James Gunn Superman Movie Casts Clark Kent’s Dad

Superman has a dad. His name is Jonathan Kent, and after an exhaustive round of casting, we know who’ll be playing him in the upcoming James Gunn movie.

That actor is Pruitt Taylor Vince, who’s best known for his role as Grill in Marvel series Agents of SHIELD.

Pa Kent, as he's also called, is not the biological father of Clark Kent given his son was born on an alien planet. Rather, he’s an adoptive parent, together with his wife, Martha, who has yet to be cast.

The previous Jonathan Kent was Kevin Costner, who played him in 2013's Man of Steel. Before him was Glenn Ford in 1978's Superman. He’s often portrayed as a simple, hard-working farmer from Kansas who dispenses sage advice to shape his adopted son Kal El into a compassionate superhero.

It’s fair to say Taylor Vince, however, has the least mainstream recognition of the three, which means Gunn must have been impressed during the audition process. A veteran actor, Taylor Vince has also appeared in JFK, Constantine, Bird Box, Deadwood, True Blood, and Stranger Things.

He’ll star opposite David Corenswet's Superman/Clark Kent, and joins a pretty complete cast list. We already have Nicholas Hoult as Lex Luthor, Rachel Brosnahan as Lois Lane, Wendell Pierce as Daily Planet Editor Perry White, and Skyler Gisondo as reporter Jimmy Olsen.

Superman premiers July 11, 2025.