The characters of DC’s lineup are some of the most powerful characters in fiction. While they haven’t reached the heights of Marvel’s characters in terms of movie adaptations in recent years, these characters are still deserving of some dropped jaws due to surprising abilities. Though for many of them, their skills weren’t earned: they were given.
Whether it was due to their godly parents or the fact that an actual God saw something special in them, creating an all-powerful alter-ego for an ordinary person in the process, many superheroes and villains gained their incredible strength from a deity. Some of them are characters that we all know, like Superman, Wonder Woman, or Darkseid, with origins that haven’t been deeply explored on the big screen. Then there are others, who have yet to be introduced to mainstream audiences, yet are still some of the most remarkable to be shown in comics.
As is the case with their competitor, Marvel, DC has explored their own unique versions of pantheons found in our real world, such as Greek and Egyptian. But it wasn’t until Wonder Woman in 2017 that moviegoers got a taste of it. Because of this, some may be unaware just how many ties to almighty forces some of their characters have.
DC has also gone beyond what we know of Gods and Goddesses, creating their own ethereal beings to explain why some of their heroes and baddies are the strongest around. Here are 25 DC characters fans never knew had Gods for parents.
25 Wonder Woman
DC’s recent movies haven’t exactly pleased everyone. But 2017’s Wonder Woman was an entirely different breed. Gal Gadot crushed it in the lead role and the film was almost universally adored. Justice League on the other hand, which also featured the hero, not so much.
24 Ares
For those already familiar with Greek Mythology, they would know that Ares is the son of Zeus and Hera. His DC counterpart has the same lineage, though the family dynamic may even be a bit more complicated than what it takes inspiration from.
Ares is typically a villain for Wonder Woman, as was seen in her solo film. And as Wonder Woman also got her powers from the Greek God of Lightning, this means the two of them are siblings.
23 Raven
The member of the Teen Titans with the most angst may also be the most powerful. If you grew up watching the animated Teen Titans on Cartoon Network, you saw Raven perform some seriously awesome magical attacks such as energy projection and the ability to astral project a black bird, known as her soul-self, which could teleport others.
These abilities come from her demon father, Trigon.
But Raven would shun her dad, siding with the part of her that comes from her human mother. And she would use these abilities as well as she could as a force for good.
22 Darkseid
It is a downright shame that we have never been given a live-action adaptation of this DC villain, as he is one of the most sinister creations in their library. He was mentioned several times in Justice League as the person Steppenwolf follows, but many casual audience members probably don’t understand how dangerous he can be.
He comes from a different universe, where he betrayed his father of the Old Gods who used the prayers of humans to sustain their powers. Darkseid, real name Uxas, stole their powers for himself and now spends his free time conquering worlds.
21 Superman
Superman may legitimately be the strongest superhero of all time, for a number of reasons. And while many may have just assumed that he basically is a God due to his sheer strength, he really is linked to a Kryptonian God.
The House of El, Superman’s family, are descendants of Rao.
Rao is the entity that the Kryptonians worship and also the name of the Red Sun that orbited the planet. Kal-El is indeed powerful due to his race, but he is even more so due to his linkage to a God.
20 Mister Miracle
The work on the recent Mister Miracle comic by Tom King has seen a resurgence in popularity for the character, which is great because the backstory of the character is fascinating.
Scott Free is the son of Highfather Izaya, Darkseid’s brother.
He actually grew up on Apokolips under the care of one of Darkseid’s minions when the two Gods agreed to trade children as part of a peace treaty. But, being the god of escape, he eventually fled to Earth and currently resides there. “Scott Free” makes a lot more sense now, doesn’t it?
19 Orion
Where Mister Miracle grew up with Darkseid, this hero grew up with Izaya. But where Mister Miracle couldn’t be persuaded by the forces of darkness at Darkseid’s disposal, Orion became a hero by growing up under Isaya on the planet of New Genesis.
Being that he was a child of Darkseid, learning to control the rage within him was difficult. But he would overcome these struggles, fighting for peace and even joining the Justice League. Which must have severely ticked off his monstrous biological father.
18 Swamp Thing
The life of Alec Holland isn’t that complicated. How the Swamp Thing was created from him, however, is. Alec was a chemist who created a formula that caused hormonal growth in plants, helping them to survive harsh elements and, let’s face it, us humans.
But when some bad people tried to steal his formula and blow up his lab, Alec ended up in a Louisiana river. The Parliament of Trees, godlike elemental creatures that protect plant life, created Swamp Thing from the formula Alec’s body was covered in. Swamp Thing also retained all of Alec’s memories.
17 King Shark
This frequent villain of Aquaman and The Flash has had his origins scoffed at by other characters who think of him as some sort of mutant. But any question of his holy lineage was put to rest when it was confirmed in 2006 that his father is a God.
His father’s name is Chondrakha, a Shark God from Hawaii.
Nanaue also gets his villainous name from his father, who is also known as The King of All Sharks. His body means he can survive underwater as well as on land. And his ferocity makes for one tough foe.
16 Cassie Sandsmark
She isn’t the first character to hold the mantle of Wonder Girl, but Cassie is the only one who’s a god. And she’s even related to Wonder Woman.
Cassie was raised by a single mom who worked as an archaeologist and initially got her powers from a pair of magical bracelets. But, wanting real powers, she sought out Zeus who then granted them to her. She would later find out that he was her father. But in the New 52 version of the character, Zeus was rewritten to be her grandfather.
15 Hippolyta
14 Kalibak
If you grew up on Superman: The Animated Series, you more than likely remember this notable brute of a villain who operated as Darkseid’s second in command. But he was more than just a trusty general to Darkseid; Kalibak is Darkseid’s first-born.
While the tyrant was totally fine trading his second-born, Orion, he kept Kalibak very close to him. And thus, Kalibak grew up to be one of the most powerfully ruthless characters in DC history. He was certainly a force to be reckoned with in the animated series, but the show couldn’t show just how brutal he could be.
13 Grail
Although not as well known as Darkseid’s other children, she’s the only one surrounded by a world-ending prophecy.
12 Shazam
There are many of DC’s characters who aren’t born from Gods, yet their superhero personas are. Take Billy Batson, for example. He’s an ordinary kid who becomes a God thanks to the abilities who were gifted to him from an old wizard (yes, really).
This wizard was actually the first Shazam and his own powers come from several Gods, some from different pantheons. He has the intelligence of Solomon, the strength of Hercules, the stamina of Atlas, the power of Zeus, the courage of Achilles, and the speed of Mercury (literally SHAZAM).
11 Black Adam
On the opposite end of the spectrum of Shazam is his main villain, Black Adam. And similarly to Billy Batson, he didn’t start off as a God. While he was originally a son to Pharaoh Ramses II in Ancient Egypt, the New 52 reboot rewrote him as a slave.
Whichever backstory you look at, Black Adam still received his powers from the same wizard Billy Batson got his from.
Only, in the case of Black Adam, they were that of six Egyptian Gods. Shu, Heru, Amon, Zehuti, Aton, and Mehen all join to create one terribly almighty bad guy.
10 Bast
DC has done well to mostly stay away from Gods that Marvel made popular, such as the Egyptian Goddess Bast who is permanently linked to Black Panther.
Neil Gaiman’s The Sandman, published by Vertigo which is owned by DC, is a different story.
The dark fantasy series follows the Sandman, who’s the personification of Dreams, as he rebuilds his kingdom after being held captive for 70 years. It’s delightfully weird and features Bast, the Egyptian Goddess of Cats. She’s the daughter of Isis, Goddess of Fertility, and Ra, the God of the Sun.
9 Hawkman
Just like Black Adam, Carter Hall was born thousands of years ago in Egypt. Once a prince with a different name and face, he came across the mysterious Nth Metal, which comes from an alien planet and gives anti-gravitational effects to whomever wears it. Hawkman, for example, uses it as a belt and boots.
But this mysterious material also made him immortal. He can perish, but his ability of reincarnation means he’ll always come back, just as a different person or being. While it wasn’t a deity that made Hawkman, there aren’t many things more god-like than immortality.
8 Infinity Man
One wouldn’t think it to look at this ethereal hero, but Infinity Man is actually Darkseid’s brother. Other than that, the two basically have nothing in common.
And just like many Gods in comic books, this one has a complicated history.
Izaya is Darkseid’s brother and ruler of New Genesis. But Infinity Man is an extension of himself that was created after he came into contact with the Source Wall, a barrier separating the Multiverse from The Source, the literal source of limitless energy that resulted in all forms of life. Which is entirely too complex to explain here.
7 Takion
Infinity Man isn’t the only godly hero to be born from The Source’s power. Josh Saunders was a relatively normal person when he was chosen by Highfather Isaya to be an elemental for The Source. He did this as a way to create a back-up in case he were ever eliminated, having a body to come back into if need be.
Being connected to The Source meant Takion had “cosmic awareness,” able to forsee any event anywhere, though still limited by having a human brain. In an ironic twist, Takion would eventually lose his life to Infinity Man.
6 Fury
Steppenwolf, Darkseid’s best bud, was leading an attack with this unknown warrior, though it was later revealed that she was his daughter. You may have noticed the resemblance, but she is also the daughter of Wonder Woman.
