David Corenswet bio, age, height, girlfriend, Superman, family, career path 2025

David Corenswet Biography

David Corenswet is an American actor familiar to audiences from his roles in the series "The Politician," "Hollywood," and others. He's also known as a screenwriter and producer. In summer 2023, it was announced that he would play the next Superman in the film "Superman: Legacy."

Childhood and Youth

The future actor was born in July 1993 to a Jewish family in Philadelphia.

His parents John and Caroline were both lawyers, though his father had spent many years on the New York stage as an actor before starting his legal career.

David grew up with his older sister Amy. She followed in their parents' footsteps, graduated from the University of Pennsylvania Law School, and became a practicing attorney.

David's maternal grandfather is renowned writer Edward Packard.

Education

After high school, David enrolled at the University of Pennsylvania with plans to become a psychologist. However, during his freshman year, he decided to change direction and transferred to the prestigious Juilliard School, where he mastered the acting craft and graduated in 2016.

Acting Career

David discovered theater as a child. As a little boy, he watched his sister perform in a production of "Fiddler on the Roof" and "caught the acting bug." He began participating in professional productions at age nine, making his stage debut in 2002.

At eighteen, he wrote the screenplay for a short film called "Chasing Chase" and played the lead role in the picture.

After that, Corenswet became one of the writers and co-producer of a comedy web series called "Mo and Jerryweather." New episodes of the sketch show appeared online from 2014 to 2016.

David Corenswet in the sketch show 'Mo and Jerryweather'

In 2017, the actor appeared in the series "Elementary" as Houston Spivey, and a year later landed the lead role in the drama "Affairs of State." Corenswet's character was an ambitious young political figure willing to do whatever it takes to win an election.

David Corenswet in the series 'Affairs of State'

Audiences could then see the actor in another long-running political project — the series "House of Cards."

In the detective series "Instinct" (2018), David Corenswet played Spencer Baymore.

Real success came to the actor through his participation in Netflix's "The Politician," directed by Ryan Murphy, who previously created the mystical series "American Horror Story." David Corenswet played River — the rival of main character Payton Hobart, portrayed on screen by Ben Platt.

David Corenswet in the series "The Politician"

In 2020, David landed the lead role of Jack Castello in the seven-episode series "Hollywood," set in the period shortly after World War II. The actor once again worked with Ryan Murphy, who served not only as director but also as one of the screenwriters. Corenswet himself, in addition to his on-screen work, took on executive producer duties for "Hollywood."

David Corenswet in the series "Hollywood"

Preparing for the role, he watched old Hollywood films and recalled stories from his grandfather, who had fought in World War II.

Jack was in the war. When I was a student, I did a lot of research about World War II. I talked to my grandfather, who fought in World War II. So I had a good background of the European theater, which was Jack's only story.

In 2022, the actor played one of the roles in the crime series "We Own This City." In this show based on real events, he transformed into a police officer.

Two plainclothes police officers are sitting at a table and talking — A shot from the series "We Own This City"

In the fantasy film "Look Both Ways," Corenswet landed the role of Jake. Also in 2022, he became part of the "Pearl" project, where the main character Pearl was played by Mia Goth. In this horror film, Corenswet's character was a projectionist.

The New Superman

In June 2023, news broke that Corenswet would become DC Studios' new Superman in "Superman: Legacy," taking over the role from Henry Cavill after James Gunn took the helm of DC's film franchise in October 2022. The role of Superman's girlfriend Lois Lane went to Rachel Brosnahan, known for her starring role in "The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel."

In 2023 David Corenswet replaced Henry Cavill in the role of Superman

The actor literally manifested his childhood dream. Back in 2019, in an Entertainment Weekly interview, Corenswet openly declared that playing Superman was his "pie-in-the-sky ambition." He said at the time: "I love Henry Cavill's dark and brooding interpretation, but I'd love to see the next version be very bright and optimistic" Meet David Corenswet, the New Superman | TIME. Those words turned out to be prophetic.

The casting process in summer 2023 was quite the ordeal. Gunn screened around 400 actors. But David was "the guy everyone else had to beat" from the very beginning. During final tests, Corenswet literally burst out of Henry Cavill's Superman costume – he was too tall for the old suit.

When Gunn called Corenswet with news of his successful audition, the actor was on set filming "Twisters." The director set one condition: Corenswet had to treat everyone involved in the production with kindness and respect. His "Twisters" co-stars' reaction was ecstatic – Glen Powell, Brandon Perea, and other cast members threw an on-set celebration.

Corenswet reached out for advice from previous Superman actors – Henry Cavill and Tyler Hoechlin. Both gave him an unexpected response:

They both in their own way said, 'I'm not going to try to give you advice.' Instead, they offered words of support and a sense of 'have fun with this.'

David Corenswet's Personal Life

Alongside his professional triumph, equally important events were unfolding in Corenswet's personal life. In March 2023, he married actress Julia Best Warner at the Immaculate Conception Church in New Orleans. The ceremony was interfaith: Corenswet is Jewish while Warner is Catholic, and they incorporated both Jewish and Catholic traditions into the service.

David Corenswet and Julia Warner pose against the photo backdrop — David Corenswet and his wife Julia

The couple first met as teenagers in the Upper Darby Summer Stage theater program in Pennsylvania. Their romantic relationship, as David admitted, developed gradually.

In 2023, Julia told David she was pregnant – just two days after he learned he'd landed the Superman role.

In 2024, the couple welcomed a daughter whose name they're keeping private. Interestingly, David gained about 40 pounds for the Superman role around the same time Julia was gaining pregnancy weight: "I started snoring and had to use her pregnancy pillow," David recalled.

Corenswet shared on the Manly Things podcast:

Gaining weight for Superman... I was looking for an excuse to really put on weight. I started filming at around 228 pounds. When I put on a hoodie, it was an XL or XXL, and I thought, 'I'm filling this out. This is awesome.' I couldn't fit into any of my pants.

David Corenswet Now

In 2024, Corenswet could be seen as Scott in the disaster film "Twisters." He also appeared alongside Natalie Portman in the Apple TV+ miniseries "Lady in the Lake."

In October 2024, Corenswet was announced as part of the cast for "Mr. Irrelevant," directed by Jonathan Levine. He landed the role of football player John Tuggle, the last player selected in the 1983 NFL Draft.

Meanwhile, James Gunn's "Superman" hit theaters worldwide on July 8, 2025. Critics gave "Superman" a strong 86% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

David Corenswet and the cast of Superman pose on the red carpet — David Corenswet at the "Superman" premiere

On July 7, 2025, Corenswet appeared with his wife on the red carpet at the Hollywood premiere of "Superman." This marked their first official public appearance as a married couple.

David Corenswet