At some point during Clark’s three years as Superman, he meets his Kryptonian cousin, Kara Zor-El/Supergirl. Kara often visits planets with red suns (which nullify her powers and immunity to alcohol) and leaves her dog Krypto with Clark.
Lex, observing Superman from the shadows, recovers a strand of Superman’s hair from a battle and uses it to grow a clone of the hero: Ultraman. He also turns the former soldier Angela Spice (María Gabriela de Faría) into a metahuman, the Engineer, who can reshape her body thanks to nanites in her bloodstream. Lex, who has created a pocket universe traversable through portals across the world, additionally sets up a prison and anti-Superman internet troll farm within this pocket world. He then begins encouraging the president of Boravia to invade the neighboring land of Jarhanpur, knowing Superman will intervene and he can use this to turn the public against him.
About four months before “Superman,” Clarks starts dating his Daily Planet coworker, Lois Lane (Rachel Brosnahan). Then about three months after that, when Boravia launches its invasion of Jarhanpur, Superman intervenes and sends the Boravian army packing (no casualties).
Luthor then sends Ultraman into the field, disguised as armored metahuman “The Hammer of Boravia,” who is the first villain to outright defeat Superman. But when Luthor pitches his anti-Superman force to the Pentagon, it’s not sold. So, he invades the Fortress of Solitude (bypassing a DNA lock with Ultraman’s cloned genes), kidnaps Krypto, and steals Jor-El’s last message. Decoding it, Luthor broadcasts the truth to the world: Superman’s parents intended him to conquer the planet, not save it.
A stunned Superman becomes public enemy no. 1. He surrenders himself to be locked up in Luthor’s pocket dimension, guarded by Rex Mason/Metamorpho (Anthony Carrigan), who can turn his body into different elements like Kryptonite.
Lois and Jimmy Olsen (Skyler Gisondo) piece together Lex’s scheme just as Boravia is about to relaunch its invasion with Superman out of the picture. Lois and Mister Terrific rescue Superman, Krypto, Metamorpho, and the latter’s son Joey from the pocket dimension. Lex, determined to destroy Superman and punish the world that worships him, lets the Pocket Dimension rift grow big enough to engulf Metropolis in response.
Superman, rejuvenated by a pep talk from his Pa, defeats Lex and Ultraman, while the Justice Gang (with new member Metamorpho) stop the Boravian invasion. Lois, Jimmy, and the Daily Planet staff then publish a story exposing Luthor’s plans, landing him a spot in Belle Reve.
The crisis abated, Superman rests at the repaired Fortress of Solitude. Kara stops by to pick up Krypto, while Clark has accepted Earth as his one and only home.
“Superman” is now playing in theaters.