We’ll be goddamned if Zack Snyder isn’t doing everything in his power to scrub the ugly, ugly memory of “Sucker Punch” out of our minds. He’s got a world of expectation on his shoulders for the upcoming “Superman” reboot but with each casting announcement, we can’t help but get more and more excited for the film.
Warner Bros. has announced that Michael Shannon has joined the upcoming film — now officially titled “Man Of Steel” (whether it has “Superman” in the title as a prefix remains unclear) — as General Zod. While Snyder himself said last year that early word of Zod being the villain in “Superman” was just a rumor, all signs have been pointing in that direction anyway with Viggo Mortensen being recently courted for the part. The character, a megalomaniac fellow-exile from Superman’s home planet of Krypton, is one of the best-known of the classic adversaries, having been embodied memorably by Terence Stamp in 1980’s “Superman II” (easily the best cinematic depiction of the series so far). But we can’t think of a better bit of inspired casting than Shannon taking on the role.
Snyder stated, “Zod is not only one of Superman’s most formidable enemies, but one of the most significant because he has insights into Superman that others don’t. Michael is a powerful actor who can project both the intelligence and the malice of the character, making him perfect for the role.”
With confirmation of the villain, fanboys will surely be wondering if perennial nemesis Lex Luthor also plays a role in the story penned by David S. Goyer and godfathered by producer Christopher Nolan. Recent, plausible sounding rumors pegged Metallo as the villain, but the Nolan camp has apparently been good at purposeful misinformation as well, so that storyline has likely been proven as a very false one.
Shannon, known for electrical turns in “Revolutionary Road” (for which he was nominated for a Best Supporting Actor Oscar), and absurd ones (Werner Herzog‘s “My Son, My Son, What Have Ye Done?” joins a so-far impeccable cast that includes Henry Cavill as Clark Kent, Diane Lane and Kevin Costner as Ma and Pa Kent and Amy Adams as Lois Lane. “Superman” hits theaters in December 2012. Production is expected to begin in the fall.
