This summer, Superman will fly onto the big screen, but he won’t be alone. The Man of Steel will be joined by some of his greatest allies, including Mister Terrific. But who exactly…is that?

No judgement if you’re not familiar with him. Mister Terrific isn’t as widely known as many of DC’s other heroes, but he’s no less accomplished. Michael Holt is a great leader, smart tactician, skillful engineer and an inspiring superhero—but that’s really only the beginning. Here’s a quick dossier to bring you up to speed on who he is ahead of his cinematic debut in DC Studios’ Superman.

• Michael Holt made his first appearance in 1997’s The Spectre #54, which was written by John Ostrander and penciled by Tom Mandrake.
• When readers first meet Michael, he is feeling suicidal after his wife Paula was killed in a car accident. In response, the Spectre tells Michael about Terry Sloane, the original Mister Terrific. Realizing that Sloane’s death has left a void in the superhero community, Michael Holt becomes the new Mister Terrific, continuing Sloane’s mission of inspiring and helping at-risk youths.
• During his first outing as Mister Terrific, Michael stared down the Spectre, one of the scariest and most powerful beings in the DC Universe. DC’s Spirit of Vengeance had shown up to claim the souls of some gang members, but Michael said they could still be redeemed and he was willing to bet his own soul on it. The Spectre, who is not used to showing mercy, agreed, leaving the criminals to Mister Terrific.

• Holt was inspired by Terry Sloane’s “Fair Play” motto and has made it part of his mission statement as a superhero. The message is embroidered on his costume as a constant reminder to never lose sight of that core value. 
• Michael Holt’s first encounter with many of the DC Universe heroes was at Jim Corrigan’s funeral in 1997’s The Spectre #62. Of course, there wasn’t much time for socializing.
• Mister Terrific’s original costume consisted of jeans, sunglasses and a black bomber jacket with “Fair Play” written on the back. Holt only wore this costume for his first two appearances before switching to his iconic black and white outfit in 1999’s JSA #5.

• A bonafide genius, Michael Holt is generally regarded as one of the smartest humans in the DC Universe. He has fourteen PhDs in multiple fields of studies including engineering, law, mathematics and more. Both Batman and Lex Luthor have privately wondered if Mister Terrific is smarter than them, although Lex will never admit it aloud.
• Among Mister Terrific’s greatest inventions are his T-Spheres, which were introduced in 2000’s JSA #11. The floating spheres attack enemies, set up security grids, transmit messages and have plenty of other remarkable features. They also allow Holt to defy gravity when he stands on them.

• Holt started his first company, Cyberwear Tech, when he was 20 years old. He would later sell the company to Bruce Wayne. Holt currently operates a high-tech research organization called Terrifitech.
• The first super-villain Holt ever battled was Kobra. The cult leader was surprised to learn that Mr. Terrific had black belts in six major martial arts disciplines (2000’s JSA #12).
• The first superhero team Holt joined was the Justice Society of America (2000’s JSA #11). Mister Terrific proved to be a valuable member and in 2001’s JSA #27, he was elected team leader (despite not running). Although Holt was reluctant to accept the position, he wound up leading the JSA to some of their greatest victories.

• In addition to the JSA, Mister Terrific has also been a member of the Justice League (2018’s Justice League #1) and Checkmate (2006’s Checkmate #1). In recent years, Holt formed his own superhero team called the Terrifics (The Terrifics #1) and a superhero braintrust called the Terrific-Council (The Terrifics #26).
• Michael Holt is an atheist. This surprised his ally Ragman, who noted that Holt has encountered many supernatural and religious heroes like the Spectre, Zauriel and Deadman (Infinite Crisis #5).
• Thanks to nanotechnology built into his costume, Mister Terrific is a walking blind spot when it comes to technology. This means he can’t be photographed, sensed by radars, or picked up by audio sensors. Don’t worry, he and James Gunn worked out a deal so he could be filmed for the new Superman movie.

• When Michael feels anxious, he tries to imagine his allies and enemies in nothing but their underwear. In 2000’s JSA #13, he revealed that he learned this trick from an episode of The Brady Bunch.
• Michael Holt’s identity as Mister Terrific is publicly known. However, he still wears a mask so he can protect his eyes from chemical attacks.
• In 2003’s JSA: All-Stars #7, Michael learned that his wife Paula had been pregnant when she died. However, in a surprising turn of events, Holt later learned that the child had been removed from the womb by Granny Goodness. The boy was then raised to be a warrior in Granny’s Furious, a male version of her Female Furies (The Flash #799). After his rescue, the boy took on the name Jeffrey Holt, and the superhero alias Fairplay.

• Justice League Unlimited was the first time Michael Holt appeared outside of comics. The character was voiced by Michael Beach. Interestingly, the DC Animated Universe version of Holt joined the Justice League years before his comic counterpart would.
• The first live-action version of Mister Terrific made his debut on Arrow in its fourth season. Played by Echo Kellum, he was renamed Curtis Holt and became a valuable member of Team Arrow for the remainder of the show’s run. This version of the character was gay, and thus, his partner Paula was reimagined as Paul.

• Mister Terrific will make his cinematic debut this summer in Superman, where he will be played by Edi Gathegi, who has appeared in shows like For All Mankind, The Blacklist and StartUp. Did you see the way he used those T-Spheres in the Superman trailer? Wow!
   

If any of this piqued your curiosity, you’re in luck. Mister Terrific: Year One, a new comic series by Al Letson and Valentine De Landro that retells Michael’s origin through a modern lens, debuts this week. And don’t forget to check him out in Superman, in theaters July 11. If the movie version of Holt is even half as epic as his comic counterpart, then we’re in for a real treat.
 

Mister Terrific: Year One #1 by Al Letson, Valentine De Landro and Marissa Louise is available in print and as a digital comic book tomorrow.

Joshua Lapin-Bertone writes about TV, movies and comics for DC.com, is a regular contributor to the Couch Club and writes our monthly Batman column, "Gotham Gazette." Follow him on Bluesky at @joshualapinbertone and on X at @TBUJosh.

NOTE: The views and opinions expressed in this feature are solely those of Joshua Lapin-Bertone and do not necessarily reflect those of DC or Warner Bros. Discovery, nor should they be read as confirmation or denial of future DC plans.