DC Fans Are Watching True Grit For Clues About Supergirl

When James Gunn posted a photo of Milly Alcock suited up as Kara Zor-El on Instagram, fans immediately began discussing the Coen brothers’ True Grit in the comments, convinced it holds breadcrumbs about the upcoming Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow and, as wild as that sounds, they might be onto something.

Based on the comic by Tom King and Bilquis Evely, the highly anticipated Supergirl film will be directed by Craig Gillespie and released in 2026. However, it’s the story’s influences that have fans buzzing, as King has gone on record stating that Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow was inspired by Charles Portis’s 1968 novel True Grit, as well as its various adaptations. It’s not just thematic, as King has suggested he was specifically drawn to the idea of a hero aiding a vengeance-driven young girl. Swap out Rooster Cogburn and Mattie Ross for Supergirl and Ruthye Marye Knoll, and the DNA is unmistakable.

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The 2021 comic run takes Supergirl—traditionally portrayed as a more optimistic, less world-weary cousin to Superman—and hurls her across the galaxy on a revenge-fueled journey. She’s traveling with Ruthye, a young alien girl whose father has been murdered by a war criminal named Krem of the Yellow Hills. Ruthye isn’t just looking for justice; the girl is out for blood.

While Gunn himself isn’t directing the film adaptation, he’s overseeing its development as co-CEO of DC Studios and is producing the project. His fingerprints are all over it. He’s repeatedly emphasized that this Supergirl isn’t the squeaky-clean cousin from CW’s Supergirl series. This Kara’s had it rough—born on a piece of Krypton that survived longer, witnessing death and destruction before finally reaching Earth. It’s a bleak tale that shapes how she sees the world.

The film adaptation is slated to be the second official live-action film in Gunn’s new DCU, following up the Gunn-directed Superman, which comes out this summer and stars David Corenswet in the titular role. It’s Milly Alcock, known for playing young Rhaenyra Targaryen in HBO’s House of the Dragon, who will take on the role of Supergirl. Gunn confirmed her casting in January 2024 and recently teased fans with a behind-the-scenes look on Instagram, causing the True Grit comparisons to resurface.

Fans Are Torn About The Comic’s Influence and Gunn’s Approach

One Reddit user admitted that while they enjoyed the comic, they couldn’t shake the feeling that it was basically “True Grit in space.” Another echoed that sentiment, calling the comic “practically a sci-fi remake,” though they praised the overall work as “beautiful.” The Western’s influence will likely be notable regardless, but fans are also open to Gunn and Woman of Tomorrow screenwriter Ana Nogueira straying from the blueprint. “This is one adaptation where I think that changes are welcome,” wrote one commenter, pointing to the creative opportunities that a shift from Western to cosmic settings allows. Some speculated those changes are already underway, citing Lobo’s (Jason Momoa) role in the film. “I think [they are] doing some changes, that’s why Lobo will appear in the movie,” one fan suggested.

Is Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow Really Nothing More Than True Grit In Space?

In an article for Women Write About Comics, Cori McCreery explores the uncanny parallels between True Grit and Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow, asking “how far can you go with an homage before it just becomes something more akin to plagiarism?”

According to the comic, the story begins on a harsh alien world under a red sun, where Supergirl—seeking to drown her grief—can finally get drunk. It’s a clever twist on True Grit’s Rooster Cogburn’s (Jeff Bridges in the 2010 adaptation) whiskey-soaked weariness: here, Kara Zor-El is similarly broken, raw, and reluctant to be anyone’s savior. When Ruthye Marye Knoll pleads for her help after her father’s murder, Supergirl doesn’t leap into action with hope or righteousness. She hesitates, grumbles, drinks—and then agrees.

From that reluctant alliance springs a journey not unlike that of young Mattie Ross (Hailee Steinfeld) and Rooster. Ruthye, like Mattie, is young, resolute, and unwavering in her desire for justice. Her narration, elevated and formal, certainly captures the seriousness of a Western epic, with a slightly more mythic twist on the precocious voice of Mattie in the novel.

Though one story is grounded in the American West and the other among the stars with a Kryptonian Superdog, the parallels are striking. Both feature young girls driven by a need for justice partnered with a reluctant, emotionally wounded warrior. In True Grit, Mattie’s pursuit takes her through lawless frontier land with the grizzled, drunken Rooster Cogburn. In Woman of Tomorrow, Ruthye travels across surreal, dangerous planets with a grieving Supergirl, whose Kryptonian ideals are tested at every step.

Both stories wrestle with the gray areas between revenge and righteousness. Violence has consequences—Mattie loses her arm; Ruthye loses her innocence. The mentor figures evolve through the journey, too: Rooster rediscovers his buried sense of justice, while Supergirl reclaims her hope and purpose through Ruthye’s belief in her. Thematically, each story blends coming-of-age narrative with a harsh moral landscape, but Woman of Tomorrow adds a cosmic weight to its questions and consequences.

True Grit vs. Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow – A Comparison

Reddit Theorists Are Here For James Gunn’s Darker, Wilder DCU

DC fans on Reddit are practically running a film studies course at this point. Posts in r/DC_Cinematic dissect lighting techniques in the Coen Brothers’ True Grit and compare them to the teaser image of Alcock. But more importantly, they’re recognizing that the story itself mirrors Portis’ novel beat for beat. The characters, the structure, even the emotional arc—it’s all there.

Beyond the True Grit comps, these observations suggest the DC fandom is not only excited but deeply engaged and eager to see how the adaptation plays with its Western foundations. All of this discourse is a good sign that Gunn will meet or surpass his already high bar for box office performance.

Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow is slated to hit theaters on June 26, 2026, and it might be the most un-Superman Superman-adjacent film yet. With Craig Gillespie directing, Milly Alcock in the lead, and James Gunn steering the broader vision, DC’s take on Kara Zor-El is shaping up to look less like Man of Steel and more like the Coen’s True Grit with space swords.

Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow

Release Date

June 26, 2026

Director

Craig Gillespie

Writers

Tom King, Otto Binder, Ana Nogueira

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  Milly Alcock

  Kara Zor-El / Supergirl

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  Matthias Schoenaerts

  Krem of the Yellow Hills

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  Eve Ridley

  Ruthye Mary Knolle

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