David Corenswet talks about bulking up to over 230 lbs. for James Gunn’s DCU film Superman

David Corenswet was seen this year as the antagonist in Twisters, and while audiences new to him got a sense of his physique as his height allowed him to tower over his co-stars, he would later put on the necessary muscle to become the Man of Steel in James Gunn‘s DCU film Superman. Variety reports that Corenswet recently appeared on the Manly Things (Sort of) podcast, where he spoke of his Kryptonian transformation.

Corenswet explained, “I wasn’t 238 (pounds) when we started shooting. I was 238 at my max. I didn’t fit into any of my pants.” The new Kal-El actor spoke candidly about getting used to the new weight and he joked about his realization that he had become a 2XL shirt size when he attended the table read for Superman. He stated, “That was at the peak of my bulk. And then I slowly lost weight before we started shooting. I started shooting at about 228, 230…I know I wanted this to be my excuse to see what it felt like to gain essentially as much weight as I could.”

Superman stars David Corenswet (Pearl) as Clark Kent and Rachel Brosnahan (The Marvelous Ms. Maisel) as Lois Lane. The cast also includes Nathan Fillion (The Rookie) as Guy Gardner, a charismatic and slightly obnoxious member of the Green Lantern Corps; Isabela Merced (Dora and the Lost City of Gold) as Hawkgirl; Edi Gathegi (X-Men: First Class) as Mister Terrific; Anthony Carrigan (Barry) as Metamorpho; María Gabriela de Faría (Deadly Class) as The Engineer, a member of The Authority; Sara Sampaio (At Midnight) as Eve Teschmacher; Skyler Gisondo (The Righteous Gemstones) as Jimmy Olsen; Wendell Pierce (The Wire) as Perry White; Neva Howell (Logan Lucky) as Martha Kent; Pruitt Taylor-Vince (The Walking Dead) as Jonathan Kent; and Nicholas Hoult (The Great) as Lex Luthor.

The members of the Daily Planet newsroom have also expanded for the movie, with Beck Bennet (Saturday Night Live) set to play Steve Lombard, Mikaela Hoover (The Suicide Squad) as Cat Grant, and newcomer Christopher McDonald as Ron Troupe.

DC Studios co-CEO Peter Safran has previously teased that Superman will not be an origin story and will focus on “Superman balancing his Kryptonian heritage with his human upbringing. Superman represents truth, justice and the American way. He is kindness in a world that thinks of kindness as old fashioned.” Superman is slated to hit theaters on July 11, 2025.