'The Flash': Michael Shannon Was "A Little Confused" When He Was Asked To Reprise General Zod Role: "I Think I Died"

DC Studios dropped the first trailer for “The Flash” during this year’s Super Bowl to much anticipation. After Ezra Miller‘s behavior last year, and new studio co-heads James Gunn and Peter Safran drumming up hype for the delayed movie in January, what would “The Flash” actually look like? And who else would be part of the film’s time-bending story beyond Michael Keaton‘s Batman?  

READ MORE: ‘The Flash’ Trailer: DC Worlds Collide For Michael Keaton, Ben Affleck, Michael Shannon & More

Well, to the surprise of lots of people, Michael Shannon‘s General Zog from 2013’s “Man Of Steel” shows up in the trailer. And EW reports that Shannon was as surprised as everyone else when “The Flash” director Andy Muschietti asked him to reprise the role. “I was a little confused,” Shannon says told Looper in a new interview.  “I said, ‘As memory serves me, I think I died in “Man of Steel.” Are they sure they got the right guy?'” Indeed, Henry Cavill‘s Superman does kill Zod at the end of Zack Snyder‘s film. But a lot has gone on in superhero movies since Shannon’s role as the villain, mainly the trendy concept of the multiverse.

“But then they explained to me the whole multiverse phenomenon, which… I was a little behind the times on that,” Shannon continued. “I can’t say that I’m a huge consumer of this genre of films — not that I have anything against them. If I’m going to watch a movie, the odds are it’s not going to be one of those, but I sure love making them.” Once Shannon was up to speed on the multiverse, he signed on to play General Zod again. Zod returns in “The Flash” after Miller’s Barry Allen goes back in time to prevent his mother’s murder, only for him to radically change his timeline, including Superman not being around for Zod’s invasion of Earth. Enter Shannon as Zod again.

Shannon loved playing the character again, though, even if it was for a short while. “I loved making “Man of Steel,” and I love working with Zack, and I felt like it was actually, in a way, a fairly important film,” Shannon said about returning to the Zod role. “It was nice to revisit the character. I wasn’t there for a terribly long time. I was in and out in a couple of weeks, so it was a nice way to spend a bit of my summer in England. Andy’s a lovely guy and a great artist, visually, and I had a blast.”

Shannon’s Zod isn’t the only DC character showing up in “The Flash.” Michael Keaton’s Bruce Wayne/Batman from Tim Burton‘s films shows up because of the timeline weirdness. And Sasha Calle also debuts as Supergirl in the upcoming blockbuster to help Miller’s Allen face off against Zod. The long-delayed film finally hits theaters on June 16, with a world premiere at CinemaCon in April.  

So how much screen time will Shannon’s Zod have in “The Flash”? Only time will tell.