Christopher McDonald tells stories the way jazz musicians play solos—unhurried, unpredictable, and laced with unexpected notes of comedy. There’s a bit of Charlie Murphy in his detail, a touch of late-night raconteur in his delivery. His anecdotes are sprawling, the tangents indulgent, but every detail—somehow—feels essential. He’s telling the story of how a veteran talent booker by day found himself cast as Ron Troupe, the Daily Planet’s political reporter, in summer blockbuster Superman.
To understand how McDonald wound up in Metropolis, you have to rewind to a party—a very specific party—thrown by Sean Gunn, brother of director James Gunn. He was invited by his friend Michael Rosenbaum, who, coincidentally, played Superman’s foil Lex Luther in Smallville. It was there that he was introduced to the wonderkind director with a gift for cinematic world building. Somewhere between the cigars and cabernet, he struck up a conversation with Gunn himself. They formed a fast friendship.
Over the next three years, the trio—Rosenbaum, Gunn, McDonald—were near-weekly fixtures around L.A., turning casual hangs into crash courses in storytelling.
That story alone could anchor a profile. But McDonald doesn’t do clean arcs or tidy endings. An Emerson College graduate with a degree in broadcast journalism, he cut his teeth writing for the campus paper — probably long-form.
He shifts gears—slowly, deliberately—into a new thread: the more consequential, how-he-actually-got-offered-the-role narrative.
There’s a more efficient, linear version of this tale. But McDonald prefers the scenic route with details galore.
He prefaces it by noting, almost offhandedly, that James Gunn has a history of writing roles for friends. Then—just as casually—he pivots to his acting résumé. There was that indie film he landed just after college, titled Fudgy Wudgy Fudge Face. Directed by comedian Harland Williams, the film pairs a hyper intelligent alien with the dumbest man on planet Earth.
He also references the superhero student project at Emerson that earned him a Best Actor Evvy, the school’s equivalent of an Oscar.
And so, after a few detours, he decides this is the right place to start.
LEVEL: The way you landed this role is unique. Take us back to the moment James Gunn essentially cast you as Ron Troupe.
Christopher McDonald: I was sitting with my son. It was December 2023. My wife was on a girls’ trip in Turks & Caicos—important detail, which I’ll explain in a second. I get a text from James: “You still in Atlanta?” I’d lived in L.A. for 24 years, but had recently relocated. He says he’s going to be spending time at his place in Atlanta—he’s shooting Peacemaker and Superman partially down there.
Then he goes, “Selfishly, I’m hitting you up. Be at my house. Let’s hang. I’d love to see you and Brenda.” Cool, I say. Then: “Secondly, I want to know if you’re into this,” and he sends me a Google link for Ron Troupe.
I didn’t recognize the character right away. He came into the comics in the early ’90s, and by then I wasn’t reading religiously. I just saw it was a brother in glasses. Even then, I’m thinking—there’s no way he’s talking about Superman…for me?
So what was the play?
I kind of tiptoed around it: “So… what are you saying here?” And he goes, “I get it—you’re busy, and this is last-minute—but it’d be fun to have you on set.” I’m still confused. I finally just ask: “Are you asking me to be in this?” He says, “Oh yeah, I’d love for you to play this character.”
I’m still thinking, Is this Peacemaker? He goes, “No, it’s Superman. [Ron Troup] is part of the Daily Planet.” And then, like James always does, he tries to give me an out: “If you’re busy, no worries. I’ll find something else.”
Imagine a Gen-X man turning down an opportunity to be in Superman.
Right? I was like, No! This is a yes. I’ll make it work. I’m sitting there thinking, Damn, I want to tell my wife, but I’m not supposed to say anything yet. And she’s in Turks with her friends. I knew if I texted her, the entire trip would know by morning.
Did you tell anyone?
My son. I leaned over and said, “Hey Ellison, you know how I’m friends with James Gunn?” And he’s like, “You’re friends with James Gunn??” I go, “C’mon, I went to his wedding.” He goes, “I thought Rosenbaum invited you.”
This is comedy.
I said, “Can I tell you what I’m trying to tell you?” I start explaining, “You know how he’s directing…” and my son cuts me off: “Superman.” I’m like, “Yes! And he says there’s a role that fits me—so I’m going to be in Superman.”
And all he can say is, “I still can’t believe you’re friends with James Gunn.”
James Gunn is quite the chum.
I do have to add that James has the propensity to offer minor roles to his talented friends. He doesn't just give away stuff if he doesn't believe in it.
What was your first memory of Superman?
The very first Superman film—Richard Donner’s version with Christopher Reeve. That was it. I was young, but I knew who Superman was, and I was already a fan. For most Gen X boys, he was the superhero. When that movie dropped, I was obsessed.
Were you already into comics at that point?
Not yet. I was into toys more than anything, but that film is what pulled me into comics. After that, I got hyper-specific. I wanted to know everything about Superman, and then it just expanded to everything: Marvel, DC—even French comic books.
What struck you about James in the early years?
He was already writing—he had Dawn of the Dead under his belt, which I loved. Everyone knows him as a director now...but for me, at that time, he was a signature writer.” As someone who writes myself, I was blown away by his discipline and point of view.
You mentioned you saw something interesting on an industry list. What was that?
Yeah, so my writing partner and I had a manager who gave us access to this master list from CAA—basically a roadmap of films for the next 15–20 years. Huge blockbuster titles, each one with wishlist directors and cast. And I kept seeing James Gunn’s name next to all these massive properties: Thor, Iron Man, Transformers, even Godzilla. And the note next to every single one? “James Gunn — Passing.” This was around 2004, so it was kind of ahead of the Marvel universe.
I saw James a few days later and told him. He said, “Yeah, I passed on all of them. I need to write, produce, and direct. It has to be mine, start to finish.” I thought, you’re out of your mind—you’re never going to work again. But he had a vision. And now? He’s not just directing Superman, he runs the whole DC studio.
What’s his superpower as a director?
Vision—without question. It’s the way he sees the entire machine: casting, lighting, story, tone. Every detail matters to him. On Superman, he brought the cast together almost every night. We’d have dinner, smoke cigars, talk film. I’ve never seen someone work like that—he’ll direct a movie while writing an entire season of Peacemaker on the side.
Can you share a moment where you saw that vision in full force on set?
Absolutely. The first scene I shot is the one from the trailer—Clark Kent walking through the Daily Planet. It was a five-minute continuous take, shot with about 20 cameras in a fully built-out office space. We’re talking 100 extras, real desks, fog machines, old phones, hand-written notes on our desks—it felt like stepping into a real newsroom.
And James ran that whole scene like a conductor. From Video Village, giving notes, hitting every camera angle. He didn’t need 30 takes—he nailed it in a handful. You don’t fake that kind of control.
What was that first day on set like?
We arrived a week before filming so James could bond the Daily Planet crew together. He wanted us to feel like real colleagues. That first day walking onto set—I had imposter syndrome. I mean, Wendell Pierce? Rachel Brosnahan? Beck Bennett? These are heavyweights. Then I walk into my trailer, and there’s my costume: a note that says “First time we see Ron Troupe.” And I just froze. It hit me—this is real.
I kept seeing James Gunn’s name next to all these massive properties: Thor, Iron Man, Transformers, even Godzilla. And the note next to every single one? “James Gunn — Passing.”
Tell me about Ron Troupe.
He’s a serious journalist—a political reporter at the Daily Planet. He’s married to Lucy Lane, Lois’ sister [in the comics]. They have a kid. There’s even a storyline in the comics where he interviews Bill Clinton. I love that. And personally, it brought me full circle. I was a journalism major, wrote for the school paper, covered political beats. To play someone like that—it’s poetic.
You have a really important day job in television. How did people react to finding out you were in the movie?
I kept it quiet. I was under NDA. I filmed over summer hiatus, so it didn’t interfere with work. No one knew except my son, my wife, and one friend I had to confide in. Eventually, we got spotted with the cast. Reddit figured it out. The studio decided to confirm it officially—about 30 minutes before I was about to go on stage at the Emmys for The Kelly Clarkson Show [where I work].
So I’m at the table, my phone blows up, the article hits, and Kelly wins. I’m onstage looking pale as hell. My wife texts me a screenshot: “Fix your face.” It was surreal. But the studio was supportive. So was Kelly. She didn’t even know until we were prepping for cast interviews—and then she was like, wait, what?!