10 Movie Characters Who Discovered That Their Universe Didn’t Exist

In the Superman films and shows I’ve watched over the years, there’s always the question of what life would be like for Superman if he had the opportunity to live a normal human life. In the second episode of Justice League Unlimited, we find ourselves exploring that exact scenario.

Based on the storyline in D.C. Comics, it features Clark Kent living an idyllic life married to Lois Lane and they even have a beloved son. Oh, and as if that wasn’t happy enough, he’s also living on a not-blown-up Krypton and gets to spend time with his biological parents. Unfortunately for our Man of Steel, it’s revealed that he is actually in his Fortress of Solitude, found by Batman and Wonder Woman with a parasite attached to his body. The parasite places the victim in a happy – albeit fake – world, leaving them totally vulnerable in the real one. This parasite is revealed in turn to have been part of a plot by the villain, Mongul, to avenge himself against Superman, but with the help of Batman and Wonder Woman, Mongul’s plan is foiled.

This is only a pseudo-happy ending on account of the overwhelming emotional gut-punch we had to face watching Superman realize that not only his life, but his very son, wasn’t real. When he has to tearfully bid his son farewell and watch the young boy fade into nothingness, I can imagine most of the audience hated it as much as that super-depressing dog episode of Futurama. You know, that episode no one ever talks about. This is, by far, the most emotionally distressing reality break on this list. Please, can we move on to literally anything else now?