Jun 23, 2026 10:00pm IST
‘Supergirl’ Director Craig Gillespie on How Milly Alcock Struck the Balance Between Emotion and Restraint: ‘It was tricky, but Milly was beautiful’ (EXCLUSIVE)
A year after “Superman” kickstarted James Gunn’s new DCU (DC Studios Universe), it’s time for his cousin to take the lead. “House of the Dragon” actor Milly Alcock did make an appearance as Supergirl at the end of the 2025 film, when her character visits David Corenswet’s Superman to fetch her pet dog, Krypto, from his care. But “Supergirl” will be her first official outing as Kal-El’s Kryptonian cousin, Kara Zor-El.
The film, which is the second entry in the new DCU, is helmed by Australian filmmaker Craig Gillespie, who has previously worked on titles like “Lars and the Real Girl,” “I, Tonya”, “Cruella” and “Your Friends & Neighbors.” Speaking about bringing “Supergirl” to life and Milly Alcock’s interpretation of the character, the director reveals, "I'm so excited about the film. It's been a journey, finding the character of Supergirl, and Milly ultimately just became more and more kickass as the process went on. She has this strength about her; she's not afraid to show her vulnerability.”
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He further elaborates, “Milly’s interpretation of Supergirl, and what we've done with her, is very rough around the edges and unapologetic. And it’s funny for sure, but it's not the comedy that we're necessarily used to in superhero films. And it was exciting to be able to explore that and keep her in this incredibly grounded place, to lean into that and never be outside of what she's going through emotionally. It's uncompromising, and I'm so happy with where we ended up and the way that Milly has been able to bring her to life, because it's just unapologetic in the best way."
Gillespie is also pumped for audiences to see the hard work Alcock has put into the film — from training for long hours to meet the physical demands of the role to hitting the emotional beats of Kara’s traumatic backstory in scenes that lasted several pages.
“This was a four-and-a-half-month shoot, and Milly’s in nearly every scene, and it is also a very physical role. Every morning, she got up an hour-and-a-half early and trained for the physical stuff on the day, because she had to stay in shape for all of that; it was interwoven through the whole shoot. But also, the poise and focus she turned up every day with. There's a lot of action in this, but the moments between her and Ruthye, when she gets to talk about her backstory, she does it in such a beautifully delicate way, because she's carrying a very guarded person as a character. Those moments could come in the middle of this long, physical shoot and be an intense three-four page scene, and she’d be so present and so nuanced with it and perfectly in character for what Supergirl's history has been.”
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As told exclusively to Variety India by screenwriter Ana Nogueira, “Supergirl” is definitely darker and more punk-rock than “Superman,” since it tackles how much what happened to Kara on Krypton has affected her. As glimpses of the trailers confirm, audiences will get to see bits of Kara’s life on the planet before she was sent to Earth like her cousin. And for Gillespie, these scenes were thrilling to film.
“Those were always the most exciting moments for me, with Eve [Ridley], the moment with her father, David Krumholtz, and then her mother as well, Emily Beecham. They were just such powerful emotional scenes, with the added complexity of being guarded. It was very tricky in a way to strike that balance of emotion and restraint. And Milly was beautiful."
“Supergirl,” starring Milly Alcock, Eve Ridley, Matthias Schoenaerts, David Krumholtz, Emily Beecham, Jason Momoa and David Corenswet, arrives in theaters on June 26, 2026.
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