With the news last month that Warner Brothers planned on rebooting the Superman film franchise, I thought it would be a good time to give an overall status report on everyone’s favorite big blue boy-scout. And let you folks know what’s going on…as of now, at least.
First things first, no director or screenwriter(s) have been hired nor are any in negotiations at this time. Warner Brothers is simply looking at a few candidates as potential “feelers.” Nothing more, nothing less.
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If there’s anything the studio learned from Superman Returns, it’s that they’re not going to hand over another blank-check to a “big name” director. So more likely than not, the eventual director will be someone who works well with the material, sees eye-to-eye with the approach they’re taking and (most importantly) can be easily controlled by the studio.
An example of this would be when Peter Jackson was first hired for The Lord of the Rings trilogy, Bryan Singer for X-Men, Sam Raimi for Spider-Man, etc. You get the idea.
Regarding the big question of casting before anyone asks, the answer is no: Tom Welling will not be Superman. For some of you, take a moment, and let whatever feelings you have about that out of your system.
The studio isn’t going to spend $150-$200 million (if not more) to produce Smallville: The Movie. Like it or lump it, that’s exactly what it’d be if they went with Welling. Additionally, the failure of X-Files: I Want to Believe this past summer further proved that cult following doesn’t equal mainstream audience. So one can’t argue that Welling would bring in “a big audience” during the opening weekend.
I don’t care if you love or hate the idea of him as Superman on the silver screen. He’s not in the running. Sorry, but it ain’t gonna happen. Get over it.
Whoever becomes the next Superman/Clark Kent will be an unknown for obvious reasons. For the studio, it’s easy to nab one down to a multi-picture deal (i.e. cheap) and for the filmmakers there won’t be any “baggage” coming into the project with said actor.
Now what about Wanted and Kick-Ass creator Mark Millar who’ll tell anyone with a set of ears (and more importantly, a camera) that he wants the writing gig? Well, his claims about “being a Marvel guy” as the reason Warner Bros. rejected his pitch last year are 100% Grade-A B.S. Plain and simple, they hated it.
But what of his recent claims of writing an epic Superman trilogy that’s a second away from being greenlit with his phantom “American action director” at the helm? Uh, that would be: no.
I don’t doubt his love for Kal-El, and maybe he’s met with a director in the past. But if he was really in the running, he wouldn’t be talking out loud to the press before being heard (again) by the studio.
Furthermore, he’s had a well-documented history of flat-out fabricating news-items just to get himself press (i.e. his claim of “knowing” Jim Caviezel would play Superman in Returns and Eminem “begging” to star in Wanted - both turned out to be bogus rumors that he started!) Therefore… you can’t honestly take him at his word on the matter - especially since there’s been no one to come out and back-up his claims.
And Millar wasn’t the only comic-book writer the studio heard pitches from. The likes of Grant Morrison, Mark Waid and Geoff Johns also came in with takes on how to properly revive the franchise. And like Millar, they were shot down. So it’s safe to say they’ll begin hearing from screenwriters again.
Quite frankly, I doubt we see Krypton’s last son return to the silver screen for… awhile. They’re currently projecting a 2011 release. The thing is though, Warner Brothers appears to be damn-near booked with arguably the three biggest blockbuster tent-poles for that year: Harry Potter & the Deathly Hallows - Part II, Batman III and The Hobbit.
They just plain don’t “need” Superman right now. Although it’s definitely a priority to get the Man of Steel back on track. But they can honestly afford to take their sweet time (which they are!).
That, and after the reception of Superman Returns, they want to make damned sure this revival film will be something that everyone (i.e. WB, DC, Legendary Pictures, etc.) is 100% behind.
But rest assured, Superman will return to the silver screen…eventually!
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50 Comments
Vic.. I understand, I really do, but..
“The Man Of Steel” upcoming movie header is bordering on woefully anachronistic! Please drop the M.O.S. moniker, thanks.
you guys are so annoying!! way to crush my dreams, and about 900 million other peoples dreams. we all know that tom welling was born to play the part of superman. and i will NOT get over it, and i dont understand the problem, if he dosent want to do it, then convince him, he didnt want to play the part in smallville at first either. and if its gonna cost heaps, then who cares. look at titanic; they had to build a whole new ship, millions of dollars. but they got the money back because the movie was a hit. and let me tell you the superman movie will be a hit if tom welling plays the part.
Tom Welling is good in Smallville and that’s it! I love Smallville but a Superman movie with Welling would tank worse than Superman Returns. Fresh new start sounds good to me.
do you actually have a source about the Welling thing or are you just espousing your personal take on the matter as fact again? I would think if you were making that declarative of a statement you’d have some backing behind it other than your conclusion that WB doesn’t want “Smallville: The Movie.”
If we’re going to talk about what WB wants, it might help if you have a source from WB actually telling you as opposed to making an assumption. WB WANTS a successful film, and wont want to mess around a second time, that’s rather obvious. But what has a higher likelihood of success? Some unknown face in the role again who could bomb like Routh? Some big name star that people see as “Famous actor in Superman suit?” Or a guy who has a massive built in fan base (Google him and have a translator handy), is “known” but known for playing Clark Kent, and the show where he plays him isnt that widely known where 70% of the film’s general audience likely wont know enough about Smallville either way to prejudge the film. And those that do likely have the mental capacity to separate the two.
Remember Kenneth Branagh? Played Hamlet in the film in the 1990’s? He also played the same character on stage for years in England at the world’s most famous theater. Yet had a whole new cast around him.
Oh and while we’re on the subject of cult TV followings into film, while X-Files tanked for obvious reasons (huge time gap between shows end and movie debut), that formula worked out pretty darn well for Star Trek. Just sayin’
This whole thing sounds opinionated and sounds like things YOU want to happen.
Vic ,
DONT take down the MOS header until we have something official one way or the other.
It just makes more sense .
I thought brandon routh had signed a multi-film deal to be Superman.
Its a shame, I didnt think he did anything wrong, I think he pulled it off.
Thank you for calling it like it is with Millar. I’m getting sick of the fanboy love for what usually amounts to terrible stories from him.
That said, I disagree about Warner not needing Superman. Superman, like the other movies you mentioned, can be exploited on so many marketing and media levels that another film, if successful, can’t hurt their bottom line. If the trend of people going to the movies in tough economic times holds (as it almost always does), it wouldn’t hurt to have another good film ready.
Personally, Warner Brothers should have just went with Grant Morrison and based the film off of All Star Superman. But, what do I know, its not like that book is a best selling, award winning book, right?
I have to agree with Jamie on the casting of Smallville’s star in the movie. Doing so could backfire big time, for a number of reasons.
First, if someone was a fan of the show and saw the star of Smallville was the star of the movie, they may come to expect “Smallville: The Movie.” They get there, see other roles recast, events from the series ignored or contradicted, and their expectations color their perceptions. This leads to the movie getting attacked for not following on as the fans expected it to, and could hurt the earnings of the movie.
Second, someone who never bothered with the series sees that show’s star reprising his role in the movie. They may decide not to bother with it as they don’t want to go into a movie with so much backstory to it and end up feeling lost. Now, this is not guaranteed to happen as Star Trek didn’t suffer from that, but Star Trek also didn’t have the ongoing story lines that have become so common these days.
Third, and I’ll admit this is the least likely of the three, someone like me, who hates Smallville sees it’s star as the star of the new Superman movie, and decides not to bother with it because of the perceived ties to the series. I don’t know how many people like me there are, but when the series premiered, there were a number of us who were determined to boycott the show. Whether they all still feel that way, whether the numbers were that large to begin with, I won’t speculate, but they did, and may still, exist.
A casting choice that could be perceived as tying the new movie to Smallville could be disastrous for the movie’s earnings. It seems to me that it’s definitely safer to cast someone new in the role.
@Brian
I can vouch for the fact that this is not just based on opinion and there is in fact a source. As of right now everything in this article is ACCURATE.
Vic
I know this will get me persecuted but has anyone stopped to think that superman hasnt been a phenomenon in so long because hes boring? Now dont get me wrong i like Supes but nowadays hes just to tame for the general population. His undying kindness, infallible sense of rightness and lame boy scout ways are just not interesting. Add to that that hes impossible to harm unlesss you work in the old Kryptonite which by now im sick to death of seeing in any form whether it be on smallville, in the movies or the comics and all in all the man is just not very interesting anymore. He will always remain a legendary character in pop culture but his days are done unless they completely reinvent him making him slightly more flawed and flesh out his one dimensional justice seeking nice guy personality which theyll never do and millions of fanboys would bring about world war 3 if they did. just my two cents.
I think the major Problem with Superman Returns was it felt like the character hadnt really changed, But in reality the world has changed .
the movie Superman Of 1978 just doesnt work any more .
It is Sad but true.
If they announced tomorrow that Tom Welling was Superman, I wouldn’t have a problem with it. Is he the greatest actor in the world? NO. Was Brandon Routh the greatest actor in the world? NO, but he was half decent as Superman. Tom Welling certainly looks the part and could play the role of Superman and Clark Kent. The chances of it happening are pretty damn slim though.
WB is going forward with a “revamp” ie “reboot”. They aren’t going to want to bring the Smallville universe onto the big screen, and in my opinion you can’t have one without the other. Just like you can’t just have Brandon Routh as Superman and go in a different direction. Routh’s Superman has a kid, remember?
No amount of “mind-erasing kissing” or “flying circles around earth” will erase or change that Tom Welling brings the Smallville Universe and Brandon Routh brings Singerverse.
~SHOW~
People don’t want nobility or altruism in their “super-heroes” anymore. Hence the big-blue boy scout theme with Supes can’t work in this day and age. He has to fall and then redeem himself in the eyes of the people in the movie to relate to us.They want to see that these beings with fantastic powers are just as “human” as we are and make mistakes, have faults and are capable making poor, rash decisions or bending the rules to ‘get to the bottom’, win the day /girl. Lets face it everyone wants film noir characters.
To which I say
WATCHMEN, WATCHMEN, WATCHMEN !!!!
Bring on those loveable, dysfunctional, sociopaths and lets see how it really will be WATCHing this kind of “super-hero” movie
As usual, Mr. Screenrant, how do you know that Tom Welling won’t be considered? You can say until you’re blue on the face that you have a source, you have no proof. It looks like YOU don’t want him in the role, period; and you want to pass this as some kind of priviledged info. So, you could also get over it because I’m sure no one at the WB will ask for your opinion either way. Or maybe you just want the traffic? Because throwing Tom Welling’s name has that effect…
If Vic says Welling wont happen,
its because he has verified it with a reliable source.
Vic didnt write this
Greenknight,
would you go see a Watchmen sequel?
Prequel?
just curious.
@helena
I didn’t write this, one of my guys did. But you should know that I personally think that Tom Welling would make a GREAT Superman - problem is the Smallville connection/baggage.
I think it’s a bummer, myself, especially as I think he’s really going to come into his own this season on the show.
Vic
My mistake .
I was responding to Helena
who referred to the author as Mr.Screenrant.
sorry about that jaime.
To those of you saying a “squeaky clean” hero won’t work in this day and age, what do you think of the concept of the Captain America movie that Marvel will be putting out in a couple of years? He falls under the same category.
I do agree that he’s been portrayed as kind of a boring character - and the problem is that the attempts to humanize him or show internal conflict have made him seem weak and weepy.
I’d rather see him struggle against the idea of using his power to just take everything over and “rule” us instead of getting all goofy over Lois Lane.
Vic
It would be Interesting If Zod returned
and somehow convinced Superman at least temporarily that humanity needs an iron fist rather then a velvet glove.
@ Vic,
then if you have a source on something like that, which you are so intent on emphatically putting out there, why not cite the source? Even if it’s just “Studio sources.” I’ve been doing journalism for a LONG time and your piece reads like an editorial at best, and at worst a fanboy rant that belongs in a superhero forum.
@Brian
I will leave it up to Jamie (the author of this post) to defend his position once he gets back online.
Vic
In Superman Returns, it felt almost like the first movie in outline. The kid is a fine twist but completely complicates the age old mythos.
And yes, every time we see Supes, he’s up against someone with Kryptonite in his back pocket.
Back when Doomsday killed Supes, Clark came back eventually, and was very fragile, as in, very human.
Anyone remember the cover art, with Clark with long flowing hair, swinging around on a rope to rescue someone?
I think someone has to write up a script that somehow incorporates a microscopic sliver of, yes, Kryptonite, that gets permanently embedded in his body and tones down his invulnerability.
Just a thought.
If Routh is out, so am I,,,,
Sorry if you don’t like it, but that’s what’s going on with the SUPERMAN film franchise.
Jamie.
I still dont see any proof, and the article still sounds like its what you want to happen. And people need to stop saying things about Vic lol HE DIDNT WRITE THIS.
@ Brian, Helena, Oscar
What would you consider proof? It’s kind of a no-win question for the author. If he drops a name he could lose not just a valuable source but a level of reputation. It’s a pointless exercise to try to press for that kind of verification. In most instances an answer won’t be dignified. Beyond that I guess you’ll have to explain yourselves. Remember the power of the press is owning one. Your certainly free to own one, if your able.
A reputation is built over time. Since no one is perfect having a platinum one is very, very hard. If you must judge at least hang around for a year then make your case. Of course, “the errors of the leaders are amplified by the numbers that follow without question.” So please don’t think I’m vilifying anyone for asking.. Just wondering how you think the question can be answered.
Read the article and tell me it doesnt sound opinionated
That’s what we do. We see developments, write about them, and inject our insight, experience or apply information we’ve got from sources.
This is TV and MOVIE News Without The Sugar Coating!! Jamie definitely scraped the sugar off the toast this time!
Time, as in all matters, will be the telling factor gang!
What they need too do is have Tom Welling as Clark Kent and Brandon Routh as Superman and they meet in the event of some, well crisis.
Jamie,
thanks for the post.
I at least want to hear more of what Millar’s take is, and my fingers are still crossed for him and that “big director” (feels funny typing that) to come thru this December. (Millar’s work on the Superman Adventures book back in the nineties got me into Superman as a kid, I loved his work on that book and would be thrilled to see that version of Superman on the big screen)
Are you sure tho, that WB will get another unknown cast as Supes in the new film? It seemed as tho Wb went thru a rather exhaustive search for Brandon Routh when casting Superman Returns, and with their dissapointment with the film, I wouldn’t be surprised if they cast a big name as Supes. I’d be pretty ticked tho, cuz, quite frankly, from where I sit, there isn’t a big name actor out there that I can think of that’s right for the part. And, looking at Superman’s film and TV history, a “BIG name” actor has NEVER played Superman, there have been good choices and bad choices for the role but no famous ones. I don’t think they need a big name for it to be good and/or successful, and Superman’s movie and TV past is a testament to that.
That said, who do you think could play Superman in the reboot? (I’ll be back with my list later :D)
Also, I strongly think that the new film should be an origin. I’ll post my reasons why some other time.
TTYL and thanks again for the post.
Oh, and NO Welling for Supes!
It’d be cool to see him as Supes, but he isn’t interested in the character and WB should start fresh.
Well, I believe you, Jamie, when you say this came from a reliable source. I don’t care if Welling is in it or not, I just want a good Superman film. For me, the best way to do this is to have Supes fight someone as string as him, like Lobo or Doomsday. You could even have it where he is forced to kill for the first time; that would probably lead to some boring self-examinations though.
I saw no problem with Brandon Routh. The last film, IMHO, suffered because there wasn’t enough action. I felt the super-kid angle just didn’t work and Lois just wasn’t as journalistic as the Lois from previous movies. And no more Lex Luther, at least not as the main villian.
Okay, I heard a rumor about Spielberg directing a Superman reboot over at cinematical, and just ran away with it. Now that I’ve heard the idea, I can’t get it out of my head. Its wonderful. Here’s my case for why he’d be so perfect. All things aside, he invented the blockbuster. He’s made big movies big before anybody really flocked to see big movies. You want the same success the Dark Knight had, DC? Let Millar do his trilogy(someone who writes comics actually writing a comic movie? Finally!) and then have the man himself direct it. Here’s the argument why:
Hells yeah! Let him do it! A man that basically made what we know as blockbusters, directing one of the biggest icons of film? I’d pay double the ticket price to see it once! I mean, come on! The only reason I didn’t like Indy 4 was because Spielberg did what he does with every franchise; bring it back to aliens. HIs fascination with the extra-terrestrial(anyone see ET?) dominates his curiosties. I mean, if he did a sequel to Schindler’s list, he’d probably reveal that the Nazi leaders were all replaced by evil aliens. The only problem is, this is all out of place. Aliens don’t belong in WWII dramas, or in Indiana Jones movies. But Superman is an alien! Its perfect! He was born to make this movie! I say give the man that made Hollywood what it is today(love him or hate him) a chance!
Tom Welling is this generations Superman! Brandon Routh stinks!
If the WB knows what they are doing they will waste no time, and hire good writers, and cast Tom Welling & Erica Durance as Lois & Clark, and give this generation their SUPERMAN.
If not the next guy will fail much like how Brandon “BJ” Routh failed.
I read this and I actually read it again. Everyone who wants Tom Welling for Superman in the future movie, it could happen but at this current time it won’t because of the busy movies WB is already working on and are only focused on the scripts.
A new face for Superman makes sense, it would get millions to see it just to see if the new actor is good so that is very valid. But again WB is going to be very careful with who they choose and their future Director.
One final note, it seems that everyone wonders why not choose Brandon Routh of Tom Welling, the thing is that we are all, not just Warner Bros., we are all looking for a new Christopher Reeve, the best Superman of them all, and as much as I would love to see it, it will never happen.
God rest Christopher Reeve, may he be walking once again in Heaven.
Cast Tom Welling, or just don’t make a new superman movie…Since I don’t belive their is anyother than Tom to play superman
Sooo they’ve completely eliminated Routh from being in the sequel? Wouldn’t that make the most sense?
In any case, having Tom Welling be superman would not be “Smallville: The Movie” because…I highly doubt they would cast EVERY Smallville actor…obviously. Therefore, it would be looked at as two completely seperate things.
On the other hand, as much as I would love seeing Tom play out Clark Kent’s destiny as Superman…it would be odd not having Erica Durance as Lois and Michael Rosenbaum as Lex…etc.
So they might as well just pick someone completely differen.
I agree with whoever said that Tom Welling is this generation’s Clark Kent.
true story.
…and we all love him! =)
Well,,, I’ve always thought of Smallville as a Teen Angst version of Young Superman…
Tom Welling doesn’t come accross as Superman to me.
Brandon Routh is better (IMO).
The show Lois and Clark was just total crap…
“Therefore, it would be looked at as two completely seperate things.”
No, not by everyone it wouldn’t. Maybe by the studio, maybe by some of the movie going audience, but there are those would wouldn’t separate them. I happen to be among them.
“and we all love him!”
I guess I’m not part of this generation, then because I feel pretty much the opposite of that.
yes said,
October 23rd, 2008
“I agree with whoever said that Tom Welling is this generation’s Clark Kent.
true story.
…and we all love him! =)”
WHAT? NO, Welling is NO Superman to me and MANY people, at all; he is ok as young Clark Kent in Smallville, but that’s it, imo.
Brandon Routh IS Superman. He is the ONLY one I want to see in the tights and cape. He Is The Man for the job. Keep him, WB! Otherwise, I and many fans won’t support the next S movie.
Tom Welling simply is the face of SUPERMAN right now!
Brandon Routh is the face of emo… He is not SUPERMAN, and never will be!
His suit looked like a cheap Halloween/Hooker outfit! And he looks like a total Fruit caKe!
Tom Welling looks like SUPERMAN! Like if he had just stepped out of the pages of DC.
All you need to keep from the show is Clark, Lex, Lois, and Jimmy!
That’s it! Maybe Chloe if you want to bring her along to… But the rest of the cast can be changed for the main characters are the only one’s needed.
The mother is off becoming a state senator, and the dad is dead.
So who else matters?
@TW4Superman2010,,,
He’s great for the Angst ridden tv version of Supes, but not for the movies…
+ I think he’s stated that he has no intention of playing Superman for the rest of his life…
Attention Fans: I have read all the comments about Superman that all of you have injected. I believe and honor the comments that ‘Son of Sam’ (10/11/’08) & ‘Amiro’ (10/21/’08) have injected; Tom Welling is the man to the Next Superman Hero to save the planet on the ‘Big Screen’ and ‘BRANDON ROUTH’ We all can relate to Tom Welling as the next ‘SUPERMAN’ like ‘Son of Sam’ mentioned ‘Brandon Routh’ Stinks. He is a very poor actor and does not relate with the Superman story. What we need to do is, seek writer with creativity and vision and that can relate to the story of superman with Lois at his side. At all cost the Superman series should continue after the Big Movie In The Screen is shown………Rosado - 11/11/’08.
SR had very few good points like the whole Superman Dying part was great I loved laughing at the docs shocking him and breaking needles. But the whole idea of SR being Superman 3 in a sense picking up after 2 was just stupid the story didn’t fit and the script just UMM sucked Kevin Spacey is a great Actor and he did a great job with what he had. Say what you will about Smallville I love the show because it has it dark moments and I miss Lex in the show this year everyone who loves the show knows that Lex from smallville is the best he is swave, cool, smart,funny, Charming and EVIL it just works. I agree with my friends I would liek to see the Death of Superman and the Reign of Superman to start to develop. The character Changes extremly and it would be a new change. AND STOP MAKING CLARK KENT ACT LIKE A COMPLETE DORK, What worked in the 70s will not work now. SMALLVILLE IS NOW DEALING WITH DOOMSDAY SO I GUESS YOU MIGHT WANT TO LEAVE DOOMSDAY OUT OF THE STORY FOR THE MOVIE.What made smallville work was showing the human side of clark kent and the super villians he would face. Brandon Roth I can see has superman for awhile but maybe enhance the dang suit even more it looked but it doesn’t have to look like tights but why the hell did it look like it had body armor Superman don’t need body Armor. Damn SR could been so what better if they writing did a little more focus on the relationship with Lois cause I mean I didn’t feel no chemistry with them and also how we should no that was supermans kid if clark took away her memories at the End of Superman 2? It just goes with Superman 3 and Superman 4
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