Some films, like Robert Rodriguez’s Sin City, broke through to become mainstream hits. But one film that got criminally overlooked is a cult-classic indie that took the concept of the “grounded and gritty” superhero movie to comedic extremes. And that single film set the stage for what would one day be one of the biggest success stories of the MCU.
Super Launched One of Superhero Movies’ Most Pivotal Careers
IFC MIdnight
On April 1, 2011, the movie Super was released in theaters. It was written and directed by a little-known filmmaker named James Gunn, on a budget of just $2.5 million. The film only got a limited release, opening in 11 theaters before expanding to 38 theaters in total. That limited release, combined with the ominous fact that the film was released “unrated,” resulted in an anemic box office return on Super, less than $600,000 in total.
However, IFC Midnight took on distribution of the film (which was co-produced by Cold Iron Pictures, This Is That, and Ambush Entertainment) and decided to release Super on video-on-demand and digital platforms just weeks after its theatrical release (April 13, 2011). This was at a time before simultaneous releases (or any new film releases over streaming) were a part of the movie industry. The gamble worked in Super‘s favor: by August of 2011, the film was considered one of the most successful VOD releases ever, eventually outgrossing its theatrical run with $1.2 million in DVD/Blu-ray sales.
The home video/VOD success of Super was not only a testament to Gunn’s film being an immediate cult classic, but also an early testament to VOD and digital platforms being the way of the future. Of course, the other side effect was propelling James Gunn to the next level of his filmmaking career, as director of Guardians of the Galaxy for Marvel Studios.
Guardians of the Galaxy hit theaters on August 1, 2014, and became one of the biggest hits the MCU ever put out. The film earned $773.4 million at the box office, got rave reviews as the “Star Wars of its generation,” and made worldwide icons of the Guardians characters. It also made a worldwide icon of James Gunn, fully cementing him as one of the most popular directors in the comic book movie genre. Guardians of the Galaxy vol. 2 (2017), DC’s The Suicide Squad (2021), Guardians of the Galaxy vol. 3 (2023), and Superman (2025) all followed, and all are considered good-to-great success stories. Next, Gunn will helm the Superman sequel, Man of Tomorrow, which will see the Man of Steel having to team with his rival Lex Luthor to battle Brainiac. But never forget that Gunn’s epic superhero movie run began with Super.
What Is James Gunn’s Super About?
IFC Midnight
Super was one of the first attempts The Officestar Rainn Wilson made to break into feature films, following the end of that landmark TV series. Wilson plays Frank Darbo, a devout (and very unbalanced) man who works as a short-order cook. Frank believes he gets divine instruction to become a masked vigilante named “The Crimson Bolt,” in a misguided attempt to save his ex-wife (Liv Tyler) from a scumbag new man who has her hooked on drugs (Kevin Bacon).
While looking for character inspiration at a local comic book store, Frank meets Libby (Elliot Page), an equally unstable clerk who sees Frank’s mission as her fangirl dream, and signs up to be his sidekick, “Boltie.” Frank and Libby’s would-be superhero quest quickly goes off the rails, and people start dying.
Why Super Flopped In Theaters
Lionsgate
Timing is everything in the movie industry, and Super had the unfortunate luck to hit theaters one year after Matthew Vaughn’s Kick-Ass was released, and became a much bigger success, earning $96.2 million on a budget of around $30 million. Both films were looking at the superhero movie genre from the “realistic” perspective of what would actually happen if an everyday citizen tried to become a masked vigilante. Both films pop the idealistic bubble of superhero fantasy, and counter that actual crimefighting would be brutal, bloody, and most likely fatal work. And both films ultimately question the mental health of anyone who would take up that kind of mission (including real-life vigilante organizations that exist).
Super, being much more of an indie venture, from a filmmaker still making his name, had a lot of fans looking at it as a Kick-Ass knock-off. However, time has changed perspective: Kick-Ass never really grew past that initial film, which has arguably become much more obscure since its release; James Gunn’s unprecedented run as a superhero movie director has only made Super’s cult-classic status grow over the last decade and a half. Nowadays, it’s required viewing for any fan of Guardians or Gunn’s DC movies, and still just one of the more unhinged superhero movie concepts we’ve seen.
You can stream Super (2011) on Pluto TV or The Roku Channel. Discuss your favorite indie superhero movies with us on the ComicBook Forum!
