How these VFX teams found inspiration in unlikely places

Some of the year's most stunning visual effects were grounded in real-world influences, from James Gunn's bad dog to Katy Perry

- Story by Michael Ordoña

FOUR OF THE TOP CONtenders for the 2026 visual effects Oscar boldly reimagine beloved worlds or characters. For "Superman" and "The Fantastic Four: First Steps," the VFX teams created bright, idiosyncratic visions of two of the most famous comic-book franchises. The remake "How to Train Your Dragon" translated computer animation to live action and the sequel "Tron: Ares" downloaded elements from a digital domain to the flesh-and-blood world.

MAKING 'SUPERMAN' FUN AGAIN

For writer-director James Gunn's warmer, more optimistic take on "Superman," a core mantra was "How do we keep it fun?"

"When Guy Gardner [Nathan Fillion as the notoriously caustic Green Lantern] uses his powers, there is a playfulness," says visual effects supervisor Stephane Ceretti. "Guy creates oven mitts to capture this kaiju. When he sweeps away the tanks, we didn't originally have him using [a giant] middle finger, but it works."

For the flying scenes, they employed the "volume" — the recent technology that surrounds physical elements of sets with giant LED screens displaying the environments of the scene (say, another planet or the city of Metropolis, blazing by at breakneck speeds seen by a character in flight). That choice allowed star David Corenswet to react in real time to his filmed environment, rather than shooting him before a blue screen and later superimposing him over footage.