So the other day, I decided to give Batman vs Superman another watch. It’s not exactly a cinematic masterpiece, but it still packs enough punch to keep you entertained for a couple of hours. As I was watching it, something incredibly odd jumped out at me, so much so that I had to talk it over with my friends afterward. Spoilers ahead if you haven’t seen it yet!

At the climax of the film, Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman are battling this monstrous creature with enough action and special effects to make your head spin. It all leads to Superman deciding he must sacrifice himself to save the team, the city, and pretty much all of mankind. He goes through with it, the bad guy bites the dust, and Superman is left dying. It’s a somber moment, full of typical drama and “yada yada yada.”

But then, right at this pivotal juncture, I noticed something. Do you see that too? Isn’t that a cross? It’s pretty prominently displayed in the shot, and it got me thinking: Is Superman supposed to be a Jesus figure here? Did they intentionally use Christian symbolism in this superhero flick?

Christian symbolism in movies isn’t new; think about how Narnia is loaded with it. I don’t know much about Zack Snyder’s personal beliefs, and I’m not inclined to look it up, but it seems like the film might have been making a deliberate Jesus reference with Superman’s sacrificial act.

Whether it was intentional or not, the story of Superman here does echo the story of Jesus from the Bible. It’s hard to ignore the parallels. Even in a so-called secular society like Sweden, where I live, Christian traditions are deeply embedded in our culture and everyday life. Christmas celebrations, moral values, even how we treat each other – these all have roots in Christian teachings, whether we think about it or not.

In moments of crisis, many people, even those who claim not to be religious, tend to fall back on these traditions. Think about the tsunami in 2004 when many Swedish lives were lost; priests were there to bless the bodies as they arrived back home. Similarly, at funerals, people usually want a priest to say a few comforting words, even if they don’t usually go to church.

This deep-seated influence extends to the stories we tell and how we interpret the world around us. Legendary tales like the Passion story of Christ influence our cultural consciousness so profoundly that they shape our understanding of reality, almost like second nature.

Remember Carl Jung’s theories about archetypes in mythologies? While scholars might not fully buy into them today, they do shed light on our relationship with storytelling. Stories shape us, and in turn, we shape stories. It’s a continuous cycle.

So, did the Christ narrative sneak into Batman vs Superman through some kind of cultural programming? And what about that cross? Was it a subconscious slip or a well-thought-out placement?

Maybe it’s all a coincidence. Maybe the filmmakers didn’t mean to make a profound statement and were just making a movie about an alien superhero from Krypton who sacrifices himself. Or maybe I’m just reading too much into it—as always. Either way, it was an interesting moment in an otherwise, let’s be honest, pretty dull film. Catch you next time!