James Gunn Pays Tribute to Superman’s Legacy With 1940 Thanksgiving Day Parade Throwback
DC Studios co-CEO James Gunn celebrated Thanksgiving with a look back at a seminal moment in American pop cultural history and a message of gratitude for comic book readers.
In honor of both Thanksgiving and the annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, Gunn shared a photo Thursday on his X account of the first-ever Superman float featured in the parade all the way back in 1940. “Today I’m grateful for all the fans out there who have supported all of us at DC Studios over the past three years (!),” he wrote in a caption accompanying the image.
“This job is fun in and of itself, telling new stories with some of the world’s most iconic characters — but you make it all the better with your love, support, laughter and insights,” Gunn added. “Thank you!!”
The exec is coming off the success this past summer of his DC Universe’s first feature film release, “Superman,” which starred David Corenswet as the Man of Steel. Gunn wrote and directed the movie and is set to follow it up with a sequel titled “Man of Tomorrow” that will feature the return of both Corenswet’s Clark Kent and Nicholas Hoult’s Lex Luthor, as well as the DCU introduction of the iconic comic book villain known as Brainiac.
First Superman float in the Macy's Thanksgiving Parade, 1940. Today I'm grateful for all the fans out there who have supported all of us at DC Studios over the past three years (!) This job is fun in and of itself, telling new stories with some of the world's most iconic… pic.twitter.com/3tTUsd86jX
— James Gunn (@JamesGunn) November 27, 2025
Gunn’s “Superman” is streaming now on HBO Max, while “Man of Tomorrow” is slated to hit theaters on July 9, 2027. Before then, DC Studios is set to release two films in 2026, the Craig Gillespie-directed “Supergirl” and the James Watkins-helmed “Clayface.”
A Superman balloon was not featured in this year’s Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, however. Of the 2025 parade’s 34 balloons, only one comic book superhero was featured, and it was actually Marvel’s Spider-Man. Elsewhere, the parade made space for new balloons recognizing other iconic movie and video game characters, like Derpy Tiger from Netflix’s “KPop Demon Hunters,” Mario, Pac-Man and Buzz Lightyear from the “Toy Story” franchise.
This year’s Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade celebrity performers, meanwhile, included Meg Donnelly, Teyana Taylor, Conan Gray, “Wicked: For Good” star Cynthia Erivo and Darlene Love. The parade also saw EJAE, Audrey Nuna and Rei Ami come together to bring the fictional girl group Huntr/X to life with a performance of their “KPop Demon Hunters” track, “Golden.”
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