Hello everyone. It’s me again. The following editorial is the follow-up to my first article on DC Cinematic long-term plans. This editorial will focus solely on the Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel franchise. It will focus on what I think DC should incorporate into Zack Snyder’s modern spin on the Superman mythos. Without further ado…
Last San Diego Comic-Con, Zack Snyder and Warner Bros. dropped the bomb of all bombs: the next Superman film will see the titular character opposite his darker counterpart, Batman. In my first article, I mentioned that I had never been particularly fond of incorporating Batman in this film. However, I acknowledge the fact that the matter is settled and there is no point complaining over it. With that being said however, despite Batman’s popularity, he cannot be allowed to overshadow Superman. This film instead should be the driving vehicle for the audience to explore the new Clark Kent. How will Zack Snyder & Co. tackle Superman’s secret identity, the mild manner reporter of the Daily Planet? More on that later.
In any case, back to Batman. In my previous article, I stated that Batman should be the connective tissue in all of the DC movies like Nick Fury/S.H.I.E.L.D. was for Marvel. His purpose in the film should ultimately serve to move the collective story towards the now-inevitable Justice League film. This means he has a glorify cameo in the first installment of Superman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, and the Flash franchise. Of course, he should have a little more substance in Superman vs Batman in order to establish this version of the iconic character as something different than Nolan’s version and explain why a Justice League may be necessary. However, in line with what I have been saying, this should be in a supporting role. I am not going to attempt to describe to you guys a potential storyline for the character because quite frankly, I don’t know what it would be. I think we can all reasonably assume that it will deal with Batman and Superman’s first contact.
One of the must-have criteria for this film, for me, is the inclusion of Lex Luthor. However I staunchly believe that Lex Luthor not only be introduced in this sequel, but be placed in direct juxtaposition with Superman. Much like the relationship between the Joker and Batman, Superman’s arch-enemy is part of what defines him. I think the clear antagonistic relationship between Superman and Lex Luthor will ultimately establish the Man of Steel as the character we all know and love (as opposed to the Zod-killing guy). Sure, the relationship between the two doesn’t have to start out as antagonistic. There’s no plausible reason why it should. But mutual suspicion should be established quickly so that the relationship can be developed throughout the movie. While I said I will not attempt to detail out a plotline for the movie. I do have two cents about Lex Luthor. Firstly, I think Lex Luthor should in some way be connected to the rebuilding of Metropolis (after all, there’s no way that the destruction of that magnitude could be fix in a mere two years). This serves to connect Luthor as a “good guy” in the eyes of the Metropolis citizen (more on that in the next paragraph). Secondly, I do have a suggestion on what Luthor can be doing in this Man of Steel sequel based on an existing comic book arc. Again, more on that later.
The characterization of Lex Luthor should be that of a politician. Not that he is a politician. Though I’m sure many of us, myself included, would love to see Lex Luthor become President (if only briefly) on the silver screen, I believe it best suits Lex’s character if he was a businessman—I’m assuming this is the route Zack Snyder & Co. will be taking since LexCorp has already been introduced. He can be the next Mitt Romney. But what I mean by Lex having a “political character” is that his entire personality is a façade. When he is introduced, the audience and the fictional peoples of Metropolis need to fully believe this man is there for the greater good. In fact, I am not entirely sure I want this façade to be destroyed at the end of the movie. Wouldn’t it be great if despite all that may transpire in the film, in the end Lex comes out relatively unscathed? This can potentially set him up for a future supporting role in future Man of Steel sequels as a mastermind of sorts, free but in the shadows. After all, I think we’re all beginning to view repeated jail-breaking as a little stale.
Now comes the first fancast of the editorial. I am a big fan of Michael Rosenbaum’s Lex Luthor in Smallville. I love the antagonistic relationship between himself and John Glover’s Lionel Luthor. For half the series, you’re rooting for Lex not only because you see him as the lesser of two evils but also because you wanted to genuinely believe he has good inside of him. Part of me is tempted to, in fact, cast Michael Rosenbaum as Lex Luthor in the Man of Steel sequel. But this ultimately would be a foolhardy choice. Smallville is its own thing and cross-casting would only serve to confuse audience members aware of the connection. Rosenbaum is also a little too young for the role I have in mind and is also not the caliber actor that I expect for Lex Luthor in a feature film. No. I think my favorite choice to play Lex Luthor is Ralph Fiennes. Not only are his merits so well-known it warrants little discussion, standing at six feet tall, he promises never to be diminished by the stature of Ben Affleck and Henry Cavill. Ralph Fiennes is someone who has played characters on both sides of the law, with the ability to bring a humanizing quality to a villain and a darkness to a good guy. At the ripe age of fifty he is old enough to both portray Lex as a respected leader and someone able to duke it out with the best.
I want to take a brief moment to connect this casting back to Smallville’s Lex Luthor. One of the best parts of the ten-season long show is the relationship between Clark and Lex. While I wish there was a plausible way to bring this friendship-turned-enemy relationship into the feature film, there isn’t. Lex, realistically, would have been too familiar with Clark’s face to not recognize him as Superman when he meets the Man of Steel. Of course, one can argue this point is moot. Superman’s identity isn’t a secret at all. It’s one of the pitfalls of Man of Steel. Note that General Swanick and half his army got a real good look at Superman’s face. Even if we imagine Superman didn’t specifically tell General Swanwick that he lived in Kansas, a quick run through a facial recognition scan would expose the secret quite quickly. A Metropolis police officer drove Lois straight up to Martha Kent’s house! Perry White, Lombard, and Jenny also got a pretty damn good at both Superman and Clark Kent. As journalist, they should be able to put two and two together. In any case, Lex Luthor, with all the resources in the world, should have no problem digging up Superman’s secret identity. How much do you want to bet Batman does so in a jiffy?
The issue with the secret identity is difficult to rectify especially for the more modern, skeptical movie-goers. Though in my opinion what with modern technology and mass media there is no way Superman’s thinly disguised secret identity can stay hidden, I like to think that the team at the Daily Planet—aka the people who will probably spend the most time with both Superman and Clark Kent—as Clark’s confidante. Perry, Jenny, Lois, and maybe even Lombard (depends on heavily he’s featured in the sequel if at all) helps protect Clark and give alibis for him while he’s out saving the world. This allows for slightly more plausibility. What do you guys think?
While we’re on the topic of the Daily Planet…Lois. I quite frankly don’t have that much interest in the character so I don’t really care what her subpar storyline is. However, I do want to see Lois and Clark’s relationship progress realistically. Maybe in the fourth movie (which I will discuss later in the article) we see the two unite in holy matrimony on the big screen. I also want to get to know Lois’ background a little bit more. For a lot of the younger audience members who never experience Richard Donner’s Superman or people who don’t follow the comics, they have never been truly exposed to Lois’ backstory. Superman Return certainly didn’t help. And even in Richard Donner’s films she is little more than a damsel in distress most of the time. Why not incorporate General Sam Lane? The hat that General Swanwick wears at the end of Man of Steel indicates he is a three-star general. So why not instate General Lane as a four-star and Swanwick’s superior? Even if Swanwick agrees to respect Superman’s privacy, Lane might not. And won’t that provide for some exciting daughter-father dynamic? This is just a suggestion and an example of how Lois’ background can be explored a little more even if only in dialogue.
So what other supporting characters can DC insert into this film? As you may recall, I mentioned earlier in the article that there was a storyline that I would be in favor of the film being based upon despite the fact that Zack Snyder has already stated the film will be inspired by The Dark Knight Returns.
Superman/Batman: Supergirl.
Ok, before you guys hate on me, hear me out. Though the arc does not depict an outwardly antagonistic relationship between Superman and Batman, it demonstrates the tension between the two. His suspicion of Kara could easily be re-written as fear—fear of two unstoppable Kryptonians loose on Earth (setting up for Tower of Babel anyone?). Wonder Woman’s part in the story is of little consequences. Superman can easily take over the role of mentor and trainer, or at the very least, Jor-El/the Fortress of Solitude. And what if instead of Darkseid, it is Luthor who lures in, manipulates, and controls Kara? After all, I’m sure he probably got his hand on some of that Kryptonian technology off the World Engine. That and the appearance of Superman probably sparked Lex’s obsession with Kryptonians and the idea of the Übermensch. How can Lex control Kara? Besides the fact that he is a master manipulator and lier? Kryptonite. While I’m not going to talk much about Kryptonite, I just want to simply state that I think it should be introduced in the sequel. This Supergirl idea allows the mainstream audience to be introduced to a prominent, strong female character while also setting the stage for future introductions. Hopefully it can make up for the crap-fest that is Helen Slater’s Supergirl. It’s like the War Machine introduction in Iron Man 2.
The search for the right actress to portray Supergirl has been tough. Not many girls have the combination of youth, beauty, toughness, and talent. Furthermore, those who do, often times do not possess the height in which I feel is necessary to play the Kryptonian (my criteria for height is not nearly as stringent for Supergirl as it will be for Wonder Woman). The two women I would endorse for the role are Amber Heard and Alexandra Daddario. Both of them are twenty-seven years old (older than I would like) but look pretty young. Both stand at a height of 5’8” and have enough credibility and exposure to compliment, without overshadowing, Henry Cavill and the other members of the supporting cast.
I believe that the other supporting characters that should be introduced in Man of Steel 2 should be small roles that provide more background on Metropolis. There was little description of the city in Man of Steel. Maybe we should acquaint ourselves the staff of the Daily Planet. What about Metropolis’ Major Crimes Unit? In line with my preferred Batman role, Gotham City should be put on the back burner. We don’t need to see James Gordon and we definitely, definitely, do not need to see Robin/Nightwing.
Now I mentioned briefly before that there are four movies in this franchise which can serve to introduce additional supporting characters. I am going to briefly lay them out for you guys. I want you guys to keep in mind that the villains chosen reflect who I think are Superman’s greatest enemies and who deserves a movie the most.
1. Man of Steel – the introduction of Superman
2. Superman vs Batman – Formulation of a cohesive DCCU, introducing Batman. Introduction of Lex Luthor as the main antagonist and Kara Zor-El as a supporting character.
3. Man of Steel 3: The Death of Superman – Doomsday; Introducing Jimmy Olsen?
4. Man of Steel 4 (based on the Reign of Supermen arc) – Introducing Superboy and John Henry Irons (?) as Steel; introducing Brainiac as the main antagonist.
I chose to have four movies in this franchise despite the fact that I typically disdain sequels for the sake of sequels (and thus hope every current Marvel franchise ends in trilogies to be “rebooted” later) mainly because I couldn’t make up my mind who didn’t deserve to be on the big screen. I also wanted to avoid crunching so many major characters into a single film.
I believe that the third Man of Steel movie should feature Doomsday because hopefully by then the audience had time to emotionally invest in the character of the all-powerful Superman. In the second film, Superman definitively convinces every person in the world that he a friend and a savior. We see him ride that positive momentum into the third film where he is gruesomely torn down from the pedestal people placed him on. It should be devastating. Not to mention that hopefully by then, the audience can also fully believe in the pairing of Superman and Lois Lane. Man of Steel didn’t do well in this aspect. This will make the image of Lois cradling Superman’s body even more painful.
In the fourth film, we witness the birth of multiple Supermen (or maybe just Superboy). Seems to be the logical next step. Superman is (allegedly) dead but the world isn’t ready to go one without him. Someone (Cadmus, LexCorp etc.) decides they should clone him and voilà, Superboy. Braniac, in my opinion, is the ultimate baddy for Superman (excluding Darkseid—we’re saving him for the climatic Justice League film) and in my opinion, the last great opponent for Superman to face down to end the series. I wouldn’t even be mad if after revealing to be alive, Superman help his protégés destroy Brainiac and promptly retire.
The following are my fancast for the characters appearing in the subsequent sequels mentioned above:
Nicholas Hoult as Connor Kent/Superboy: Nicholas Hoult is one of the most widely exposed up and coming actor. Despite the fact that he is twenty-three years old, his youthful appearance will help keep up the façade of the eternally young clone of Superman. Standing at 6’2”, he is actually slightly taller than Henry Cavill. I also find his facial features to be a perfect blend of Ralph Fiennes and Henry Cavill. Other considerations include Alexander Ludwig and Asa Butterfield.
Morris Chestnut as Henry Irons Jones/Steel: A high-caliber actor who deserves more exposure, at the age of 44, Chestnut is old enough to both conceivably have a teenage daughter and maintain a superhero persona. He is six-feet tall. Other consideration includes Boris Kodjoe.
Jason Isaacs as Braniac: Jason Isaac is an accomplished actor with both a brilliant voice and facial feature for Brainaic. The only concern here is whether or not he will be able condition his body to portray that of Brainiac. Nevertheless, I prefer Braniac to be more of a mental/psychological enemy than a physical one. Other considerations include Michael C. Hall, Adrien Brody, and Paul Bettany.
Glen “Kane” Thomas as Doomsday: As I imagine Doomsday to be a purely computer generated villain, we simply need a body for motion capture purposes. I assume the process would be similar to the Hulk in the Avengers. I also don’t anticipate Doomsday ever speaking as the unintelligible brute that he is so acting ability shouldn’t be much of a problem. Kane stands at 7’0” tall.
Robert Redford as General Sam Lane: I didn’t want to cast someone already in a Marvel movie in the role but I honestly couldn’t find somebody else I felt could embody the character of Sam Lane and portray the man as a good guy, only with mistrust and skepticism of the Man of Steel. Actors like Stephen Lang, Charles Dance, and Ed Harris comes with pre-determine connotation based on the roles of their past that would skew the audience’s view of character too much towards villainy.
Calum Worthy as Jimmy Olsen: I had a tough time casting Jimmy simply because the role is rather small and could be fill by any young, up-and-coming actor with low-level comedic timing. I focused primarily on red-headed actors but I wouldn’t mind if they actually switched ethnicity for the character like they did for Perry White. Other considerations include John Francis Olsen, Lucas Elliot Eberl, and Caleb Landry Jones.
Wow. This article was longer than my first one. I hope you guys enjoyed the read. Feel free to comment in the usual location.
Up Next: Wonder Woman!