If WB don’t have a Superman movie in production within the next couple of years they will loose the rights to the character. Is there anyone out there who actually thinks WB will let this happen?! Didn’t think so. WB do seem to be dragging their feet though. I used to think this was because they lacked the balls to make a decision on a reboot or continuation. Well, too much time has passed and there’s not been a single word from the studio. This smells like a reboot hatching to me. They are waiting for the last rays of light from “Returns” to drop over the horizon. Giving themselves time to make some very tough choices over one of the most important superheroes of all time.
With that in mind, I have been thinking. It’s a dangerous game often ending with a call to the emergency services, but needs must. Do we want the classic Superman? The suit? The hair? The secret identity? Can Superman be modernised or is he so timeless the mere mention of change warrants two or three death penalties?
For me, Superman can’t be completely altered but a few subtle changes can be made for the man of steel to fit into the modern world.
Firstly there’s Clark Kent. To be fair there have been a few variations of this side of Superman. Christopher Reeve did a fine job for his time. Tom Welling is playing a sort of Clark/Supes hybrid which is right for the age of his character. We even had Dean Cain portray the character in reverse! In an astounding move he decided Clark should be a stronger character than Superman! Madness! Clark does need a change though. He shouldn’t be an ace reporter. In the modern world he would want to keep his head well and truly down. He should have a bottom rung role at the Daily Planet, he should be a nerd that Lois has no time for. To make the character work he needs to be so insignificant people barely see him.
Next is the hair. It needs a change. To my knowledge all live action incarnations of Superman have had slicked back hair with that stupid curl. In recent print and cartoons, his hair has been altered slightly, from slicked back to a shorter, spikey do. I don’t mind if it’s kept fairly long, slicked back or loose, or shortened but the curl must go. It’s such a small detail but it makes the world of difference.
Personally I think the suit was updated quite well for Superman Returns. I thought the dark red tone was perfect and the leather cape looked great. The only question over it is the pants. I wouldn’t know what to do differently so overall I would say that suit works.
Ok, so if you’re still reading this dribble it’s probably for this part. Here are three casting choices. Two of them are the most mentioned people when this role comes up in conversation, the third is my choice, one so far out of left field I’m still unsure myself in many ways!
Brandon Routh
Routh has played this part under almost impossible circumstances and received split reviews. Personally I thought he was great. Any issues with the movie were due to the writers, director and the direction the studio wanted the film to head. Routh can’t be held accountable for any of that. He did a good job against the odds. He’s familiar with this role on a movie scale, which is a step up from any other candidate for the part. He has a good height and build, which is crucial. And can pull of both Superman and Clark Kent convincingly. However, the public is split when it comes to Routh wearing the “S” and with no real way knowing how many are for or against him it maybe too much of a gamble for the studio. If the next movie is to be a reboot (or however they like to label it these days) it doesn’t make sense to keep actors. If this is the case then as much as I’d like him to stay, Routh has to go.
Tom Welling
I’ll not lie, I hate Smallville but I will try my best to remain unbiased. As I hate it, I haven’t seen many episodes. With that in mind I write this based on what I have seen so don’t shoot me if it’s wrong. Welling has a huge fan base, most of whom want to see him in the full suit. Even Christopher Reeve himself said Tom was perfect for the role. But does Reeve’s opinion cut it these days? The world has moved on since his passing. Or was he just being a gentleman when praising Welling? I’m not sure how tall he is but I’m sure it’s at least borderline when thinking of the height requirement for Supes. He is at least athletic and capable of bulking up if needed. However you look at it Tom has played this part far longer than anyone I can think of (the number of Smallville episodes has passed Lois & Clark hasn’t it?). But, and it’s a big “but”, is this character the same we need in a movie? No. Welling plays Clark when he is finding what he is capable of and how he should put this to use. This Clark is still one person. In a movie about a grown Superman, this character needs to be split. He needs to make the choice to become Clark as we know him just as much as the choice to become Superman. Welling has no experience in this. If Welling was to do a Superman movie it would be ridiculous! The world knows him as Clark from Smallville, so how could he convincingly play the same character in a completely different way? It’ll be like Adam West playing Batman Bale style! The Clark in Smallville is completely different to the Clark in a Superman movie. The only way to have Welling convincingly play the man of steel is to have a Smallville Movie! That isn’t only as scarily bad as it sounds to the Superman franchise but it will completely destroy the whole DC movie universe before it gets started! Any hope of a Justice League movie will be gone, most if not all the decent DC villains will have to be pathetic kids! Doomsday a human? I don’t think so! Smallville fans need to wake up, Welling cannot be Superman!
Right, before we go any further. Sit down. Put your drink on the desk and swallow anything you might be eating. I don’t want you falling over or spitting anything over your screen. Your gut reaction to this will be “HELL NO! RON YOU TWAT, WHAT ARE YOU THINKING!” To be honest, when this thought first came to me I buried it like a 15yr old hiding his first porn mag. But the more I think about it the more I can see it working. Please give this time to sink in and carry on reading as I give you…
Jared Padalecki
I’m banished from this site now aren’t I? Seriously though, who do we need Superman to be? Many of us on here cast this guy as Cyclops due to the nature of the character. Is Superman so different? They both look to do the right thing all the time, they are both leaders. How do we want Superman to look? Tall and muscular, right? Well as far as I can tell Jared is exactly19ft tall (give or take 11/12ft). He towers over everyone, which is perfect! Most Superheroes need to be tall and Superman is the hero of heroes! You can have all Justice League members at an imposing 6ft 2 and they will still need to look up at Superman. You may think he is too much of a rake for the part. Well this is one of the best features the guy has for this role! Stick him in regular clothes and he looks thin, just like Clark should. But when this guy is in a tight t-shirt, vest or (dare I say) Superman suit it’s easy to see he is ripped to high heaven!
I don’t care what you say, Jared can act. I have quite literally just watched Supernatural from episode one right through to the end of season four, back-to-back, three or four a night at least. You can really see how both Jared and Jensen have grown as actors. As Sam Winchester, Jared plays a character who, in many ways becomes split. One side of him wants to do the right thing while keeping people out of the firing line and stand by his brother, while the other side wants to rebel against him and get the job done at all costs. Playing a hero on a tongue in cheek TV show must be one of the hardest roles to get any acclaim for. Playing a villain is easy compared to playing a hero. Just name all the “great actors” around today. Now think about the roles for which you just named them. Most, if not all are villains or anti-heroes with an evil streak.
Jared Pocahontas can pull this off. His height and build aren’t only perfect for Superman, not only perfect for Superman AND Clark but also perfect for a Justice League movie. Like I said, let it sink in and mull it over, that’s right, mull it, mullet.
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I felt bad that both Routh and Welling had pictures in Superman suits and I didn’t want Jared Piccalilli to feel left out so here’s a quick sketch I did.