As we've learned from the past, Comic-Con is definitely an event us movie fans should always keep an eye on, as almost all the biggest comic book movie news breaks then and there. And sure enough this year was no exception, with the announcement that Warner Bros. and director Zack Snyder will be releasing the first on screen team-up for arguably two of the world's most iconic heroes; Superman and Batman. All though Man of Steel may have garnered mixed reviews from critics, the film was still considered to be one of the biggest box office successes of the year, unlike it's predecessor Superman Returns. While it had been rumored that the film's success would be the indicator for whether Warner Bros. would start production on their Justice League film, it turn's out they had another plan up their sleeves.
And that of course was this all new Superman and Batman team-up film, and while there are of course no real details to go off of yet, the film will in fact be the sequel to this summer's Man of Steel. Cast members Henry Cavill, Amy Adams, Diane Lane, and Laurence Fishburne are all set to reprise their respective roles of Superman/Clark Kent, Lois Lane, Ma Kent, and Perry White. Director Zack Snyder will also be returning to the director's chair for this film along with writer David S. Goyer, now having the responsibility of rebooting the Batman character just merely three years after Christopher Nolan's famed Dark Knight trilogy.
While DC's Legendary Hall at Comic-Con this year seemingly was only going to focus on the studio's upcoming animated films, Snyder took the stage to the surprise of many of the halls attendees. Initially it was though that he'd be announcing the sequel to Man of Steel 2 and it's official title and/or it's release date. But instead he handed over the mic. to Man of Steel star Henry Lennix (Who portrayed General Swanick) and resisted the following quote from Frank Miller's famed The Dark Knight Returns:
"I want you to remember Clark, in all the years to come. In all your private moments. In all the years to come, my hand at your throat. I want you to remember, the one man who beat you"
And soon after the following Batman/Superman logo was projected onto the screen behind them:
A Batman/Superman film seemed like the most reasonable option for Warner Bros. to go with in order to reboot Nolan's Batman with a new version that will fit in Snyder's Man of Steel universe, and it's an especially smart move with Christian Bale's version still so fresh in movie goers minds. There's no doubt that the film will present a lot of challenges for Snyder, Goyer, and WB as the next couple of months will probably be devoted to searching for the next actor to fill the cape and cowl. With a number of possible actors being up for the job, including those who Snyder had considered for the lead in Man of Steel, as well as numerous other actors that'll be keen to take up the mantle.
It's worth noting that this isn't the first time a team-up film between Batman and Superman has been in the works, with numerous attempts in the early 2000's with names like Josh Harnett, James Franco, Johnny Depp, Jude Law, and many others are brought up as potential names to star and either of the title roles. Wolfgang Petersen (Troy) was originally on board to direct the film, which was meant to reboot both the Superman and Batman characters for an all new decade to come. It's interesting that Warner Bros.-now ten years later-has finally come to like the idea of a team-up film between both characters. Clark Kent and Bruce Wayne's connection has been shown numerous times throughout the history of DC Comics, with such things as an interest in Lois Lane, Wayne's business partnership with Lex Luthor, and their distrust in each other as heroes all being reasons the two tie so well together
While I'm pretty psyched that we'll finally be able to see the two kicking ass together on the big screen (Or possibly each other's asses) I do have some doubts about Warner Bros. rushing into a team-up film like this after only having had one Man of Steel film. While a Batman/Superman films will definitely be very beneficial for the new rebooted Batman, it sort of takes away from Clark Kent and Man of Steel's supporting characters, who we really didn't get to see too much character development from. Man of Steel 2 would've been the ideal film to help focus more on these character, but with the addition of a new Bruce Wayne (And probably his supporting characters such as Alfred, Jim Gordon, and Lucius Fox), this might end up being another film where we don't fully get to see the Clark Kent character fleshed out.
Bringing back Snyder and Goyer is another thing I'm a bit skeptical about, mainly because the two will now have a whole new character to worry about. Now it worth fore-mentioning that the reason that I'm concerned about their involvement isn't because I don't think they can handle. Snyder shown through is resume that he's more than capable of adapting comic book character right off the page, and having seen his work on the film Watchmen Snyder's style is arguably even more fit for Batman than it is for Superman. And Goyer's already co-written the scripts for all of Nolan's Batman films, so his understanding of the character should be immense. Hell, even Night Owl from Watchmen had a similar costume and combat technique to Batman, it's save to say our new Batman is in good hands.
But my main concern is actually what this means for the director that'll eventually head the new Batman series, as that director won't have the chance to introduce their own Batman and will instead have to just work off the version Snyder already created. I had been worried that Snyder would now be the go to guy for WB (That is with Nolan out of the picture) and their reliance on him rather than other director will eventually lead to some issues, because as far as I know; Snyder can't keep up a Superman and a Batman franchise simultaneously. Ruben Fleischer could be a reasonable choice, as his style of film-making is very similar to Snyder's and the two already have met in the past, having directed Gangster Squad last year for WB he's probably on their radar as a potential candidate for the directing gig.
So what do you think of Warner Bros. decision to make a Superman/Batman film? Is it a smart or disastrous move? Who would you like to see as our new Batman?
