Ultraman? ‘Superman’s Secret Villain Is A Homage To A Wild ‘90s Storyline

The one thing that the new Superman trailers have managed to hide is the fact that the most deadly enemy of the Man of Steel has been hiding in plain sight. In certain trailers, we’ve seen a figure all in black, with its face covered, that has been dubbed “Ultraman.” Now that Superman has finally hit theaters, Ultraman’s identity has been revealed. This twist isn’t directly from any one comic book storyline by itself. But the Ultraman twist does pay homage to several aspects of the famous 1993 DC Comics storyline, The Reign of the Supermen.

Here’s who Ultraman really is, how his powers work, and why this character pulls from multiple aspects of the same wild 1993 comic book miniseries.

Spoilers ahead.

Who is Ultraman?

Late in the game in Superman, we learn that Ultraman is really a clone of Superman crated by Lex Luthor. Now, in Superman comics, there is an evil Superman called “Ultraman” who, in most continuities, inhabits a dimension called Earth-Three, in which many heroes of the DC Universe are villains and vice vesa. The Ultraman from James Gunn’s Superman is not from Earth-Three, but instead, is a mindless clone, which makes him a little like Bizarro Superman, who, in nearly all comic book continuities, is an imperfect clone of Superman. But in the new film, we’re not meant to think that Ultraman is Bizarro, nor are we meant to think he’s from another dimension.

Instead, Ultraman’s black and silver suit is reminiscent of Superman’s “Recovery Suit” from the 1993 Reign of the Supermen storyline, in which Superman came back from the dead. Notably, in the Snyder Cut of Justice League, Henry Cavill’s Superman also wore a black suit after having perished.

But the Ultraman black suit in the new Superman reboot tips its hat to the Reign of Supermen in one other way, beyond just its superficial appearance. In that storyline, there is a partial clone of Superman and Lex Luthor, or, later becomes known as the new “Superboy.” By having Lex create a clone of Superman in the new film, this storyline is referenced, along with the black recovery suit from the same series of comics.

On top of all of this, The Reign of the Supermen also featured a false Superman who was called “The Last Son of Krypton,” who, more or less looked like Superman, but wore bright yellow glasses. This Superman was later revealed to be an ancient, and sentient, Kryptonian weapon called “The Eradicator” which manufactured itself a simulacrum body to appear as Superman. (Interestingly, in Action Comics #688, Guy Gardner actually aligns himself with the Eradicator Superman, preferring this version to the original Ka-El.)

Just an Easter Egg, Or More?

Which false Superman is the new Ultraman meant to be? The short answer is: all of them. By putting this Supe clone in the black suit, we get all the references to The Reign of the Supermen. By making him less intelligent, we get shades of bizzaro, and by calling him “Ultraman” we able to start thinking about the vast multiverse of the DC universe.

Essentially, with one villain, director James Gunn was able to put half a dozen Easter eggs into one basket. Plus, answer one age-old question at the same time. Who can beat Superman in a fight? The best answer has always been: Himself.

Superman is now playing in theaters.