Five interesting facts about the upcoming Superman film Man of Steel
In the nine years between 1978 and 1987, four feature films starring DC Comics’ icon hero Superman were released in theatres.
In over two decades since the release of “Superman IV: The Quest for Peace,” Superman has only flown across the cinema screens once – in Bryan Singer’s 2006 “Superman Returns.” Superman will make his return to theaters everywhere in 2013 with the release of “Man of Steel,” which marks not only a new director and a new direction to the franchise but the first Superman film ever without the character’s name in the title. There are a few key things that you should know that might help you better appreciate the hero’s triumphant return.
“Man of Steel” was the name of Bryan Singer’s aborted sequel to “Superman Returns.” Despite massive success worldwide, Warner Brothers and Bryan Singer decided not to produce a sequel to that particular film. Before that decision was reached, however, work had begun on securing writers for a script to be called simply “Man of Steel.” This was modeled after the second of Christopher Nolan’s Batman films, titled “The Dark Knight.” As that film lacked the name of the hero in the title but was still a massive success, Warner Brothers decided to use the same strategy with Bryan Singer’s sequel. Now that Singer is out and has been replaced with Zack Snyder, the title has remained unchanged.
If “Superman Returns” had just grossed £100 million more worldwide, we wouldn’t be getting a Zack Snyder-directed Superman film at all. Though “Superman Returns” made £400 million dollars at the worldwide box office, it cost so much money to make that was still considered a disappointment by the studio. The studio head at the time was quoted as saying that he felt it really should have made £500 million dollars when all things were said and done. If it had, we would likely be gearing up for our third Bryan Singer film for 2013 instead of our first from another director.
“Man of Steel” is not a sequel to “Superman Returns” and is instead a reboot of the entire franchise. The film will reportedly feature Superman’s origins on Krypton and his humble beginnings as a child in Smallville, Kansas, just as in Richard Donner’s 1978 original. It is said to mark a bold new direction for the franchise and one that can be sustained for sequels to be released in the coming years.
“Man of Steel” star Henry Cavill was almost cast as Superman once before – for director Bryan Singer. When Singer was casting for “Superman Returns”, he eventually came down to that film’s star Brandon Routh and a few other names. While he decided to go with Routh, Cavill apparently made such an impression on Warner Brothers executives and the film’s director Zack Snyder that he won the role five years later.
The film’s director Zack Snyder is no stranger to the comic book medium. After his directorial debut with the “Dawn of the Dead” remake in 2004, Snyder cut his teeth on an adaptation of Frank Miller’s violent historical epic “300.” He would later go on to adapt another comic book, Alan Moore’s critically acclaimed “Watchmen,” in 2009. “Man of Steel” marks Snyder’s third entry into this genre, and it will most certainly not be his last.
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