James Gunn Fires Back at the Milly Alcock Supergirl Firing Rumors and Burns Down Every DCU Scandal at Once

Few things spread through fandom faster than a Milly Alcock Supergirl rumor. When the actress began to disappear from certain corners of the internet this week, the speculation machine kicked into overdrive, and fans were soon asking whether the future of Kara Zor-El in the DC Universe was in jeopardy.

The timing made the worry feel plausible. Alcock’s solo outing ‘Supergirl’ arrived on June 26 under director Craig Gillespie, opened to roughly $37 million to $38 million in North America, and finished its run with about $126 million worldwide. Those numbers left the film widely discussed as a disappointment, which put extra pressure on every piece of DCU news that followed.

The rumors exploded on Thursday, when fans noticed that Alcock had removed Supergirl content from her Instagram, including the post announcing her casting in January 2024. Some Supergirl photos and Reels are reportedly still visible, but the cleanup was enough to convince many people that something had gone wrong behind the scenes.

Nothing was confirmed at that stage. No trade outlet had reported a firing, and neither Alcock nor DC Studios had said anything. Videos claiming she had been let go had also been circulating on YouTube since the summer, so the Instagram change simply gave the theory fresh fuel.

On Friday, James Gunn responded directly on Threads. A fan had listed 3 rumors they called fake news about the DCU: that Matt Reeves is off ‘The Batman Part II’, that Alcock had been fired as Supergirl, and that ‘Man of Tomorrow’ had a test screening that went badly because of a dark ending and the death of a beloved hero.

Gunn’s answer was blunt. He told fans to stop listening to nonsense, said he is mostly done shooting down rumors because there are so many and he isn’t on the platform much, and declared that all 3 couldn’t be more false. It was the first word from DC’s side on the Alcock situation, and it was about as clear as a denial gets.

The ‘Man of Tomorrow’ claim fell apart under Gunn’s own explanation. He said he was showing Peter Safran his first Director’s Cut that very day, with Safran being the first person to see it, and that it was arriving a month early. In other words, there was no finished version for anyone to test screen.

That detail matters because the darker tone behind the rumor wasn’t invented out of thin air. Reports have described the sequel as more intense than Gunn’s usual approach, and David Corenswet has compared it to ‘The Empire Strikes Back’. A grim test screening, however, never happened.

The ‘Batman Part II’ rumor had its own origin story. This week brought news that Steven Soderbergh is finishing the final weeks of filming while Reeves deals with a family matter, and online chatter quickly turned that into a story about the director leaving. Reeves has said he is not leaving the project and will return for post-production, and Gunn had already pushed back on the rumor earlier in the week.

Taken together, the trio of denials gave the DCU a rare moment of clarity. For a franchise that has spent months fending off speculation, a single reply managed to quiet 3 separate storms.

Gunn’s response fits with what the studio has said all along. Alcock is confirmed to return as Supergirl in ‘Man of Tomorrow’, which is currently filming in Atlanta and arrives in theaters on July 9, 2027. DC Studios co-CEO Peter Safran has also said she is a major part of what the studio is doing and that she plays a big role in the next film after that.

The sequel is shaping up to be a team-up story. David Corenswet’s Superman is joined by Nicholas Hoult’s Lex Luthor, with Brainiac as the threat, and Aaron Pierre is set to bring John Stewart to the big screen after debuting in the HBO Max series ‘Lanterns’. It’s a stacked lineup, and Alcock is firmly in it.

The final trailer for ‘SUPERGIRL’ has been released. • Tickets on sale now • In theaters on June 26 https://t.co/hiTkG52C3T

— DiscussingFilm (@DiscussingFilm) June 3, 2026

One thing hasn’t changed: Alcock herself hasn’t commented on her Instagram, and Gunn hasn’t addressed it either. Fans can reasonably wonder why the posts disappeared, but the firing theory now has the strongest possible counterargument from the person who runs DC Studios alongside Safran.

For a studio that has just completed its move under Skydance with Gunn and Safran staying in place, this kind of clear communication helps. It also shows how quickly a single deleted post can snowball when a film underperforms. For now, Kara Zor-El appears to be exactly where she was supposed to be.

Have something to add? Let us know in the comments!