Just this week, Netflix’s CEO insinuated that James Gunn’s Superman starring David Corenswet was a disappointment. Still, that hasn’t stopped Paramount from betting big and releasing Jonathan Levine’s Mr. Irrelevant, Corenswet’s latest flick, on Christmas Day 2026. The film will face tough opposition, including Avengers: Doomsday, Dune: Part III, and Robert Eggers’ Werewulf.
David Corenswet, fresh off Superman, will play John Tuggle, the New York Giants running back who got picked last in the 1983 NFL Draft. Hence, the nickname “Mr. Irrelevant”. Tuggle turned the negativity into a story people still talk about, even though his pro career lasted just one season. Perhaps that’s exactly the thinking behind Paramount’s decision to face it off against giants over the festive period.
John Davis Tuggle was born January 13, 1961. He started at Independence High School in San Jose, then pushed through four seasons with the California Golden Bears, then landed in New York with the Giants. He fought his way onto the roster, stood out on special teams, and earned the team’s Special Teams Player of the Year. Not bad for a guy labeled “irrelevant” before he even put on the uniform.
Then the story turns. Injuries. Personal struggles. Pain nobody could explain. Cancer. Yet the people around him didn’t describe him as fragile.
Levine gives the bet some logic. He directed 50/50 in 2011, a well-reviewed stoner-cancer dramedy that knew how to land a laugh without stepping on the pain. He also made The Night Before, which quietly became one of those holiday rewatch picks people pretend they discovered first. Long Shot worked as a hit comedy with Charlize Theron and Seth Rogen, and Warm Bodies pulled off the rare zombie comedy that also made real money, $118M at the box office. If you want a director who can keep a tragic story watchable, Levine’s résumé already did the sales pitch.
Still, he hasn’t directed a feature in over seven years. He stayed busy, though. He directed almost every episode of Hulu’s Nine Perfect Strangers with Nicole Kidman, which sounds like the kind of job that takes up most of your calendar.
Tuggle died on August 30, 1986, at 25. The Giants covered his medical insurance and wore his number 38 during their Super Bowl-winning season. In October 2024, news broke that his life would become Mr. Irrelevant, with David Corenswet stepping into the role.
Now the date’s official, the strategy’s clear, and it sits in the middle of your holiday schedule. Will David Corenswet have enough muscle to push Mr. Irrelevant to the Oscars? We’ll have to wait and see.
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