Lois Lane and Clark Kent first met in the pages of 1938’s Action Comics #1. Over eight decades later, the Golden Age lovebirds will soon make us swoon once more thanks to director James Gunn and his leading lovers David Corenswet and Rachel Brosnahan. When we chatted with the charming pair of actors recently in sunny Los Angeles, they opened up about finding that vital Lois and Clark chemistry and how Superman reimagines DC’s most famous romance for a new era.

Initially, this lifelong partnership begins with an early spark between two young journalists, one of whom happens to be an alien superhero from the planet Krypton. So how do you lay the groundwork for bringing that to life?

“Whatever’s happening between you has got to be new,” Corenswet shares.

Finding that fresh take was made easier by the fact that Gunn already had a distinct vision for where audiences would find the heroes and their relationship.

“James obviously had a very fun and original way into these characters where they already sort of know everything about each other,” Corenswet says. “They’re not at the beginning of their relationship. They’re at a turning point in their relationship.”

Yes, like many thirtysomethings in 2025, Lois and Clark are in what some may call...a situationship.

As the film begins, the two are unclear where things stand between them, though one fact is obvious—they can’t get enough of each other. That chemistry was at the forefront from early on, which is a good thing as the pair’s test scene was brief.

“James obviously spotted some chemistry between us when we did our screen test in LA,” says Corenswet. “I think neither of us was quite sure that we had chemistry, only because it was over so quickly. We read together once, expecting to get to do it for several hours, and then we got parted immediately.”

It was obvious enough to convince Gunn and the team behind the movie, as the two actors were eventually cast. But if you’re curious about the first scene they shot...well, we’ll let Superman himself explain.

“When we actually started shooting the scene, which was the first two days of principal photography in Atlanta, the first part of the scene is quite a lot of necking, as they say,” Corenswet chuckles, channeling a bit of Clark Kent as he describes the passionate sequence. “There’s no better way to sort of force some chemistry between two people!”

Based on the strength of that chemistry, Superman soars with Lois and Clark as the beating heart at its core. It’s something that star Rachel Brosnahan believes is key.

“I think it’s one of the reasons why this love story endures and has for so many decades,” she suggests. “[Lois and Clark are] both really passionate people. They are both people who will go to the ends of the earth for the things that they believe in, and they believe in the same thing at the end of the day. They’re two sides of the same coin.”

DC fans know that doesn’t mean the pair always agrees or even always gets along. In fact, in one of the movie’s best scenes, they have a fiery confrontation about the nature of journalism that ends with them questioning their relationship. It’s that duality and honesty that keeps things fresh.

“They think about the world very differently,” says Brosnahan. “They think about how they get from point A to point B very differently. And when you put those two very strong points of view in a room together, there’s a lot of spark. There’s the opportunity for some comedy. You know, great comedy is born out of two firmly opposing viewpoints a lot of the time. And it was really fun to get to deepen this relationship and look at it at this pivotal point where they’re trying to figure out what they are. I’ve not seen that exact version of the story.”

Neither have audiences. At least, not until this weekend as you can go and watch Superman in theaters right now!
 

Superman, directed by James Gunn and starring David Corenswet, Rachel Brosnahan and Nicholas Hoult, lands in theaters this week! Click here to get tickets.