Army of the Deaddirector Zack Snyder recently sat down for an interview and discussed what his plans would have been if had made a direct sequel to his 2013Supermanfilm,Man of Steel.In the interview, Snyder talked about his divisive film, actor Henry Cavill’s portrayal of the extraterrestrial superhero, and what villains he would have been interested in exploring in a theoreticalMan of Steel 2.
Man of Steelwas Snyder’s first film in the DCEU and was meant to kick off Waner Bros. and DC’s shared movie universe. The film was released one year after Marvel’sAvengers,so it was clear the studio was looking to catch up with its leading competitor. As a result, the next film Snyder helmed was not a direct sequel toMan of Steelbut instead saw two of DC’s greatest heroes go head-to-head inBatman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.WhileMan of Steelcertainly had a mixed reaction,Batman v Supermanwas pretty much eviscerated by mainstream audiences and critics, with only hardcore Snyder fans really being interested in the dour superhero fight movie. AlthoughBatman v Supermankind of serves as a sequel to Snyder’s first film, it was primarily focused on building a DC movie universe, introducing both Batman and Wonder Woman as well as Superman’s greatest foe, Lex Luthor. But what if Snyder just focused on ol' Supes?
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In the interview withBroBible’sPost-Credit Podcast, Snyder says they discussed making a Brainiac movie in the early days of the DCEU. Whether or not Brainiac was intended to be the main antagonist for aMan of Steelfollow-up or just receive his own origin movie is unknown, but it would have been interesting to see Snyder’s take on this legendary DC villain. Snyder also discussed the need for Superman to have extraterrestrial villains, largely due to how powerful the character is. Other than Lex Luthor, many of Superman’s villains are other super-powered beings, such asfellow Kryptonian General Zod. “But I do think that the Kryptonians that are in the Phantom Zone are probably still around,” Snyder said, adding, “And there was always a possibility for their return. Faora and whoever’s left. That was a thing that was always out there that we talked about as a possible sequel.”
InMan of SteelFaora (Antje Traue) is a Kryptonian and General Zod’s second-in-command. Near the end of the film, she was defeated by US air Force officer Nathan Hardy (Christopher Meloni) and sucked into the Phantom Zone, an alternate dimension used to imprison Kryptonians. When asked about the difficulty of portraying a character like Superman, Snyder said he’s happy with his version of the hero, saying his intention withMan of Steelwas to ask: “What if we really had a Superman?” He also complimentedCavill’s performance as the Man of Steel, calling him “A great Superman.” While Snyder’sMan of Steelsequel will likely never come to fruition, it is possible that audiences will one day see a live-action Brainiac in a DC movie.
In the comics,Brainiac is one of Superman’s more formidable villains, an extraterrestrial android who is best known for stealing the Kryptonian city of Kandor and shrinking it. While the character has not appeared in a live-action film, he has been considered as an antagonist for almost every Superman movie made sinceSuperman III. He’s also been portrayed by several actors in live-action television, including James Marsters onSmallvilleand Blake Ritson on Syfy’s short-lived prequel seriesKrypton.
Award-winning writer Ta-Nehisi Coates is currentlyworking on the script for aSupermanreboot, but details are sparse at the moment. Will Coates introduce a new villain to the DCEU? Will the famously political author focus on a more grounded and uniquely American antagonist like Lex Luthor? We’ll just have to wait until more details about the new movie emerge.
