HOME TRAILERS RELEASE DATES PODCASTS REVIEWS POSTERS INTERVIEWS BOB $TENCIL NEWS FEEDS ABOUT APPS

LATEST NEWS

'Man of Steel' Logline Revealed, But Production is Very Rushed

by Ethan Anderton
October 5, 2010
Source: Vulture

We've just learned that Darren Aronofsky has been offered Wolverine 2 after being informed that the newest take on Superman, The Man of Steel, was being handed to Zack Snyder. However, in that same article is some simultaneously interesting and troubling information that doesn't bode too well for this seemingly promising take on the Big Blue Boy Scout. First, Vulture reveals the film will follow Clark Kent as a journalist traveling the world “trying to decide if he should, in fact, even become Superman.” Sounds like an original take on the hero, but there's also some distressing news behind the hiring of Snyder as director. Read on!

First, let's talk a bit more about that logline. SlashFilm points out that the brief hint of a story for the Superman reboot mirrors that of a story arc from a twelve-issue comic book limited series called Superman: Birthright. In that comic series, apparently Clark Kent is a freelance reporter in his early 20's, traveling all around the world covering various news stories. However, Kent is forced to fly back into action to attain a fleeing assassin instead of covering an ethnic conflict (not a real one) between the Ghuri and Turaaba clans (also not real) in West Africa. Upon his return to form, Kent returns to Smallville to learn more about his origins and become the hero he was born to be. You can read more about Superman: Birthright right here.

Now back to the worrisome news. Apparently the reason behind Snyder's hiring over Aronofsky is, "the script by David Goyer was rushed, is still a bit of a mess, and that Warner Bros. needs someone who won't spend months or even years trying to get it just right." Well, that doesn't sound good. This attitude stems from the threat (which we've pointed out previously) that if Warner Bros. doesn't have a new Superman film in production by 2011 (for release in 2012), they'll be subject some unfriendly lawsuits (which could result in losing the character rights to the heirs of Superman creator Jerry Siegel).

Sadly, WB and Legendary Pictures are so desperate to get the project off the ground that they hired Snyder even though he wasn't the top choice for the job. Essentially, Snyder got the job because the studio thinks he can get Superman to fly much faster than Aronofsky could. Even more worrisome is the fact that Snyder has apparently confirmed the aforementioned script troubles (in private) to certain agency sources. Perhaps Goyer was right when he previously mentioned why he didn't think he'd be good to write Superman.

Honestly, this is all hearsay at this point, but if it's true, this isn't a good start to what originally sounded like an amazing prospect. It's no wonder why WB wanted someone like Christopher Nolan shepherding the project. While I trust Nolan implicitly with a project like this, if production really is being rushed for all the wrong reasons, then that's just bad news bears. I just hope that all the king's horses and all the kings men can put Superman back together again. Anyone else worried?

Explore tags: Hype, Movie News, Opinions

Cobb

Come on, Snyder was just hired. Can we at least wait 24 hours before we start bashing this project.
http://www.modernamericanman.net ModernAmericanMan

Every film project has a list of issues and worries in the beginning. I remember all of the rumors about Lord of the Rings until I saw the first film in the theaters and realized I just saw a modern day masterpiece. My point: This story is nothing but a story. Catch my drift? Move along. Nothing to see here.
Angry Chief

Snyder may be able to pull it off. But, dammit, if he doesn't...I am buying a hammer and a bus ticket and he'll be dead by morning after the nation-wide release.
June

What the fvck? NOOOOOOOOO to baby Superman! No origin. None of the "finding myself" Dawson's Creek crap! and NO to boring Zod again. Damn you Goyer. I knew he was going to fvck it up.
Guy

Uh Nolan is in, and Snyder... That means, well thought out plot, and amazing visual style. DONE.
Jazzed

They should drop the film all together. Save face.
jokerface

The Superman: Birthright was inspired by the tv show Smallville according to articles and interviews. Smallville is taking over the whole Superman franchise. LOL. I knew this would come. All that B.S. about alternate Earths, and how Smallville would be isolated from mainstream Superman continuity. LOL. Smallville IS the mainstream continuity. Ten people still read the comic book, and they are all 50 year old white guys. Millions of teens grew up watching Smallville. It defines what mainstream Superman is. The dirty secret is that DC always knew this. Hell, their own comic writers also write for Smallville. But DC didn't want to drive those last few comic book readers into a frenzy and so let them have their delusion of an "isolated" Smallville. But Smallville was always the whole cake.
DRM

Obviously this isn't ideal news. And I'm also conflicted about them doing 'Birthright" too, BUT... Maybe this isn't such a bad thing? Every time a writer/director tries to over scrutinize their take on 'Superman' it either never gets made at all, like Tim Burton's. Kevin Smith, and JJ Abrams attempts, or it turns into a snoozefest like "Superman Returns". WB is super-protective of the 'Superman" label, so much so that they coddle it like Disney does Mickey Mouse. This kind of pressure to put something out there might just be the kick in the pants WB needs to make a good Superman ACTION movie. Remember, Superman is an action character. Over time he's become this philosophical christ icon, but that's not what he was really meant to be. If Batman is James Bond, then Superman is Indiana Jones. ---
harm

I may be in the minority but I LOVED birthright! And an adaptation of that would just make me fuzzy happy. And I don't like Smallville. Imnsho this is great news. Question though? How the F does Zod fit into the birthright story? Birthright is a twisted and sinister super powerful super smart Lex.
Meg

Smallville is Birthright. Birthright is Smallville. It doesn't bother me. Smallville is a great show.
Xerxex

eeh...well I'm sure it will work itself out.
Black Dynamite

Way too early to be worried and if Snyder got in by default, that's actually a good thing in my eyes because he should bust his ass to make the most out of this opportunity.
michel

We all know the fuckin origin of superman. Just make him bad-ass and merciless, bring some villain like general zod who kills lois lane,which makes superman angry kills the general in super slow-motion.
Al

I must admit as a fan of the original movies, a fan of the comics and an occasional fan of Smallville, I think this is really the only way that they could take this forward. This will redefine Superman to the current generation and allow us to get to know him as a character and understand what makes him who he is. It's what Nolan did in Batman Begins.
Rick Moeller

Sounds like there's a lack of creativity to move past his origin and move on to what everyone wants to see...SUPERMAN doing Superman things including a worthy villan! Lex...AGAIN? Realy?! There are other villans you know. We don't need an artistic spin just a new villan THAT HE CAN FIGHT, lots of action, a good climax with posible spin, maybe a few side plots and you'll get your money. Its dissapointing when myself and others feel we can storyline better than what we see in the theatre.
Adam

Though I must say I am a fan of Smallville and I did also enjoy the Superman Returns (even though it was slow going) I must say at this point I was hoping that the Man of Steel film would have more action. I will agree that the whole Lex and Zod thing seems to have been overdone...Why not take this time to introduce Doomsday or Darkside...? I mean someone where it really puts Supermans morals and strength to the test. Of all the Superman movies I really don't feel that they tapped into his true abilities. His villians have been ok but nothing that knocked you out of your seat....
tazz

really dont want this movie to have similar style to Smallville at all. it will give reason for people wanting Tom Welling to be in the movie.
http://www.nicksears.com Nick Sears

Ugh, not very good news if it IS all true. I hate haste. To have him fight Zod again.. I donno, I think they need to lean towards alien nemesis's like Mongul, Braniac and yes, Darkseid! We certainly have to have that sense of epic battles where it's a good balance of Superman being a badass yet gets pretty beat up; bludgeoned even - but he just does not quit. Ahh, I'm wasting my breath. There's the whole other half of him being human and connecting to the audience still needs to be filled, and it's just way too early for me to get into that haha Hope this all pans out properly. Man of Steel needs justice!
Tellar Calcagno

They better not include Lex Luthor or General Zod in the new Superman movie or any Superman movies for a while. There are many Superman villains that have not been used in the movies but have been used on Smallville such as Bizarro, Brainiac, Doomsday, Metallo, Toyman and shortly, Darkseid. Other villains that they can use include Atomic Skull, Bloodsport, Bruno Mannheim, Conduit, Cyborg Superman, Faora, Gog, Imperiex, Intergang, Jax-Ur, Kryptonite Man, Livewire, Mala, Mercy Graves, Mongul, Morgan Edge, Mr. Mxyzptlk, Parasite, Prankster, Sam Lane, Silver Banshee, Solaris, Superboy-Prime, Superman Revenge Squad, Terra-Man, Titano, Ultra-Humanite, Ultraman.
CHACK

What a ball suck story the Africa thing is, total yawn, and screw origin story...yet again, what zit faced little toad at WB wearing the suit signed this turd of a story off? be nice to see Superman in the thick of things for a change instead of all this soul searching drivel. Lets move on with the character and see what's he's capable of.
1544K

Still way to early but sounds like things have taken a turn....for better or worse TBD....
Chrisbo

Not worried, superman is dead. Doomsday killed him.
Voice of Reason

I knew Snyders role as director didnt bode well for the project. Its a goddamn shame they dont want to get a director "...to get it just right." Hopefully this puts the kibosh on Hamm as he clearly does not pull of the "young 20's" look whatsoever and in general is a bad choice for the Man of Steel despite Jon's current popularity. I agree with #13.....eff "Birthright" we all know the origin of the alien. Do "All-Star Superman," especially if there's a risk of losing the rights, that storyline would be a PERFECT send-off but with an open end to keep the franchise going.
Dave Lister, J.M.C.

This project is already FUBAR. Snyder and Nolan should just walk away right now; and let WB go ahead and lose the film rights. If this is the best they can come up with, for such an iconic character, they don't deserve to hold the rights any longer. They're trying to turn Superman, into the kid, from the Twilight movies.
Craig

Honestly, what worried me the most was reading "Clark Kent in his early 20s". Why would we want a Smallville rehash?
dreckent

"Anyone else worried?" Wel now I am... :s
Clarke

Another Good Interview with Zach Snyder - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GsIvym6Jkbk
Pete

Sounds like Batman Begins....we'll be fine;)
goliad

Superman Movies = Third Rail. they never get them right .. Now we have to wait for the NEXT superman movie and hope that one is done right.
leinergroove

Christopher Nolan is the producer, ergo, there is NO WAY in hell the project could go wrong somehow. That's pretty much it.
Cracky

It'll be fine. I'm not worried at all. Besides, it IS just hearsay.
Adam

As I like Christopher Nolan, I really would hate to see the same old villians....they really need to have a villian that has not been done yet....It would be a real epic movie if they did Doomsday or Darkseid....I mean Superman would be more of the hero if he has to really give 100% where it looks hopeless and still carry on just hoping to win...That is suppose to be one of his biggest assets..he inspires Hope....
Gerald

Hey can we pleeeeeease get Tom Welling as Superman!!!!! That is all...
Sota-POP

Haste and Shite story...... where did we JUST see this..... hmmmm..... effing Iron Man 2. I'm not ruling out the fact that Chris Nolan is a cinematic god and can probably piece this all together, but how many times have we seen the failure of an epic character broken down by the impatience and self-indulgence of hollywood execs. I'm going to assume this is all hogwash for my own sanity.
be

I agree with #28. And that was a great flick, so if they can somehow make it Superman's own, I think it should be fine. Just because the 1st draft isn't up to par, doesn't mean these heavy weights won't be able to figure it out.
quazzimotto

Nolan and Snyder is a dream match. Goyer shouldn't be writing this but, given who's overseeing this charade, I'd say it'll all pan out. Can't be any worse than Superman Returns. #32 is right, Zod needs to bite the curb and make room for someone new. Enough with the retro-recycle-remake-reuse garbage.
Roderick

i think hollywood is afraid to delve hardcore into fictional characters and their enemies because most stuff doesn't make sense when trying to base that material in reality, or hollywood thinks it would be hard to portray characters like Doomsday or Darkseid to its audience and make us believe that these characters are real and can fit in a real world. That hasn't stopped James Cameron and it hasn't stopped asian and european film makers from creating amazing CG characters and trusting the audience in watching the film without having to convince us that these characters can exist in real life. Everyone is tired of seeing general Zod and Lex Luther be the bad guy. We have the technology to create awesome cg characters that look real. Why not do it and spare me sitting through another movie with superman, where his enemy is another character that looks human. Superman is a alien, have him fighting crazy awesome cg aliens. Thats what i wanna see!
DJSNOLA`

How is Nolan going to supervise this film with Batman 3 about to shoot in New Orleans in April. Thats alot for one guy to handle even if he isnt directing both!
JL

Well, we know we don't need to worry about the aesthetic of the film, with movies like Dawn of the Dead, 300, and Watchmen under Snyder's belt, but that should definitely take back seat to good writing and good performance.
McQueen

@Roderick, spot on brother! Spot on...
blake

WHAT NO ONE IS TALKING ABOUT is the fact that Christopher Nolan's brother, Jonathan Nolan, who played a MASSIVE ROLE in writing the Dark Knight, could possibly be brought in to take a pass at this script. (i hope) Not only that. When Zack Snyder says he want's to do for Superman what Nolan did for Batman, that shows how at the very least, he is on the right path.
mikep72

I am concerned people are concerned about this movie. 1. We get another Superman feature!!! 2. Snyder has skills and talent! 3. Nolan involved (who took one of the greatest superheroes in history and surpassed even that of the fanboys expectations). I still get tingles all over watching both flicks for the 20th time. Not only that, he just topped the Matrix with Inception!! I think Nolans not rebooting big blue personally because there is no time and needs to continue the billion dollar dark night franchise. Superman is the personification of the term "super hero". I wouldnt want the responsibility to bring him to life. Whats Bryan Singer up to these days??!! Poor guy. I was very very disappointed in Superman returns but I would never in a million years take that movie away. Right or wrong, good or bad, it's SUPERMAN god damn it!