 | New Superman actor revealed |
New Superman actor Henry Cavill
Via Yahoo News:
Henry Cavill, the star of Showtime's "The Tudors," has been cast as iconic superhero Superman in a film to be directed by Zack Snyder, Warner Bros. Pictures and Legendary Pictures confirmed in a statement Jan. 30.
"In the pantheon of superheroes, Superman is the most recognized and revered character of all time, and I am honored to be a part of his return to the big screen," Snyder said. "I also join Warner Bros., Legendary and the producers in saying how excited we are about the casting of Henry. He is the perfect choice to don the cape and 'S' shield."
Cavill will be seen later this year playing Greek warrior Theseus in director Tarsem Singh's action picture "Immortals," and opposite Bruce Willis and Sigourney Weaver in the thriller "The Cold Light of Day."
The 27-year-old actor was reportedly on the shortlist for "Superman Returns" when McG was to direct it, but when Bryan Singer took over the project he went with Brandon Routh instead.
While Marvel Entertainment has worked on establishing their Avengers films, DC Comics and Warner Bros. has had a mega weapon in its arsenal, Superman. Created by the duo of Joe Simon and Joel Schuster back in 1938, Superman is regarded by many to be the first real superhero. Impervious to harm, able to perform superhuman feats from super speed to super ventriloquism, Superman is the last survivor of the doomed planet Krypton, sent to the planet Earth as his home exploded. Raised in America's homeland of Smallville, Superman was imbued with all of the red-blooded morality of a patriot of the late 30's.
After a Columbia Pictures serial and a TV series, Superman became part of the American culture.
In 1978, Warner Bros. unleashed the first feature film that established for the first time that a major motion picture could be developed based on a comic book character. Unknown in film, stage actor Christopher Reeve embodied the wholesome yet alien being from another planet devoted to truth, justice and the American way (a character trait introduced in the radio show only to be reinforced on the TV program). However, even though the first film was an outstanding success, the magic waned after four films and Superman became a relic of the past.
As the comic book medium and the nation has advanced, the character of Superman has also changed and modernized, growing more tragic, flawed or magical to meet the demands of the market audience. In a medium that has struggled to maintain a readership in the 21st Century, Superman has become something of a dinosaur. An attempt to recapture the magic of Richard Donner's work, Bryan Singer was hired to direct Superman Returns. Taking up after the events of Superman II, the film was only a minor success. It raised a few new ideas (such as a super-son), but failed to grab the audience as the studio had hoped.
Newcomer Brandon Routh was a pale imitation of Christopher Reeve in all fairness and while Singer's film was serviceable it was hardly a step in any direction from the Donner film. If anything, it was an homage to Donner's work and a heartfelt one at that. But the movie going public had gotten used to superhero movies and after seeing Batman get modernized under Chris Nolan, they needed a similar drastic re-imagining for the man of steel. Nevertheless, a sequel was planned with bothy Routh and Singer returning to pit Superman against Brainiac, the super-computer villain from the comics and animated series.
Legal battles between the estate of Jerry Siegel and Warner Bros. kept Singer's follow-up movie from seeing the light of day. Meanwhile, the TV program Smallville based on a young Clark Kent's life before he donned the red and blue tights has trudged on, furthering its own version of the DC Universe. Many have felt that merging Smallville with a sequel to Superman Begins would make a lot of sense, but apparently Warner Bros. has taken a different direction entirely.
Zack Snyder(Watchmen, 300)'s Superman film will be a complete reboot of the Superman franchise. Entitled Superman: Man of Steel, the movie is largely a mystery. Comic book (Grant Morrison, Mark Waid and Mark Millar) and feature film creators (Chris Niolan and David Goyer) have had their say on what needs to be done with Superman to make him a success for modern audiences, but it is still unclear on what direction Snyder and Warner Bros. will take.
My own personal idea is to remove the character from the confines of the planet Earth and street crime/real estate fraud. These things may have been necessary back in the day for an audience reluctant to accept a magical super being capable of impossible acts, but today we are in need of the fantastic and absurd in our super hero films. Involving Lex Luthor or a cat burglar at all is the wrong way to go about it. Take Superman to the stars where he shines and let the audience tag along. We know Superman's story and accept that he is strong, tough, fast and can fly. These concepts were once fanciful and exotic but are now commonplace. For the new Superman to make an impact, he needs to get to work and remind us why he is the first and best superhero. I understand the need to ground Superman with the reality of Clark Kent, but the true power of the character comes from his fantastic feats combined with his humanity. Back in 1978, this concept was an oddity, but the new film will be faced with the task of combining these ideas for a public that has been saturated with comic book superhero films.
27 year-old actor Henry Cavill has been announced as the new man of steel. Ironically, Cavill is the same age as Andrew Garfield, set to play Peter Parker in the new Spider-Man reboot. A one-time contender for James Bond and Superman (before Snyder chose Routh), Cavill is currently well-known for the cable TV program The Tudors.
Superman: Man of Steel will sink or soar to the silver screen (in 3-D) December 2012.
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