Solar Flare: Science Fiction News

Newsweek has an extensive report from the set of Brian Synger’s Superman Returns movie. They do a pretty good job of setting out the whole story of the 11 year journey to film a new Superman movie. With highlights from some of the failed attempts like the Tim Burton and Nicolas Cage movie that was under consideration at one point.

Superman Returns is both very different to the previous Superman movies and a sequel to the first two (if that makes any sense). Singer’s Superman has been away from earth for five years. When he returns things have changed. Lois Lane has a 4 year old son and a fiance (playe dby James Marsden). Superman isn’t exactly welcome anymore. Until Lex Luthor attempts world domination.

Also of interest are a couple of rather cool looking pictures. On the whole it’s pretty standard stuff for a set report. Interesting but not revelatory. There was a particularly amusing paragraph though:

There was lots of early Internet buzz about the suit’s being too dark, or the “S” ’s being too small, but the biggest issue for the studio, according to costume designer Louise Mingenbach, was about Superman’s trunks. Or, more specifically, what’s in them. “There was more discussion about Superman’s ‘package’ than anything else on the suit,” she says, laughing. “Was it too big? Was it not big enough? Was it too pointy? Too round? It was somebody’s job for about a month just working on codpiece shapes. It was crazy.”

Superman Returns will hit the movie theaters on June 30 2006.

Link: Newsweek - Steely Man