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What’s the point of making movies if you can’t have a little fun doing it? As the release of Superman — the debut film under the new DC Studios brand — looms, director James Gunn has shared his favorite thing about filmmaking. Is it the epic stories or deep emotional connections with audiences? Nope. It’s lighting someone on fire.

This fascination runs fairly deep with James Gunn, as he explained in a recent interview. “I blew up a lot of things as a kid. You know what I mean? I burnt a lot of things. I blew up a lot of things. And I still like it. You know, making movies, my favorite thing to do in making a movie is lighting a person on fire. That’s the most – that gives me… Oh, it’s terrifying. It’s terrifying.”

There is an important distinction here: James Gunn likes lighting people on fire under the safest conditions possible, which is surrounded by professional stunt coordinators and medical staff. Still, the fear is what makes the act so appealing. “It’s scary because they might burn to death, and so when the moment happens, and they’re like, you know, give the thumbs up, they’re done and everybody comes in and puts them out, and they’re still – they’re not a skeleton, that’s a triumphant moment as a film director.”

Quite why James Gunn is setting people on fire is an open question. After all, he's at DC Studios now, and the Human Torch is from the other guys. (Marvel's The Fantastic Four: First Steps is out in theaters two weeks after Superman, coincidentally.)

Again, we want to stress that the statement, “James Gunn admits he likes setting people on fire,” is not an accusation of murderous intent. It speaks volumes to his dedication to practical effects on film sets, which we love to see. However, watching the interview there was a distinct sparkle in his eye as he described lighting people on fire.

Superman flies into theaters July 11.

James Gunn's Superman movie is out now - and we have a lot to say about it. You can also read about Superman's S-Shield through the ages, how Superman and Clark Kent keep their secret identity secret, our recs for best Superman comics, and how to watch all his TV series and movies in order.