The Four Color Media Monitor

Deadline Hollywood says there's discussion at Warner Brothers to bring back Henry Cavill in his Man of Steel role, but no new solo movie in the works:

While there is not a Man of Steel sequel in the works, we’re hearing that Henry Cavill is in talks to reprise his role as Superman in the Warner Bros. DC Universe.

We hear Cavill could come back in a couple of different ways, not a standalone film, but there are plans to put him back in the big red cape again sources with knowledge tell us.

But what's the use of bringing him back as the Big Blue Boy Scout if he won't be the star of the show? It's been about 7 years since Cavill's movie came out, saddled as it most unfortunately was with a downbeat, dark-laden vision that didn't need to be, and in addition to that, the red tights were forcibly removed from Superman's costume design, which also took place in the comics, where the Justice League members were made to look more like plastic action figures. And when the red tights were brought back, it had to be with a bad writer assigned to take the job, Brian Bendis.

Variety followed up on this news with the following:

Snyder recently announced the long-rumored “Snyder Cut” of “Justice League” for HBO Max, though insiders tell Variety Cavill wouldn’t be suiting up for the director’s cut, but rather a cameo in one of DC’s upcoming films, which include “Aquaman 2,” “The Suicide Squad” and “The Batman.”

In a Mens’ Health’s December cover story, Cavill revealed he had not given up the role.

“The cape is still in the closet,” he said. “It’s still mine. I’m not going to sit quietly in the dark as all the stuff is going on. I’ve not given up the role. There’s a lot I have to give for Superman yet. A lot of storytelling to do. A lot of real, true depths to the honesty of the character I want to get into. I want to reflect the comic books. That’s important to me. There’s a lot of justice to be done for Superman. The status is: You’ll see.”

For a mere cameo in another character's film? What good is that? They're putting so many eggs into different cinematic baskets, but Superman remains an exception, in an era where optimism and joy are being cast as negative concepts. What's the most prominent film project now in the works, save for its delay from the Corona crisis? The umpteenth Batman entry, it seems. I don't have a problem with marketing Batman as part of entertainment, but I do have a problem with doing it at Superman's expense, to say nothing of what the Man of Steel was built on decades before. When it gets to the point where Batman's dark vision is promoted as what nearly all entertainment should be, with Batman as the poster boy, that's where it becomes reprehensible and exploitative.

On which note, when Cavill speaks of reflecting the Superman comics, does he mean he recognizes the legitimacy of optimism, humor and escapist entertainment as components? Who knows when his 2013 movie didn't exactly embrace those elements? A writer at SyFy earlier this month said his Superman movie deserved far better than what the finished product was like, and she's right. They did not need to go to such lengths to dampen the Man of Steel's brighter vision, and certainly not when most showbiz producers in liberal Hollywood aren't exactly dedicated to giving us a convincing vision of what the real world is like, or has become.

And 7 years on, one could argue Cavill's getting a bit old for the role, and with opportunities missed for a sequel early on, that's why it may not have much impact for him to appear in any new movie as the Man of Steel.

Labels: dc comics, msm propaganda, Superman