Superman (film series)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Superman film series | |
|---|---|
 The Ultimate Superman Collection |
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| Directed by | Richard Donner (Superman & Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut) Richard Lester (Superman II & III) Sidney J. Furie (Superman IV: The Quest for Peace) Bryan Singer (Superman Returns) |
| Produced by | Alexander Salkind & Ilya Salkind (Superman I, II & III) Menahem Golan & Yoram Globus (Superman IV: The Quest for Peace) Jon Peters (Superman Returns) |
| Music by | John Williams (Superman, Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut) Ken Thorne (Superman II & III) Alexander Courage ( Superman IV: The Quest for Peace) John Ottman ( Superman Returns) |
| Cinematography | Geoffrey Unsworth (Superman, Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut) Robert Paynter (Superman II, III) Ernest Day (Superman IV: The Quest for Peace) Newton Thomas Sigel (Superman Returns) |
| Editing by | Stuart Baird (Superman) John Victor-Smith (Superman II, III) John Shirley (Superman IV: The Quest for Peace) John Ottman (Superman Returns) |
| Distributed by | Warner Bros. (Superman, II, III, Returns) Cannon Films (in association with Warner Bros.) (Superman IV: The Quest for Peace) |
| Release date(s) | 1978-2006 |
| Country |  United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | (Superman: $55,000,000) (Superman II: 54,000,000) (Superman III: 30,000,000) (Superman IV: The Quest for Peace: 17,000,000 estimated) (Superman Returns: 204,000,000) |
The Superman film series consists of five superhero films (not counting Supergirl) based on the fictional DC comics character of the same name. The series was conceived in 1973 under producers Alexander and Ilya Salkind. Between these and other producers, five films were made as of 2006.
The original four Man of Steel films starred Christopher Reeve in the title role. Distributor Warner Bros. picked up production rights in 1993, and a series of unsuccessful attempts to either film The Death of Superman story or reboot the series followed. For 19 years, the series was stuck in development hell, with Warner Bros. constantly looking for new ideas, producers, and directors. Tim Burton, who directed Batman and Batman Returns, and Nicolas Cage were once attached to the series for production of Superman Lives, a cancelled film that created many rumours and tension for the studio. After Superman Lives was cancelled and several unsuccessful attempts were pitched, Bryan Singer directed Superman Returns in 2006, a semi-sequel to the first two Reeve films.
Contents |
[edit] Reeve series
[edit] Superman (1978)
In 1973, producer Ilya Salkind convinced his father Alexander to buy the rights to Superman. They hired Mario Puzo to pen a two-film script, and negotiated with Steven Spielberg to direct, though Alexander Salkind rejected him as Jaws went over budget.[1] Marlon Brando and Gene Hackman signed on to play Jor-El and Lex Luthor respectively, and Guy Hamilton was hired to direct. However, Brando was faced with an obscenity lawsuit in Italy over Last Tango in Paris, so they couldn't shoot there, but Hamilton was unable to shoot in England as he had been violating his tax payments. The Salkinds chose their star over their director, and Richard Donner was hired. Donner hired Tom Mankiewicz to polish the script, giving it a serious feel with Christ-like overtones.[2]
Christopher Reeve was cast as Superman, having initially failed to impress the Salkinds before bulking up.[1] Brando meanwhile, despite spending less than two weeks on the shoot,[1] and not even reading the script until then,[2] earned $3.7 million up front, plus 11.75% of the gross profits from the film.[1] The film was a success both critically and commercially, being released during the Christmas season of 1978; it did not have much competition, leading the producers to believe that this was one factor in the film's success.[3]
[edit] Superman II (1980)
Shooting of the two films was marred by Donner's bad relationship with the Salkinds, with Richard Lester acting as mediator.[2] With the film going over-budget, the filmmakers decided to temporarily cease production of II and move that film's climax into the first film.[1][2] Despite Superman's success, Donner (whatever the case might have been) did not return to finish Superman II,[2] and they replaced him with Lester, who gave the film a more tongue-in-cheek tone. They also cut Brando for financial reasons, while John Williams quit as composer as he turned his attention to other projects.[1] Still, II was a financial and critical success, despite its main competition in 1981, Steven Spielberg's Raiders of the Lost Ark.
[edit] Superman III (1983)
For the third installment, Ilya Salkind wrote a treatment that expanded the scope to a cosmic scale, introducing the villains Brainiac and Mr. Mxyzptlk, as well as Supergirl.[2] The original outline featured a bizarre father-daughter relationship between Brainiac and Supergirl, which led to an even more bizarre romance between Superman and Supergirl, as the two were cousins in the comics. [1] Warner Bros. rejected it, instead turning Superman III into a showcase for co-star Richard Pryor as computer wizard Gus Gorman, who under the manipulation of a millionaire magnate, creates a form of Kryptonite that turns the Man of Steel into an evil self. The re-tooled script[2] parred Brainiac down into the film's evil "ultimate computer",[1] and despite the film's success many fans were disappointed, in particular with Pryor's performance diluting the serious tone of the previous films, as well as controversy over the depiction of the evil Superman.[2]
[edit] Superman IV: The Quest for Peace (1987)
Cannon films picked up an option for a fourth Superman/Reeve film, with Reeve reprising the role due to his interest in the film's topic regarding nuclear weapons. However, Cannon decided to cut the budget of Superman IV: The Quest for Peace from $35 million to $17 million, and the poor special effects and heavy re-editing led to the film's poor reception.[4] Warner Bros. decided to give the franchise a break following the mixed reception of the last two Superman films.[2]
[edit] Failed projects
[edit] Superman V
After the failure of Superman IV: The Quest for Peace, Cannon Films considered producing a fifth film with Albert Pyun as director. Financial troubles resulted in the film rights reverting back to Ilya and Alexander Salkind.[5] After having produced Superboy, Ilya was inspired to produce another Superman film. Salkind wrote the story for Superman V (also known as Superman: The New Movie and later retitled Superman Reborn version 1) with Superboy writers Cary Bates and Mark Jones.[6]
The story had Superman dying and resurrecting in the shrunken, bottled Kryptonian city of Kandor. The premise of Superman's death and rebirth coincidentally predated The Death of Superman. Salkind, Bates and Jones developed two drafts of the script, with Christopher Reeve set to reprise the leading role.[6][7]
[edit] Superman Reborn
| "In any good Superman movie, the fate of the whole planet should be at stake. You've got to have villains whose powers and abilities demand that Superman (and only Superman) can be the one who stops them. Their powers have to tax Superman to the limit. That's the only way to make the movie exciting and a dramatic challenge." —Writer Jonathan Lemkin on the premise of the storyline[8] |
Upon viewing the success of The Death of Superman, Warner Bros. decided to purchase the film rights of Superman from Alexander Salkind in early 1993, handing the project to Jon Peters. In return, Peters hired fellow friend Jonathan Lemkin to write the script. Lemkin cited the project as a commercial film, claiming he was primarily advised to perform the script in a style for the new teenage generation of the 1990s. In addition major toy companies insisted on seeing Lemkin's screenplay before the deadline of the American International Toy Fair.[8] Lemkin cited inspirations from Star Wars and The Lion King.[9]
Lemkin's script (also titled Superman Reborn or version 2) featured Lois Lane and Clark Kent with relationship troubles that are only resolved after Superman's battle with Doomsday. When he professes his love to her, his life force jumps between them, just as he dies, impregnating Lois. She gives birth to a child who grows 21 years in three weeks, and is essentially, the resurrected Superman. Warner Bros. was overly disappointed with the script, feeling it contained underlying themes with Batman Forever (1995).[10]
Peters brought in Gregory Poirier, his collaborator on Rosewood (1997),[11] with his script (dated December 20, 1995) introducing Brainiac creating Doomsday, infused with Kryptonite blood. Superman tries to deal with being an alien in love with Lois Lane via psychiatric help. Once he falls dead by Doomsday, his corpse is stolen by an alien named Cadmus, a Brainiac victim. Superman is resurrected and teams with Cadmus to defeat Brainiac. Powerless, Superman wears a robotic suit that mimics his old powers until he can learn to use his powers again on his own (according to the script, they’re a mental discipline called "Phin-yar", very similar with The Force). Other villains included Parasite and Silver Banshee.[5] Poirier's script had impressed the studio,[10] but Kevin Smith was invited in their offices for rewrite work, turning down offers such as a remake for The Architects of Fear and Beetlejuice Goes Hawaiian.[12] One of the projects that caught Smith's eye was Superman Reborn, and he later convinced Warner Bros. to let him write the screenplay, thinking Poirier's draft didn't respect the Superman comic book properly.[11]
[edit] Superman Lives
Kevin Smith pitched Jon Peters his story outline in August 1996, in which Peters gave him permission to write a screenplay. However, Peters did present Smith with three rules. Peters wanted Superman to wear an all-black suit,[14] feeling the more traditional suit was not masculine enough. He didn't want to see Superman fly whatsoever,[14] citing that he would "look like an overgrown Boy Scout."[5] In order to deal with this, Smith wrote Superman flying as "a red-and-blue blur in flight, creating a sonic boom every time he flew."[15] In addition, Peters felt Superman should fight a giant spider in the third act. Nevertheless, Smith accepted the terms, realizing that he was not being hired for his vision, but to execute a pre-ordained idea.[14] Peters and Warner Bros. forced Smith to write a scene involving Brainiac fighting polar bears at the Fortress of Solitude, and Peters wanted Brainiac to give Lex Luthor a space dog, stating "Chewie's cuddly, man. You could make a toy out of him, so you've got to give me a dog."[12] Smith claims this was because of the recent re-release of the original Star Wars trilogy, saying that Peters wanted Brainiac's robot assistant L-Ron to be voiced by Dwight Ewell, calling him, "a gay R2-D2 with attitude."[12] Peters was able to recycle his giant spider idea in Wild Wild West (1999), a film he produced.[16]
Smith's draft (titled Superman Lives) had Brainiac sending Doomsday to kill Superman, as well as blocking out the sun to make Superman powerless (Superman's energy is fueled by sunlight). Brainiac teams with Lex Luthor, but Superman is resurrected by a Kryptonian robot, The Eradicator. Rather than Superman’s lifeless body, Brainiac wishes to possess The Eradicator and its technology. Powerless, the resurrected Superman is sheathed in armor (The Eradicator becomes his protective suit) until his powers return, courtesy of some sunbeams and defeats Brainiac.[15] Smith's casting choices included Ben Affleck as Clark Kent / Superman, Linda Fiorentino as Lois Lane, Jack Nicholson as Lex Luthor, Famke Janssen as Mercy, John Mahoney as Perry White, David Hyde Pierce as The Eradicator, Jason Lee as Brainiac and Jason Mewes as Jimmy Olsen.[17]
Robert Rodriguez was offered the chance to direct, but turned down the offer due to his commitment on The Faculty (1998), despite liking Smith's script.[18] Smith originally suggested Tim Burton to direct his script,[12] and Burton signed on with a pay or play contract of $5 million[19] and the studio set the theatrical release date in the summer of 1998, the 60th anniversary of the character's debut in Action Comics.[20] Nicolas Cage, a comic book fan, signed on as Superman with a $20 million pay or play contract, feeling he could "re-conceive the character."[21] Peters felt Cage could "convince audiences he [Superman] came from outer space."[22] Burton stated it would be "the first time you would believe that nobody could recognize Clark Kent as Superman, he [Cage] could physically change his persona."[23] Kevin Spacey was approached for the role of Lex Luthor,[23] while Tim Allen claimed he was in talks for Brainiac[24] (a role heavily considered for Jim Carrey).[12] Courteney Cox was reported as a casting possibility for Lois Lane, while Smith confirmed Chris Rock was set for Jimmy Olsen.[24] Michael Keaton confirmed his involvement, but when asked if he would be reprising his role as Batman (as he had done in Burton's Batman and Batman Returns), he would only reply, "Not exactly."[25] Industrial Light & Magic was set for work on special effects.[26]
It was announced in April 1997 that filming would begin early-1998.[27] That June, Superman Lives entered pre-production,[21] with an art department employed under production designer Rick Heinrichs.[23] Burton decided to hire Wesley Strick to completely rewrite Smith's script. In return, Smith was overtly disappointed: "The studio was happy with what I was doing. Then Tim Burton got involved, and when he signed his pay-or-play deal, he turned around and said he wanted to do his version of Superman. So who is Warner Bros. going back to? The guy who made Clerks, or the guy who made them half a billion dollars on Batman?"[28] When Strick read Smith's script, he was annoyed with the fact that "Superman was accompanied/shadowed by someone/something called The Eradicator."[28] He also felt that "Brainiac's evil plot of launching a disk in space to block out the sun (and making Superman powerless) was reminiscent of an episode of The Simpsons, with Mr. Burns doing the Brainiac role."[28] However, after reading The Death and Return of Superman, Strick claimed he understood some of the elements of Smith's script. Strick's rewrite featured Superman questioning his existence and abilities, thinking of himself to be an outsider on Earth. In his wake he's threatened by Brainiac and Lex Luthor, and the two amalgamate into "Lexiac," what Strick called "a schizo/scary mega-villain."[29] Superman is later resurrected by the power of 'K', a natural force representing the spirit of Krypton, as Superman defeats Lexiac.[29]
Art designer Sylvain Despretz claimed the art department was assigned to create something that had little or nothing to do with the Superman comic book. Despretz also claimed that Peters "would bring kids in, who would rate the drawings on the wall as if they were evaluating the toy possibilities. It was basically a toy show!"[13] Peters saw a cover of National Geographic, containing a picture of a skull, going to art department workers, telling them he wanted the design for Brainiac's space ship to have the same image. Burton gave Despretz a concept drawing for Brainiac, which Despretz claims was "a cone with a round ball on top, and something that looked like a emaciated skull inside. Imagine you take Merlin's hat, and you stick a fish bowl on top, with a skull in it."[30] Concept artist Rolf Mohr claimed he designed a suit for The Eradicator for a supposed scene when he turns into a flying vehicle.[31] At one point, Peters wanted to have the Eradicator to carry a certain "Eradicator Stick," claiming he had visions for images of posters and toys coming out contain the Stick.[9]
| "We got the Kevin Smith script, but we were told not to read it, because they knew he wasn't going to stay on the movie. So we used Kevin Smith's script as a guide to the sets we might be doing, and we waited and waited for the new script to come in, but it never did." —Art designer Sylvain Despretz on designing Superman Lives[13] |
Burton chose Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania as his primary filming location for Metropolis,[30] while sound stages were reserved[26] but start dates for filming were pushed back.[19] A minor piece of the Krypton set was constructed but then destroyed, and Cage had even attended a costume fitting.[32] The studio was considering changing the title Superman Lives back to Superman Reborn.[33] The film's escalating budget (which went from $100 million to $190 million) forced Warner Bros. to ultimately put the film on hold in April 1998, and Burton left to direct Sleepy Hollow.[19] At this point in production, $30 million was spent, with nothing to show for it.[26] To this day, Burton has depicted the experience of Superman Lives as one of the worst experiences in his life, citing various differences with Peters and the studio, stating, "I basically wasted a year. A year is a long time to be working with somebody that you don't really want to be working with."[34]
[edit] Aftermath
Warner Bros. enlisted the aid of Dan Gilroy to rewrite Wesley Strick's script as a means to lower the $190 million budget, which he brought down to $100 million. However, Warner Bros. was still less willing to heavily move forward on production, due to financial reasons with other film properties,[35] having Gilroy turn in two drafts.[36] Disappointed by the lack of progress on the film's production, aspiring screenwriter/comic book fan Alex Ford was able to have a script of his (titled Superman: The Man of Steel) get accepted at the studio's offices in September 1998. Ford pitched his idea for a film series consisting of seven films, and his approach impressed Jon Peters and Warner Bros., though he was later given a farewell due to creative differences.[5] On the experience, Ford quoted, "I can tell you they don't know much about comics. Their audience isn't you and me who pay $7.00. It's for the parents who spend $60 on toys and lunchboxes. It is a business, and what's more important, the $150 million at the box office or the $600 million in merchandising?"[36]
With the Gilroy script, Peters offered the director's position to Ralph Zondag,[37] Michael Bay, Shekhar Kapur and Martin Campbell though they all turned down the offer.[5] Brett Ratner turned down the option in favor of The Family Man.[38] In addition, The Hollywood Reporter claimed Simon West and Stephen Norrington being top contenders.[39] In June 1999, William Wisher Jr. was hired to write a new script, approaching Nicolas Cage on story elements.[40] Cage dropped out of the project entirely in June 2000,[41] while Wisher turned in a new script in August 2000, reported to have contained similar elements with The Matrix (1999).[5] In October 2000, Comic book veteran Keith Giffen pitched a 17-page story treatment with Lobo as the main villain, but the studio did not proceed with further involvement.[37] Oliver Stone was then approached to direct Wisher's script, but declined,[5] while in April 2001, The Hollywood Reporter revealed Paul Attanasio was hired to completely start on a new script, earning a salary of $1.7 million.[37]
[edit] Batman vs. Superman
Although it was widely reported that McG had become attached to Paul Attanasio's script, In February 2002, J. J. Abrams was hired to write a new screenplay. It would ignore The Death of Superman storyline, and instead, would reboot the film series with an origin story,[42] going under the title of Superman: Flyby.[5] The project had gone as far as being greenlighted, but McG stepped out in favor of Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle.[43] The studio approached Wolfgang Petersen to direct Abrams' script,[44] however, in August 2001,[45] Andrew Kevin Walker pitched Warner Bros. an idea titled Batman vs Superman, attaching Peterson as director. Abrams' script was put on hold,[44] and for reasons unknown, Akiva Goldsman was hired to rewrite Walker's draft which was codenamed "Asylum".[46]
Goldsman's draft (dated June 21, 2002), had the premise of Bruce Wayne trying to shake all of the demons in his life after his five year retirement of crime fighting. Meanwhile, Clark Kent is down on his luck and in despair. Dick Grayson, Alfred Pennyworth and Commissioner Gordon are all dead, as Clark just recently had a divorce with Lois Lane. Clark serves as Bruce's best man at his wedding to the beautiful and lovely Elizabeth Miller. After Elizabeth is killed by the Joker at the honeymoon, Bruce is forced to don the Batsuit once more, tangling a plot which involves Lex Luthor, while Clark sways a romance with Lana Lang in Smallville.[47]
Peterson had mentioned Matt Damon when stating what type of an actor he was looking for either of the two roles.[48] Inspired by Tobey Maguire's performance in Spider-Man (2002), Peterson was searching for actors who "can really act and give complexity and emotions, but would have the fun of being a great superhero and maybe pump up a little bit." Johnny Depp, Colin Farrell, James Franco, Jude Law and Paul Walker were reported to be Warner Bros.' choices as Batman and Superman.[44] Christian Bale was approached to portray Batman, both in Batman vs Superman and Batman: Year One (but preferred Aronofsky's script for Year One),[49] while Josh Hartnett was offered the role of Superman.[43]
Filming was to start in early 2003, with plans for a five to six month shoot. The release date was set for the summer of 2004.[50] Batman vs Superman was to relaunch both the Batman and Superman franchises respectively, with both sequels being reboots.[44] Within a month of the studio green lighting the project, Peterson left in favor of Troy (2004).[51] Warner Bros. could have easily assigned a new director, but choose to cancel Batman vs Superman in favor of a recent script submitted by Abrams for Superman: Flyby.[52] Peterson still has expressed interest in directing the project sometime in the future (with Bale as Batman),[53] as has Bryan Singer.[54]
[edit] Superman: Flyby
Turning in his script in July 2002, J.J. Abrams' Superman: Flyby was an origin story that included Krypton besieged by civil war between Jor-El and his corrupt brother, Kata-Zor. Jor-El launches infant Kal-el to Earth, thinking he would fulfill a certain prophecy and Jor-El is sentenced to prison. Kal-El is adopted by Jonathan and Martha Kent, and later swings a romance with Lois Lane in college, and at the Daily Planet. However, Lois is more concerned with exposing Lex Luthor, written as a government agent obsessed with UFO phenomena. Clark reveals himself to the world as Superman, bringing Kata-Zor’s son, Ty-Zor, and three other Kryptonians to Earth. Superman is defeated and killed, and visits Jor-El (who committed suicide on Krypton while in prison) in Kryptonian heaven. He's resurrected and defeats the four Kryptonians, while the script ends with Superman off to Krypton, leaving a cliffhanger for a sequel.[5]
Brett Ratner signed to direct in September 2002, originally expressing an interest in casting an unknown for the lead role, while filming was to start sometime in late 2003.[55] Ratner approached Josh Hartnett and Jude Law as Superman, but conceded that finding a famous actor for the title role had proven difficult because of contractual obligations to appear in sequels. "No star wants to sign that, but as much as I've told Jude and Josh my vision for the movie, I've warned them of the consequences of being Superman. They'll live this character for 10 years because I'm telling one story over three movies and plan to direct all three if the first is as successful as everyone suspects."[56]
Although Superman: Flyby was being met with a budget excessing $200 million (not including money spent on Superman Reborn, Superman Lives and Batman vs. Superman), the studio was still adamant for a summer 2004 release date.[43] Christopher Walken was in negotiations for Perry White, while Ratner expressed an interest in casting Anthony Hopkins as Lex Luthor, and Ralph Fiennes as Jor-El (two of his co-stars in Red Dragon).[57]
Christopher Reeve was to be a project consultant, citing Tom Welling, who portrayed the teenage Clark Kent in Smallville as an ideal candidate. Reeve added "the character is more important than the actor who plays him, because it is an enduring mythology. It definitely should be an unknown."[58] In addition Paul Walker was offered the role,[5] while Ashton Kutcher screen tested[56] and Brendan Fraser and Matthew Bomer auditioned.[43] Kutcher decided not to accept the role, citing scheduling conflicts with That '70s Show and the well noted Superman Curse as well as typecasting. Jerry O'Connell expressed interest for the role,[59] while David Boreanaz auditioned, but dropped out due to scheduling conflicts with Angel. Victor Webster did an entire screentest that included wardrobe as both Clark Kent and Superman.[60] Joel Edgerton (who turned down the chance to audition as Superman) auditioned for Kata-Zor, before Ratner dropped out of the project in March 2003, blaming casting difficulties,[61] and violent disagreements with Jon Peters.[62]
McG returned as director, while Fraser expressed interest, but had fears of typecasting.[63] Selma Blair was in talks for Lois Lane,[64] while ESC Entertainment was hired for visual effects work, with Kim Libreri as visual effects supervisor and Stan Winston designing a certain "prototype suit".[65] McG approached Shia LaBeouf for Jimmy Olsen, with an interest to cast an unknown for Superman, Scarlett Johansson as Lois Lane and Johnny Depp for Lex Luthor.[66] McG dropped out of directing, blaming budgetary concerns and filming locations. McG opted to shoot in New York City, but Warner Bros. changed it to Sydney, Australia. McG felt "it was inappropriate to try to capture the heart of America on another continent."[67] McG later admitted it was his fear of flying.[68] However, in July 2004, Bryan Singer replaced McG as director, resulting into Superman Returns.[69]
- Further information: Superman Returns#Production
[edit] Revival
[edit] Superman Returns
Following the departure of Ratner and McG, Bryan Singer, who was said to be a childhood fan of Richard Donner's film, was approached by Warner Bros. He accepted, abandoning two films already in pre-production, X-Men: The Last Stand and a remake of Logan's Run. Singer's story tells of Superman's return to Earth following a five year search for survivors of Krypton. He discovers that in his absence Lois Lane has given birth to a son and gotten engaged. Singer chose to follow Donner's lead by casting relatively unknown Brandon Routh as Superman, who resembled Christopher Reeve somewhat, and more high profile actors in supporting roles, such as Kevin Spacey as Lex Luthor. Singer brought his entire crew from X2 to work on the film. Although Superman Returns received generally positive reviews, its box office returns of approximately $391 million worldwide was viewed as a disappointment.[70]
[edit] Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut
After receiving many requests of his own version of Superman II, Richard Donner and producer Michael Thau produced their own cut of the film and released it to DVD on November 28, 2006.
[edit] Cast and characters
List indicator(s)
- A dark grey cell indicates the character was not in the film.
- Italics indicate a transition to a minor role, such as an extended flashback, after the initial appearance, or indicates a character having a small role before becoming a main character.
[edit] Reception
[edit] Box office performance
| Film | Release date | Box office revenue | Reference | |||
| United States | Worldwide | United States | Outside US | Worldwide | ||
| Superman | December 15, 1978 | December 15, 1978 | $134,218,018 | $166,000,000 | $300,218,018 | [71] |
| Superman II | June 19, 1981 | December 4, 1980 | $108,185,706 | Unknown | Unknown | [72] |
| Superman III | June 17, 1983 | June 17, 1983 | $59,950,623 | Unknown | Unknown | [73] |
| Superman IV: The Quest for Peace | July 24, 1987 | July 24, 1987 | $15,681,020 | Unknown | Unknown | [74] |
| Superman Returns | June 28, 2006 | June 28, 2006 | $200,081,192 | $191,000,000 | $391,081,192 | [75] |
| Superman film series | $532,412,997 | Unknown | Unknown | |||
[edit] Critical reaction
| Film | Rotten Tomatoes | Metacritic | Yahoo! Movies | |
| Overall | Cream of the Crop | |||
| Superman | 93% (45 reviews)[76] | 80% (5 reviews)[77] | 88% (12 reviews)[78] | A (5 reviews)[79] |
| Superman II | 86% (37 reviews)[80] | 100% (5 reviews)[81] | 99% (7 reviews)[82] | B (5 reviews)[83] |
| Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut | 83% (6 reviews)[84] | |||
| Superman III | 23% (40 reviews)[85] | 0% (2 reviews)[86] | ||
| Superman IV: The Quest for Peace | 11% (28 reviews)[87] | 25% (4 reviews)[88] | ||
| Superman Returns | 77% (244 reviews)[89] | 73% (39 reviews)[90] | 72% (40 reviews)[91] | B (15 reviews)[92] |
[edit] Future
[edit] The Man of Steel
[edit] Premise
The scope of Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan will be an influence of the storyline, and Superman will fight an alien villain [93] Former writer Dan Harris says there will be more than one villain.[94] More action sequences will be seen, and Bryan Singer hinted that the "New Krypton" landmass that was floating in space at the end of Superman Returns will be part of the storyline.[95] Brandon Routh revealed, "I’m gonna get to fight something, or someone. An enemy with real physical power might be worked in there, definitely."[96] Former writer Michael Dougherty explained, "The easy comparison is X-Men—X2, or Star Trek: The Motion Picture—Star Trek II. We are taking what we've already established and getting that out of the way. Let's just make it shorter, tighter and more action-packed."[97] Legendary Pictures founder Thomas Tull wants the film to evoke Superman as an "ANGRY Superman".[98]
[edit] Cast
Brandon Routh will return as Superman, and improve his muscular physique once more,[99] while Kate Bosworth is enthusiastic to return as Lois Lane.[100] Sam Huntington will reprise the role of Jimmy Olsen,[101] and Frank Langella will reprise Perry White, as they are both under contract for two sequels.[102] Kevin Spacey is set as Lex Luthor, and hopes to complete all of his scenes in a six-week block, as was done for Superman Returns.[103] Tristan Lake Leabu likely want to reprised his role as Jason White for the sequel. On May 29th 2008 ZeeNews.com reported that Bollywood actress Priyanka Chopra is rumored to have been cast as an Indian scientist.[104]
[edit] Production
In February 2006, Warner Bros. announced a summer 2009 theatrical release date. Legendary Pictures will co-finance the film 50/50 with the studio, with Bryan Singer directing.[105] Gilbert Adler,[94] Jon Peters,[106] and Singer[107] will produce while Chris Lee will executive produce.[108] Singer dropped out of directing films such as Logan's Run and The Mayor on Castro Street in favor of doing a sequel to Superman Returns.[109] Warners and Legendary Pictures were disappointed by Superman Returns' theatrical box office, and are looking forward to a far lower budget for the sequel.[110] In the words of Warner Bros. President Alan F. Horn, "I thought it was a very successful movie, but I think it should have done $500 million worldwide. We should have had perhaps a little more action to satisfy the young male crowd."[111] $175 million is the maximum budget the studio is aiming for.[112]
In November 2006, work on the storyline was starting, with an eye to start filming in summer 2007.[108] In March 2007, Singer halted the sequel in favor of Valkyrie.[113] Filming was then set to begin in March 2008,[114] while in April 2007, Singer, Michael Dougherty and Dan Harris were still working on the story, and Peters hoped to have a script by the end of the year, with pre-production to start in January or February 2008.[106]
Singer then announced that filming will begin in summer 2008,[94] while Variety reported in October 2007 that Dougherty and Harris left in favor of other career opportunities.[115] The release date was then moved to 2010 because of the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike.[116] Despite various reports that Singer was no longer directing,[117] and the film was in desperate search of writers after Dougherty and Harris' departure,[118] Singer denied the reports, saying the film was in the early development phases.[119] Routh has stated that he expects filming to begin in early 2009 for a '10 release.[120]
Singer has expressed interest filming some scenes in 3-D film,[95] while post-production will take place in Hawaii.[108]
In a May 2008 article in The Boston Globe, composer John Williams confirmed that after he finishes his work on the next Harry Potter film and Jurassic Park IV, he will begin composing the score to Superman: Man of Steel.[121]
It was long rumored that the villain for Superman: The Man of Steel would be Brainiac. Bryan Singer has not yet denied the rumors or has said Brainiac would be the villain.
[edit] References
- ^ a b c d e f g Barry M. Freiman. "One-on-One Interview with Producer Ilya Salkind", Superman Homepage. Retrieved on 2007-05-18.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i (2006). You Will Believe: The Cinematic Saga of Superman (DVD). Warner Bros..
- ^ Pierre Spangler, Look up in the Sky! The Amazing Story of Superman.
- ^ Adam Smith. "All-American Hero", Empire, 2006-05-26, pp. 78-91. Retrieved on 2007-05-23.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Mike White. "Superman: Grounded", Cashiers du Cinemart. Retrieved on 2008-02-03.
- ^ a b Barry M. Freiman. "One-on-One Interview with Producer Ilya Salkind", Superman Homepage, 2006-02-14. Retrieved on 2008-02-03.
- ^ Army Archerd. "Action stars come out as Planet rises in London", Variety, 1993-05-18. Retrieved on 2008-04-06.
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[edit] External links
- Concept art for Superman Lives
- Stax. "Why Superman Won: A Rant", IGN, 2002-09-19.
- Brian Linder. "Super Madness", IGN, 2002-09-24.
- AICN Exclusive! Moriarty's Review of J.J. Abrams' Superman Script!! Drew "Moriarty" McWeeny of Ain't It Cool News reviews an early draft of J.J. Abrams' Superman: Flyby
- Superman films at Internet Movie Database
- Superman: Man of Steel at the Internet Movie Database (in development)
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