Black Superman
This essay was originally posted to Twitter between August 3, 2021 and August 7, 2021. It was composed of 308 words across eight tweets.
It has been announced, to some controversy, that Ta-Nehisi Coates is writing a screenplay for Warner Bros. in which Superman--the Clark Kent version, the one everybody knows--will be Black.
There is no non-racist reason why this should not happen.
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Okay, I guess I should write more stuff about this. Maybe any commentary that takes sides on such a controversial subject deserves more clarification than "stop being racist."
Note: The following is adapted in part from a post originally written for my personal account.
A movie about a Black Superman written by Ta-Nehisi Coates is a much better idea than a movie about an Objectivist Superman made by filmmakers who hate Superman.
There is nothing about Clark Kent's background that makes him specifically white. There is no reason why he--specifically this version of Superman--cannot be Black.
Bruce Wayne comes from old money. That element of his background makes him most likely white.
Clark Kent was raised on a family farm in the middle of nowhere. There is no reason why he has to be white, except for blind deference to pre-Civil Rights character design standards.
"Why can't they pick one of the alternate, canonically Black versions of Superman?"
Maybe they should. The more, the merrier.*
In the meantime, there's no reason not to do a Black version of the main Superman that everyone knows and cares about.
If a Black version of Clark Kent bothers you this much, think about why that is. I mean really think about it. Start from the assumption that your first reaction isn't necessarily the right one.
*In fact, they are: a streaming series about Val-Zod/Calvin Ellis, the alternate universe Superman/President of the United States who debuted in Final Crisis. Michael B. Jordan will star.
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Published 3/9/2024
"365 Days of SUPERMAN"
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