# Kryptonite
> Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Kryptonite
> Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Kryptonite.md
> Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kryptonite
> Source revision: 1357050198
> License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/)
{{Short description|Fictional element from Superman stories}}
{{Distinguish|Krypton|Kryptonium}}
{{Other}}
{{pp-move}}
{{Infobox comics elements
|image = Kryptonite (DC Comics).jpg
|caption = Green kryptonite as seen in
''[Superman: Secret Origin](/source/Superman%3A_Secret_Origin)'' #1. Art by [Gary Frank](/source/Gary_Frank_(artist))
|publisher = [DC Comics](/source/DC_Comics)
|debut = {{ubl|'''Radio:'''
{{nowrap|''[The Adventures of Superman](/source/The_Adventures_of_Superman_(radio_series))'' (June 1943)}}|'''Comics:'''
''[Superman](/source/Superman_(comic_book))'' #61 (November 1949)}}
| creators =
|type = Element/compound
|material = y
|supports = {{ubl|[Superman](/source/Superman)|[Superboy](/source/Superboy)|[Supergirl](/source/Supergirl)}}
|subcat = DC Comics
|sortkey = Kryptonite
}}
'''Kryptonite''' is a fictional material that appears primarily in [Superman](/source/Superman) stories published by [DC Comics](/source/DC_Comics). In its best-known form, it is a green, crystalline material originating from Superman's home world of [Krypton](/source/Krypton_(comics)) that emits a unique, poisonous radiation that can weaken and even kill Superman and other [Kryptonian](/source/Kryptonian)s. Kryptonite radiation can be transmitted through any element except [lead](/source/lead). There are other varieties, such as red kryptonite and gold kryptonite, which have different but still generally negative effects.
Adversaries of Superman and other characters are frequently depicted using kryptonite against Superman,[{{cite book|last1=Horton|first1=Andrew|last2=McDougal|first2=Stuart Y.|last3=Braudy|first3=Leo|title=Play it Again, Sam: Retakes on Remakes|date=1998|publisher=University of California Press|location=Berkeley, California|isbn=0520205936|page=287}}] with [Lex Luthor](/source/Lex_Luthor) incorporating it into weapons, [Metallo](/source/Metallo) being powered by it, and [Titano](/source/Titano) able to project Kryptonite radiation from his eyes. Kryptonite has become a byword for an extraordinary exploitable weakness, synonymous with "[Achilles' heel](/source/Achilles'_heel)".
==History==
[[File:Kryptonite poisoning.jpg|thumb|upright|[Superman](/source/Superman) suffering from green kryptonite poisoning, courtesy of foes [Metallo](/source/Metallo) and [Titano](/source/Titano), in ''[Action Comics](/source/Action_Comics) Annual'' #10 (March 2007), art by [Art Adams](/source/Art_Adams) and [Alex Sinclair](/source/Alex_Sinclair)]]
An unpublished 1940 story titled "[The K-Metal from Krypton](/source/The_K-Metal_from_Krypton)", written by Superman creator [Jerry Siegel](/source/Jerry_Siegel), featured a prototype of kryptonite. It is a mineral from the planet [Krypton](/source/Krypton_(comics)) that drains Superman of his strength and gives superhuman powers to humans. This story was rejected because Superman reveals his identity to [Lois Lane](/source/Lois_Lane).[{{cite book|last1=Jones|first1=Gerard|title=Men Of Tomorrow: Geeks, Gangsters, and the Birth of the Comic Book|url=https://archive.org/details/menoftomorrowgee0000jone|url-access=registration|date=2004|publisher=Basic Books|location=New York|isbn=0465036562|pages=[https://archive.org/details/menoftomorrowgee0000jone/page/181 181–183]}}]
The mineral kryptonite, not to be confused with the real element [krypton](/source/krypton), was officially introduced in the radio serial ''[The Adventures of Superman](/source/The_Adventures_of_Superman_(radio))'', in the story "The Meteor from Krypton", broadcast in June 1943.[{{cite book |last=Hayde |first=Michael J. |year=2009 |title=Flights of Fantasy: The Unauthorized but True Story of Radio & TV's Adventures of Superman |publisher=BearManor Media |isbn=9781593933449 }}]
"Only one arc in 1943 managed to transcend its era: "The Meteor from Krypton". Debuting on June 3, it marked the debut of kryptonite ..." An apocryphal story claims that kryptonite was introduced to incapacitate Superman, allowing Superman's voice actor [Bud Collyer](/source/Bud_Collyer) to take time off. This tale was recounted by [Julius Schwartz](/source/Julius_Schwartz) in his memoir.[{{cite book |last=Schwartz |first=Julius |title=Man of Two Worlds: My Life in Science Fiction and Comics |year=2000 |publisher=HarperEntertainment |isbn=0-380-81051-4 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/manoftwoworldsmy00schw}}]
pg 132-133 However, historian Michael J. Hayde disputes this. In "The Meteor from Krypton", Superman is never exposed to kryptonite. If kryptonite allowed Collyer to take vacations, that was a fringe benefit discovered later. More likely, kryptonite was introduced as a plot device for Superman to discover his origin.[{{cite book |last=Hayde |first=Michael J. |year=2009 |title=Flights of Fantasy: The Unauthorized but True Story of Radio & TV's Adventures of Superman |publisher=BearManor Media |isbn=9781593933449}}]
"Since Superman's life isn't threatened — the meteorite never leaves the doctor's custody — it's likely that Lowther's primary intent was to create a means for Superman to discover his own origin". Hayde may have mistaken 1943's "The Meteor from Krypton" for 1945's "The Meteor of Kryptonite", as Superman was exposed in the latter but not in the former.[{{Cite web |title=Superman Homepage |url=https://www.supermanhomepage.com/ |access-date=2023-10-24 |language=en-US}}]
In the radio serial, Krypton is located in the same solar system as Earth, in the same orbit, but on the [opposite side of the Sun](/source/Counter-Earth). This provided an easy explanation for how kryptonite found its way to Earth. In the comics' [Silver Age](/source/Silver_Age_of_Comic_Books), Krypton is located in a distant solar system and much of the kryptonite that came to Earth was transported by the same "space warp" that baby Kal-El's rocket traversed.
Kryptonite was incorporated into the comic mythos with ''Superman'' #61 (November 1949).[{{Cite comic|writer=Bill Finger|penciller=Al Pastino|inker=|colorist=|letterer=|editor=|story=Superman's Return to Krypton!|title=Superman|volume=1|issue=#61|date=November 1949|publisher=DC Comics|location=|page=|panel=|id=}}] In a 1993 interview with ''[Florida Today](/source/Florida_Today)'', editor [Dorothy Woolfolk](/source/Dorothy_Woolfolk) stated that she felt Superman's invulnerability was "boring".[{{cite web|last1=Tippens|first1=Norman|title=Dorothy Woolfolk, Superman Editor|url=https://www.dailypress.com/2000/12/06/dorothy-woolfolk-superman-editor/|website=[Daily Press](/source/Daily_Press_(Virginia))|publisher=WebCite|access-date=2 October 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130404225236/http://articles.dailypress.com/2000-12-06/news/0012060120_1_superman-comics-comic-books-superman-editor|archive-date=4 April 2013|language=en|date=6 December 2000|url-status=live}}]
Originally depicted as an [element](/source/Chemical_element) in the [Golden](/source/Golden_Age_of_Comic_Books), Silver, and [Bronze Age](/source/Bronze_Age_of_Comic_Books) comics, Kryptonite is depicted as a [compound](/source/Chemical_compound) in post-''[Crisis](/source/Crisis_on_Infinite_Earths)'' continuity.[''[Action Comics](/source/Action_Comics)'' #591 (August 1987)]
==Varieties ==
Various forms of the fictional material have been created over the years in ''Superman'' publications and programs.[{{cite book |last1=Fleisher |first1=Michael L. |title=The Original Encyclopedia of Comic Book Heroes Volume Three: Superman |date=2007 |publisher=DC Comics |isbn=978-1-4012-1389-3 |pages=369–375}}] This table includes forms that have not persisted in canon.
{{sticky header}}
{| class="wikitable sortable sticky-header-multi" style="width:100%; font-size:84%;" id="softwarelist"
|-
! rowspan="4" colspan="2" | Type
!rowspan="4"|First appearance
!rowspan="4"|Origin
!colspan="3"|Effects by genetic origin
!colspan="5"|In other media
|-
!rowspan="3"|Krypton
[Daxam](/source/Daxam)
!rowspan="3"|Earth
!rowspan="3"|[Bizarro World](/source/Bizarro_World)
[Krypton-3](/source/Earth-Three)
|-
!colspan="2"|Film
!colspan="2"|Television
!rowspan="2"|Video games
|-
!|Live-action
!|Animated
!|Live-action
!|Animated
|-
! colspan="2" style="background:lime; color:black;" | Green
| [''The Adventures of Superman'' radio serial](/source/The_Adventures_of_Superman_(radio)), "The Meteor from Krypton" (June 1943)[{{cite episode |title=The Meteor of Kryptonite, Chapter 2 |series=The Adventures of Superman |medium=Radio broadcast |network=MUTUAL |airdate=25 September 1945 |quote=if he approached within a distance of ten feet of the strange, green, glowing meteor, he lost all his strength!}}]
Comics: ''[Action Comics](/source/Action_Comics)'' #161 (August 1951)
|Fragments from Krypton
|Loss of superpowers[{{Cite comic | Writer = [Byrne, John](/source/John_Byrne_(comics)) | Penciller = [Byrne, John](/source/John_Byrne_(comics)) | Inker = [Kesel, Karl](/source/Karl_Kesel) | story = Bloodsport! | Title = Superman | Volume = 2 | Issue = #4 | Date = April 1987 | Publisher = DC Comics | Page = 22}}]
Severe, intensifying pain
Intensifying breathing issues
Severe muscular weakness
Fever
Green blood or skin
Eventual fatality[{{cite book |last1=Greenberger |first1=Robert |last2=Pasko |first2=Martin |title=The Essential Superman Encyclopedia |date=2010 |publisher=Del Rey |isbn=978-0-345-50108-0 |pages=174–177}}]
Non-accumulative[{{cite journal |title=Superman II |journal=Who's Who: The Definitive Directory of the DC Universe |date=Dec 1986 |volume=1 |issue=22 |page=29}}]
Mitigated by copious yellow sunlight exposure[{{Cite comic |date=1997 |title=[Kingdom Come](/source/Kingdom_Come_(comics)) |story= |issue= |volume= |publisher=[DC Comics](/source/DC_Comics) |location=New York |writer=Mark Waid |artist=Alex Ross |page=129 |panel=4 |id={{ISBN|1563893304}}}}][{{Cite comic |date=January 2006 |title=All-Star Superman |story= |issue=#1 |volume= |publisher=DC Comics |location= |writer=Grant Morrison |penciller=Frank Quietly |inker= |colorist= |letterer= |editor= |page= |panel= |id=}}]
Blocked by lead
Neutralized by Kal-El's ship (''[Smallville](/source/Smallville)''[{{Cite episode |title=Visage |series=Smallville |series-link=Smallville |season=2 |number=11 |airdate=2003-01-14 |network=The WB}}])
|With prolonged exposure: [carcinogenesis](/source/carcinogenesis)
Possible cancer treatment[{{Cite comic|writer=John Byrne|penciller=Dick Giordano|inker=|colorist=|letterer=|editor=|story=Games People Play|title=Action Comics|volume=1|issue=#600|date=May 1988|publisher=DC Comics|location=|page=8|panel=|id=}}]
Varied (''Smallville'')
|Bizarro: perfect health
Bizarro World humans: temporary superpowers (''[Superman & Lois](/source/Superman_%26_Lois)'')
|
* [''Superman'' serial](/source/Superman_(serial))
* ''[Atom Man vs. Superman](/source/Atom_Man_vs._Superman)''
* ''[Superman](/source/Superman_(1978_film))'' (1978)
* ''[Superman III](/source/Superman_III)''
* ''[Superman Returns](/source/Superman_Returns)''
* ''[Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice](/source/Batman_v_Superman%3A_Dawn_of_Justice)''[{{cite magazine|last1=Staskiewicz|first1=Keith|title='Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice': 6 EW exclusive photos|url=http://www.ew.com/gallery/batman-v-superman-dawn-justice-first-look-photos/2232978_batman-and-superman-square-first-time|magazine=Entertainment Weekly|access-date=2 October 2017|date=2 July 2015}}]
* ''[Superman](/source/Superman_(2025_film))'' (2025)
|
* ''[Justice League: Doom](/source/Justice_League%3A_Doom)''
* ''[Justice League Action](/source/Justice_League_Action)''
* ''[DC League of Super-Pets](/source/DC_League_of_Super-Pets)''[{{Cite web |last=Milligan |first=Mercedes |date=May 3, 2022 |title='DC League of Super-Pets' Domesticate Their Powers in New Trailer |url=https://www.animationmagazine.net/2022/05/dc-league-of-super-pets-domesticate-their-powers-in-new-trailer/ |access-date=October 25, 2024 |website=Animation Magazine |language=en-US}}]
* ''[Batman Ninja vs. Yakuza League](/source/Batman_Ninja_vs._Yakuza_League)''
|
* ''[Adventures of Superman](/source/Adventures_of_Superman_(TV_series))''
* ''[Superboy](/source/Superboy_(TV_series))''
* ''[Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman](/source/Lois_%26_Clark%3A_The_New_Adventures_of_Superman)''
* ''Smallville''[Scharping, Nathaniel (April 4, 2018). [http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/d-brief/2018/04/04/meteorites-ancient-cultures "Space Metal Has Captivated Humanity for Ages"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191119060942/http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/d-brief/2018/04/04/meteorites-ancient-cultures |date=2019-11-19 }}. ''[Discover](/source/Discover_(magazine))''.]
* [Arrowverse](/source/Arrowverse)
*''[Titans](/source/Titans_(2018_TV_series))''
* ''Superman & Lois''
|
* ''[The Brady Kids](/source/The_Brady_Kids)''
* ''[Super Friends](/source/Super_Friends)''
* [''Superman'' (1988)](/source/Superman_(TV_series))
* [DC Animated Universe](/source/DC_Animated_Universe)
* ''[Krypto the Superdog](/source/Krypto_the_Superdog_(TV_series))''
* ''[Legion of Super Heroes](/source/Legion_of_Super_Heroes_(TV_series))''
* ''[The Batman](/source/The_Batman_(TV_series))''
* ''[Young Justice](/source/Young_Justice_(TV_series))''
* ''[Batman: The Brave and the Bold](/source/Batman%3A_The_Brave_and_the_Bold)''
* ''[DC Super Hero Girls](/source/DC_Super_Hero_Girls_(TV_series))''
* ''[My Adventures with Superman](/source/My_Adventures_with_Superman)''
|
* [''Superman'' (1979)](/source/Superman_(1979_video_game))
* [''Superman'' (1987)](/source/Superman_(1987_video_game))
* ''[Superman: The New Superman Adventures](/source/Superman%3A_The_New_Superman_Adventures)''
* ''[Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe](/source/Mortal_Kombat_vs._DC_Universe)''
* ''[Lego Batman 2: DC Super Heroes](/source/Lego_Batman_2%3A_DC_Super_Heroes)''
* ''[Scribblenauts Unmasked: A DC Comics Adventure](/source/Scribblenauts_Unmasked%3A_A_DC_Comics_Adventure)''
Unpredictable effects[{{cite book |last1=Fleisher |first1=Michael L. |title=The Original Encyclopedia of Comic Book Heroes, Volume Three: Superman |date=2007 |publisher=DC Comics |isbn=978-1-4012-1389-3 |pages=369–375}}]
Counteracted by green (''Smallville''[{{cite episode |title=Crimson |series=Smallville |series-link=Smallville |network=The CW |airdate=2007-02-14 |season=6 |number=13}}][{{cite episode |title=Upgrade |series=Smallville |series-link=Smallville |network=The CW |airdate=2010-04-16 |season=9 |number=17}}])
Stronger form of green[{{cite comic |title=World's Finest Comics |issue=96 |date=September 1958 |publisher=National Comics Publications |quote=The substance is red kryptonite – a refined alloy of regular kryptonite which has ten times the radiation power of ordinary kryptonite!}}] (prior to ''[Adventure Comics](/source/Adventure_Comics)'' #252, September 1958 only)
|Unpredictable effects (prior to ''[Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen](/source/Superman's_Pal_Jimmy_Olsen)'' #80, October 1964 only)
Hair loss (''Super-Pets'')
|
|
|''Super-Pets''
|
*''Superboy''
*''Lois & Clark''
*''Smallville''
*''[Supergirl](/source/Supergirl_(TV_series))''
*''Titans''
|
*''Super Friends''
*''Batman: The Brave and the Bold''
*''Krypto''
*''Justice League Action''
*''DC Super Hero Girls''
|
*''Superman'' (1987)
*''Scribblenauts Unmasked
-white
|''Superman'' #404 (February 1958)
|
| Superpower restoration
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|-
|style="background: lime; color: red;" |-green
|''Action Comics'' #275 (April 1961)
|Created by [Brainiac](/source/Brainiac_(character))
|Unpredictable effects
Loss of superpowers[{{cite comic |title=Superboy |issue=121 |date=June 1965 |publisher=DC Comics}}]
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|-
!style="background: blue; color: red;" |-blue
|''Superman'' #162 (July 1963)
|Invented by Superman
Green charged with "quantum battery" (''Justice League Action'')
|[Splitting into uninhibited red being and logical blue being](/source/Superman_Red%2FSuperman_Blue)
|Same as on Kryptonians (''Justice League Action'')
|
|
|
|
|''Justice League Action''[{{cite episode |title=Superman Red vs. Superman Blue |series=Justice League Action |season=1 |number=36 |airdate=2017-09-16}}]
|
|-
!style="background: red; color: white;" |Bizarro-
|''Superman's Pal, Jimmy Olsen'' #80 (October 1964)
|
|
|Bizarro humans: Ridding of Bizarro state[''Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen'' #80, October 1964]
Humans: Same as red on Kryptonians[''Batman/Superman: World's Finest'' #12]
|
|
|
|
|
|''Scribblenauts Unmasked''
-gold
|''Superman'' #192 (January 1967)
|
| Permanent superpower loss
Permanent memory loss
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|-
! colspan="2" style="color: white;" |Positive
Platinum
|"All that Glitters," ''Adventures of Superman'' TV series (1958)
Comics: ''Batman Secret Files'' #1 (December 2018)
|Impossible world (dream of Jimmy Olsen, ''Adventures of Superman'' TV series/impossible world inside [Phantom Zone](/source/Phantom_Zone), comics)
|Source of superpowers (''Adventures of Superman'' TV series)
|Permanent Kryptonian powers
|
|
|
|''Adventures of Superman''
|
|
|-
! colspan="2" style="background: gold; color: black;" |Negative
Gold
|"All that Glitters," ''Adventures of Superman'' TV series (1958)
Comics: ''Adventure Comics'' #299 (August 1962)
|Dream of Jimmy Olsen (''Adventures of Superman'' TV series)
Green affected by "atomic radiation"
|Permanent loss of superpowers
Temporary memory loss (''Justice League Action'')
|
|[Ultraman](/source/Ultraman_(DC_Comics)): Scarring (''Smallville'')
|
|
|
*''Adventures of Superman''
*''Smallville''
|
* ''Super Friends''
* ''Justice League Action''
|
*''Scribblenauts Unmasked
Fool's
Slow
Hybrid
|''Action Comics'' #252 (May 1959)
|Created by Metallo (''[The Brave and the Bold](/source/The_Brave_and_the_Bold)'' #175, June 1981)
Created by Professor Jefferson Cole at S.T.A.R. Labs (''Lois & Clark'')[{{cite episode |title=Dead Lois Walking |series=Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman |series-link=Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman |season=4 |number=7 |network=ABC |airdate=November 10, 1996}}]
|None
|Same as green on Kryptonians
|Ultraman: Perfect health[{{Cite comic|writer=Grant Morrison|penciller=Frank Quietly|inker=|colorist=|letterer=|editor=|story=|title=JLA: Earth 2|volume=|issue=|date=September 2000|publisher=DC Comics|location=|page=73|panel=1|id=}}]
|
|
|''Lois & Clark''
|
|''Scribblenauts Unmasked''
Orange[{{cite web |last=Jaffe |first=Alex |title=Crushed by Color: A Kryptonite Catalogue |quote= Sometimes called “Orange Kryptonite,” X-Kryptonite was originally an invention of Supergirl, whose experimentation gifted Streaky the Supercat with his powers. |url=https://www.dc.com/blog/2025/05/29/crushed-by-color-a-kryptonite-catalogue |website=DC.com |publisher=DC Comics |date=2025-05-29 |access-date=2025-06-04}}]
| ''Action Comics'' #261 (January 1960)
|Experiment by Supergirl to counteract green
Fragments from Krypton (''Superman & Lois''/''Super-Pets'')
| None
| Temporary superpowers
Paranoia (''DC Super Hero Girls'')
Counteracted by green (''Superman & Lois'', ''Super-Pets'')
|Bizarro: same as green on Kryptonians (''Superman & Lois'')
|
|''Super-Pets''
Rare fragments among Krypton's remains (''Super Friends'')
|Harm to soul[{{cite comic
|title=Action Comics
|volume=2
|issue=16
|date=May 2013
|publisher=DC Comics
|writer=Grant Morrison
|artist=Rags Morales
|letterer=John Workman
|colorist=Alex Sinclair
}}]
Suspended superpowers (''Smallville'')
Counteracts red (''Super Friends'')
|Medical stability (''Smallville'')
|Bizarro: same as green on Kryptonians
Bizarro: death through overcharging (''Smallville'')
Bizarro: logical thought
Ultraman: perfect health[{{Cite comic|writer=Grant Morrison|penciller=Frank Quietly|inker=|colorist=|letterer=|editor=|story=|title=JLA: Earth 2|volume=|issue=|date=September 2000|publisher=DC Comics|location=|page=73|panel=1|id=}}]/same as green on Kryptonians (''[Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths](/source/Justice_League%3A_Crisis_on_Two_Earths)'')
Blocked by "imperfect" lead
|
|''Crisis on Two Earths''
|
*''Smallville''
*''Supergirl''
|''Super Friends''
|''Scribblenauts Unmasked''[{{Cite web |last=Eisen |first=Andrew |date=October 2, 2013 |title=DC Characters and Objects - ''Scribblenauts Unmasked'' Guide |url=https://www.ign.com/wikis/scribblenauts-unmasked/DC_Characters_and_Objects |access-date=October 25, 2024 |website=IGN |language=en}}]
|-
! rowspan="2" style="background:#FFFFFF|White
|style="background: white; color: black;" |
|''Adventure Comics'' #279 (December 1960)
|Green affected by "space cloud"[{{cite comic
|title=Superman
|volume=1
|issue=296
|date=September 1976
|publisher=DC Comics
}}]
|Kills microbes and vegetation
|Kills microbes and vegetation
|
|
|
|
|
|''Scribblenauts Unmasked''
Unknown (''Superman Family Adventures'' Vol. 12, August 2012)
Fear (''[Lego DC Super Hero Girls](/source/Lego_DC_Super_Hero_Girls)'')
|
|
|
|
|''Lego DC Super Hero Girls''
|
|''Scribblenauts Unmasked''
Brainiac technology (''Smallville'', comics following ''[Superman/Batman](/source/Superman%2FBatman)'' #46, April 2008)
|Paranoid delusions
|
|
|
|
|
*''Smallville''
*''Supergirl''
|
|''Scribblenauts Unmasked''[{{cite web |title=Smallville: Season 9, Episode 14 [''sic''] – Persuasion |url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/smallville/s09/e14 |website=Rotten Tomatoes |publisher=Fandango Media |access-date=12 September 2025}}][{{cite episode |title=Persuasion |series=Smallville |season=9 |number=13 |network=The CW |airdate=February 19, 2010 |quote=It's like you and Lois are doing whatever I say but then I can't undo it. Normally kryptonite only affects me, not other people.}}]
|
|
|-
! colspan="2" style="background: grey; color: white;" |Magno-
|''Superman's Pal, Jimmy Olsen'' #92 (April 1966)
|Created by Mr. Nero
|Magnetic attraction
|
|
|
|
|
|
|''Scribblenauts Unmasked
Black
Harun-El
|''[Superman III](/source/Superman_III)'' (1983)
Comics: ''Supergirl'' (vol. 5) #2 (October 2005)
|Synthesized with tar (''Superman III'')
Superheated green (''Smallville'')
Fragments of Krypton
Kryptonian religion (''Supergirl'' TV series)
|Mental/physical manifestation of empowered evil self and weakened good self
Reversion by additional exposure (''Smallville''/''Supergirl'' TV series)
|Same as on Kryptonians (''Smallville''/''Supergirl'' TV series)
|
|''Superman III''
|
|
*''Smallville''
*''Supergirl''
|''Justice League Action''
|''Scribblenauts Unmasked''
Reversion by disclosure of origin
|
|
|
|
|
|-
! colspan="2" |Kryptisium
-X
|''The Adventures of Superman'' #511 (April 1994)
|Green filtered by Eradicator
|Excessive superpowers
|
|
|
|
|
|
|''Scribblenauts Unmasked
Reversed sex (''Justice League Action'')
|
|
|
|
|
|''Justice League Action''
|
|-
! colspan="2" style="background: purple; color: white;" |Purple
|“Streaky's Supercat Tale,” ''Krypto'' (April 2005)
Comics: ''Superman: The Kryptonite Spectrum'' #1 (2025)
|
|Disordered thoughts and suggestibility
|Same as on Kryptonians (''Super-Pets'')
|
|
|''Super-Pets''
|
|''Krypto''
''DC Super Hero Girls''
|
|-
! colspan="2" style="background:#e0f7fa; color: lime" | Opal
| ''Earth 2 #0'' (November 2012)
| Created by [Mr. Terrific](/source/Mister_Terrific_(Terry_Sloane))
| Severe mental instability
One use only
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|-
! colspan="2" style="background:#bbf;"|Periwinkle
|''[Superman Family Adventures](/source/The_Superman_Family)'' #9 (March 2013)
|
|Joy
Periwinkle transmutation
|
|Bizarro: anger (''DC Super Hero Girls'')
|
|
|
|''DC Super Hero Girls''
|
|-
! colspan="2" style="background: aqua; color: black;" |Turquoise
|''[Dark Nights: Death Metal](/source/Dark_Nights%3A_Death_Metal)'' #3 (August 2020)
|Dark Multiverse
|Transformation into mythical creature
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|-
! colspan="2" style="background: orange; color: red;" |Amber
|''Dark Knight: Death Metal - The Last 52: War of the Multiverses'' #1 (February 2021)
|Dark multiverse
| Loss of superpowers to human
| Gain of superpowers from Kryptonian
|
|
|
|
|
|
|-
! colspan="2" style="background: gray; color: blue;" |Cobalt
|''Superman: The Kryptonite Spectrum'' #2 (2025)
|
|Size increase
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|-
! colspan="2" style="color: gray;" |Speckled
|''Superman: The Kryptonite Spectrum'' (2025)
|
|Size decrease
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|-
! colspan="2" style="background: black|{{rainbow|Rainbow}}
|''Superman: The Kryptonite Spectrum'' #4 (November 2025)
|Distress signal from Fifth Dimension
|colspan=3|Transferral to Fifth Dimension
|
|
|
|
|
|}
[[File:Action Comics 310.jpg|thumb|upright|[Superman](/source/Superman) and [Jimmy Olsen](/source/Jimmy_Olsen) discuss the mineral kryptonite, with the '''jewel''' variant making its debut, in ''[Action Comics](/source/Action_Comics)'' #310 (March 1964), art by [Curt Swan](/source/Curt_Swan).]]
==In vernacular==
The term was being used independent of ''Superman'' by the 1960s, as a metaphor for a decisive weakness or vulnerability.[{{cite web |title=Is 'kryptonite' a real word? |url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/wordplay/is-kryptonite-real |website=Merriam-Webster |access-date=25 April 2026}}] Cambridge Dictionary defines the figurative use as "something that hurts or damages a person or thing that usually seems strong",[{{cite web |title=Kryptonite |url=https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/kryptonite |website=Cambridge Dictionary |access-date=25 April 2026}}] Dictionary.com defines it as "something that a person or thing cannot defend against or defeat",[{{cite web |title=Kryptonite Definition & Meaning |url=https://www.dictionary.com/browse/kryptonite |website=Dictionary.com |access-date=25 April 2026}}] and Collins defines it informally as "something that renders a person or thing helpless".[{{cite web |title=Kryptonite definition and meaning |url=https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/kryptonite |website=Collins English Dictionary |access-date=25 April 2026}}] Michael Pedler writes that "Superman's Kryptonite remains a kind of pop-cultural shorthand" for an "Achilles' heel".[{{cite conference |last=Pedler |first=Michael |title=Memory, Continuity and Trauma in Monthly Superhero Adventures |conference=Media in Transition 5 |publisher=Massachusetts Institute of Technology |url=https://web.mit.edu/comm-forum/legacy/mit5/papers/Pedler_Suffering_and_Seriality.pdf |access-date=25 April 2026}}]
Brian Holmes, Jeremy Bolen and Brian Kirkbride use the word in a different scholarly context in "Born Secret (Cash for Kryptonite): A field guide to the Anthropocene mode of production", an article on art, technology and political ecology that examines the Tennessee Valley, hydroelectric modernization and the Manhattan Project.[{{cite journal |last1=Holmes |first1=Brian |last2=Bolen |first2=Jeremy |last3=Kirkbride |first3=Brian |title=Born Secret (Cash for Kryptonite): A field guide to the Anthropocene mode of production |journal=The Anthropocene Review |year=2021 |doi=10.1177/2053019620975803}}] The title uses the term "kryptonite" to represent hidden vulnerability, exposure and destructive technological power.
The term has seen usage in popular media. In music, kryptonite is often used metaphorically for dependence, loyalty or personal susceptibility. A prominent example is [3 Doors Down](/source/3_Doors_Down)'s 2000 single "[Kryptonite](/source/Kryptonite_(3_Doors_Down_song))"; songwriter [Brad Arnold](/source/Brad_Arnold) described the song as being "about friendship" and asking, "Will you just be there for me?"[{{cite web |last=Rogers |first=Jude |title=How we wrote 'Kryptonite' by 3 Doors Down's Brad Arnold |url=https://www.songwritingmagazine.co.uk/interviews/kryptonite-3-doors-down |website=Songwriting Magazine |date=8 January 2022 |access-date=25 April 2026}}] In wider film, television, sports and cultural commentary, the word is used as shorthand for a character flaw, a team's weakness or a system's point of failure; ''The Atlantic'' describes figurative use as "a moral weakness" or "a character flaw".[{{cite web |last=Garber |first=Megan |title=Kryptonite Is Crap |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2013/06/kryptonite-is-crap/276984/ |website=The Atlantic |date=20 June 2013 |access-date=25 April 2026}}] The title of Craig Colasanti's 2018 [indie](/source/Independent_film) [crime thriller](/source/crime_thriller) ''[Kryptonights](/source/Kryptonights)'' about an [NYPD](/source/NYPD) [detective](/source/detective) uses the fictional substance as a play on words.[{{cite web
|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/kryptonights
|title=Kryptonights
|website=Rotten Tomatoes
|publisher=Fandango Media
|access-date=May 18, 2026
}}]
==References==
{{reflist}}
==External links==
{{wiktionary|Appendix:DC Comics/Kryptonite}}
* [http://www.supermanhomepage.com/comics/comics.php?topic=comics-racfaq#Kryptonite The Superman Homepage's section on kryptonite]
* [http://www.howstuffworks.com/kryptonite.htm Howstuffworks.com: "How Kryptonite Works"]
{{Authority control}}
Category:1943 in comics
Category:Superman
Category:Vulnerability
Category:Fictional story elements introduced in 1943
---
Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Kryptonite](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kryptonite) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kryptonite?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.