There is a scrapped Batman Beyond/Justice League Unlimited story arc about the son of Superman and Lashina. That could be really interesting for the JLU Beyond comic.
Anyway, I think Superman needs villains that are more deeply embedded within humanity. Someone capable of creating social and cultural change that challenge or rival Superman's ideals. And I think there's a lot of potential in Superman villain who can deconstructs some common sci-fi/comic book tropes.
For example, there are a ton of stories about aliens or time travelers who help the Nazis during WW2. But what if Superman had to deal with a time traveler who helped the Americans during WW2? What if the time traveler went back to the 30's, used future technology to super charge the economy and end the Depression, gets elected as president, defeats the Axis Powers, and takes over the world as its savior. How would Superman deal with that? What if the time traveler was actually benevolent? What if their goal was to create a better future? Would Superman fight that person to restore the original timeline?
And I think there can be Superman villains that deal a bit more with the Reed Richards Is Useless trope. We know that Superman doesn't help everyone not because he can't but because he understands that people need to be challenged in order to grow and learn. People need to face loss and pain in their lives. If Superman protects people from everything; if he prevents all struggle and conflict then he's taking away opportunities in which people can grow stronger and wiser. But what about an entire city, or a nation, or even humanity as a species? A civilization can grow stronger and wiser from pain, disaster, and war. Sure if the villain is going to destroy all life then Superman has to step in but what about conflicts that can help humanity grow? You could have a villain that Superman must deal with peripherally in terms of how he can influence the way in which people fight against the threat and the lessons they take away from the struggle.
In fact, the basic premise of Superman Returns had the potential to create a really interesting story. Superman leaves or disappears for a certain number of years and discovers what the world has been able to achieve in his absence. They could have really explored both the positives and negatives of Superman and his absence. What if the world still managed to defeat all those super villains in Superman's absence that while at a great cost, ended up making humanity stronger? Many people perished in the battle against the likes of Atomic Skull, Intergang, Cyborg Superman, Brainiac, etc., but human civilization as a whole was made stronger in the struggle.
The technology of these super villains were captured and reverse engineered, leading to amazing scientific breakthroughs. More effective deterrents were created to combat such threats that also led to stronger infrastructure, more efficient emergency services, and better defenses against natural disasters. A greater sense of solidarity was born out of the desire for mutual defense against such global threats as different nations and different cultures had to learn to work together to protect the earth.
Humanity as a whole may have become harsher and less forgiving but it is also stronger, wiser, more advanced, and more mature. And it wouldn't be about humanity needing or not needing Superman but more of how Superman has to deal with humanity on a different level.
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