The newest DC superhero team is coming to the big screen this week! The new animated film DC League of Super-Pets brings together a ragtag team of heroic animals from the DC universe, voiced by an all-star ensemble!
Watch the trailer for DC League of Super-Pets below:
The film follows Superman’s reliable superpowered pet, Super-Dog who fights crimes alongside him in Metropolis. But when Superman and the Justice League are kidnapped, it is up to Krypto and a group of shelter animals– Ace the hound, PB the potbellied pig, Merton the turtle, and Chip the squirrel– to master their newfound powers, rescue the heroes, and ultimately save the day!
If you can’t wait to see the superhero film land on the big screen this week, then here’s a list for you! We’ve rounded up some interesting facts about the movie that you might want to know about!
1. Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson currently headlines two DC films.
Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson leads the pack as the voice of Krypto the Super-Dog in DC League of Super-Pets. But Johnson is also joining DC’s movie universe as the anti-hero Black Adam in his own titular film. Unlike the friendly white hound, Black Adam is a DC character you wouldn’t want to mess with, because he uses his Shazam-like superpowers to uphold his twisted sense of justice.
2. It’s the Rock and Kevin Hart’s third film as onscreen buddies.
In the past, Dwayne Johnson and Kevin Hart have already shown their chemistry in the films Central Intelligence, Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle, and Jumanji: The Next Level. In Central Intelligence, Johnson played the bullied-kid-turned-CIA-rogue-agent Robbie while Hart played a high school star athlete who ended up dissatisfied in his office job. Johnson and Hart also played the in-game characters Bravestone and Finbar respectively in the Jumanji films. Hart also made a cameo in Johnson’s Fast & Furious spinoff film Hobbs & Shaw.
3. Ace and Krypto debuted in the comics in 1955.
Krypto first appeared in Adventure Comics #210 in March 0f 1955. Krypto was the dog of Superman/Kal-El’s family in Krypton. When Kal-El’s father Jor-El was testing a prototype of the rocket that would bring his son to Earth, he first used their dog Krypto. However, on its trip to Earth, Krypto’s rocket went off course and only landed on Earth when Kal-El, now Clark Kent, was already a teenager. When they reunited, Krypto turned out to have the same powers Superman has, and it soon became a crimefighting companion for the superhero.
Meanwhile, Ace debuted a few months later in Batman #92, where it was introduced as a German Shepherd with a star-shaped marking on its forehead. When its master, John Wilker was kidnapped, Batman used Ace to locate and rescue its owner. When Wilker no longer had time to take care of Ace, the dog was left in the care of Batman and Robin, assisting them as the Bat-Hound in their fight against criminals.
4. All the Super-Pets aside from PB actually exist in the comics.
While Krypto and Ace have always been popular pet sidekicks of DC’s biggest heroes, the film’s Merton the turtle and Chip the squirrel actually exist in the comics as well. Merton the turtle, or Merton McSnurtle, debuted in DC’s Funny Stuff #1 where it became the speedster Terrific Whatzit in a world of anthropomorphic animals. Meanwhile, Chip or Ch’p in the comics is not a sidekick but an actual member of the Green Lantern Corps. As for PB the Pot-bellied Pig, she was created for this film to become Wonder Woman’s animal counterpart.
5. Keanu Reeves debuts as the Batman.
Whenever a new Batman comes to the big screen, fans are sure to look forward to the actor behind it. Despite being an animated film, DC League of Super-Pets made sure that there will be an A-lister actor behind his voice, casting Keanu Reeves for the role.
In an interview with Extra, Reeves also shared that he is open to the possibility of playing an older, live-action Batman. “It’s always been a … it’s been a dream,” the actor said. “Pattinson’s got Batman right now, and he’s doing awesome. Maybe down the road. Maybe when they need an older Batman.”
DC League of Super-Pets opens in cinemas nationwide this Wednesday, July 27, 2022. Book your seats in advance and buy your tickets here.