Richard Donner, director of the classic 1978 Superman movie, says he doesn't find modern dark and angry superhero movies entertaining. Now 90, Donner is currently working on Lethal Weapon 5, which he confirms will be his last as a director and the final entry in the long-running action franchise. In addition to Superman and all four Lethal Weapon movies, Donner is best known for The OmenThe Goonies, Ladyhawke, and Scrooged. The last film he directed was 2006's 16 Blocks, which featured Bruce Willis and Mos Def.  But Donner's legacy will always be the Superman franchise.

His film, considered the first proper modern superhero movie, made Christopher Reeve a star and established the tradition of using a relatively unknown actor in the role, alongside more established actors as the villains. Superman is also widely considered the template for how to tell a great superhero origin story on the screen, blending humor, drama, emotion, and action to make a classic blockbuster. Sadly, Donner was fired halfway through production on Superman II (though he did get a DVD cut of the movie), and the franchise was never able to live up to the promise of the original movie. However, it set the standard for superhero movies, one that many still follow today. Sadly, Donner isn't a fan of some of the movies he helped inspire.

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In an extensive interview with The Telegraph, Donner mentions that while he's glad that superhero movies have become the most popular genre in cinema, he doesn't like it when they're "dark and angry." The veteran director says reality is dark enough, making a thinly veiled reference to outgoing US President Donald Trump by saying the past four years were dark enough. As a result, he says, he doesn't find the darker superhero movies entertaining. You can read his full thoughts on the matter below:

"When they're dark, bleak and angry with themselves and the world, I don't find it entertaining. I think there's enough reality going on. We just got over 4 years of that."

Superman about to break Zod’s neck in Man of Steel

The criticism doesn't seem to be aimed at any one director in particular, especially since Donner mentions in the interview that he's not aware of who Zack Snyder is, but the 90-year-old clearly believes the trend for darker superhero movies over the past decade isn't beneficial. He could be referring to any number of movies but is most likely pointing his finger at the slew of 'darker' DC movies, which started with Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight. Ironically, that movie remains one of the most popular superhero outings ever, but further dark superhero efforts, like Man of Steel and Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice, have been criticized for taking the dark tone too far.

That's set to continue with Matt Reeves' The Batman, the trailer for which made it clear the movie will be incredibly dark. However, other efforts in the DC Extended Universe, like Wonder Woman 1984 and Aquaman, have been lighter in tone. The Marvel Cinematic Universe has a number of comedies under its belt, so the trend doesn't dominate too much. Clearly, Donner prefers those which hew closer to the tone and spirit of Superman, which isn't a bad thing if they can match the quality of that iconic superhero classic.

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Source: The Telegraph