who we are, we all share humanity.

It's a beautiful and much needed… pic.twitter.com/G27jaKYhQf

— DriftyFilm – Haidar Hasanayn (@driftyfilm) July 8, 2025

it’s not The Battle Of Algiers but the degree to which the central metaphor is very plainly just Israel (expressly called evil by Superman) doing genocide on Palestine is kind of wild for a $200M blockbuster https://t.co/tQdp6MoapZ

— coffee (@eventualforever) July 9, 2025

Meanwhile, the pro-Israel cheerleaders sound shellshocked at this development:

NOW I understand why Warner Bros. took their shield off from the film.

Jesus Christ. The villain is Israel?

Superman was created by Jews! The actor playing Superman is Jewish! pic.twitter.com/Q44dqaolTW

— screamiesaurus (@screamiesaurus) July 8, 2025

If MAGA was furious about Superman being an illegal immigrant (which is like being mad at Batman for liking bats), they’re going to be incandescent with fury at this. Expect fireworks over the coming week. Kudos to James Gunn for sneaking out this pro-Palestine message in Warner Bros’ biggest movie of the year!