Warner Bros. has made no secret of the fact The Flash will bring back Michael Shannon as General Zod, with the plan being to retell the events of Man of Steel.
Original plans called for this movie to softly reboot the DCEU, replacing Henry Cavill with Sasha Calle's Supergirl and setting the stage for a Crisis on Infinite Earths project. Cavill's place as Superman was restored following his Black Adam cameo, only for the actor to once again be cut from The Flash when DC Studios was formed.
Needless to say, it's complicated, and Shannon has now admitted he had his reservations about returning as Zod. In fact, he sought out Man of Steel director Zack Snyder's blessing before agreeing to reprise the role.
"I was hesitant [to come back] because I wasn’t really happy about what happened to Zack Snyder in that whole deal," the actor told The Playlist. "And I really love Zack. The fact that Zack asked me to play that part to begin with – that’s probably the biggest surprise of my career. It almost felt like a practical joke. I was like, 'You’re kidding me, right?'"
"But I talked to Andy [Muschietti] about it, and I liked Andy, and I said, ‘Andy, look - I just want to get Zack’s blessing on this because it just doesn’t feel right without that.’ And Zack, to his credit, was very understanding. He gave me his blessing, and I went to do it."
After praising Muschietti, Shannon went on to say how this Zod differs from the one we first met back in 2013. "It's just really different - these kind of multiverse situations. The story is a lot more all over the place, you know? And I feel like I mainly exist in ‘The Flash’ as, like, an obstacle or a problem."
"Whereas, in ‘Man of Steel,’ it was more of a story. Like, ‘The Flash’ is definitely about The Flash - as it should be. So, it’s not as in-depth."
Early reactions have been positive, though those lucky enough to catch an early screening of the movie at CinemaCon haven't had much to say about Shannon's return. As a result, we're guessing he's just there to give the heroes someone to punch during the final battle.
The Flash is set to be released in theaters on June 16.