Batman 3 Begins, Nolan to Oversee Superman

Published by Jeff Leins on February 9, 2010

The Dark Knight director Christopher Nolan is overseeing yet another comic book hero reboot: Superman.

Warner Bros’ third incarnation of the Man of Steel will not be a sequel to 2006’s Superman Returns, but a fresh take on the classic Kryptonian character.  Nolan is expected to merely play a “godfather” role as a mentor for the new direction, and likely will not take up director duties on the relaunch, reports Deadline.  Let the Batman vs. Superman and Justice League speculation begin… again.

In August 2009, WB Pictures President Jeff Rubinov said they were considering a dark, brooding version of Superman, which might explain why Nolan is consulting.  “We’re going to try to go dark to the extent that the characters allow it,” Robinov said at the time.

However, news that another Superman is actually happening comes as a surprise after DC Entertainment President Diane Nelson said, “We actually don’t have any current plans for Superman” in September.  The studio lost the rights to many of the character’s origin details (Krypton, Kansas, and his farm adoption) in an August 2009 court battle with the Jerry Siegel estate, and the ruling mandates WB needs to start production by 2011 or the rights revert to the Siegel and Joe Shuster families.  Either way the full copyright returns to the co-creators’ estates in 2013 and they will be able to license Superman out to the highest bidder.

The studio claims Bryan Singer and Superman Returns actor Brandon Routh aren’t entirely out of the picture just yet, but it’s hard to imagine them sticking around if Warner Bros goes in a brand new direction.

The Wachowskis were reportedly approached for the reboot, but those rumors have subsided since.  Instead the siblings are working on some secret futuristic project.

Meanwhile, rumor has it writing has already begun on a third Batman.  Dark Knight screenwriters David Goyer and Chris’ younger brother Jonathan Nolan have reportedly started scripting the next installment of the caped crusader, according to Deadline.com.  This sequel and Goyer’s involvement in both a Ghost Rider reboot and Green Arrow’s origins resulted in him leaving ABC’s “FlashForward,” the second showrunner to leave the program as ratings continue to slide.  Goyer has been pursuing a career as a director too, picking up helming duties since 2002 and recently on the horror disappointment The Unborn.

The trio of talents will have their work cut out for them on Batman 3.  Of course, Warner Bros would like to see the kind of box office numbers the 2008 sequel put up, but more importantly the Nolans and Goyer will have to find a way to top the skyscraper high bar and fan expectations established by the previous two.  It’s not just about selecting a villain and casting an A-lister.  It’s about moving the story forward conceptually while still grounding the comic book characters in a quasi-realistic world.  Good luck to them.

Now if only we could avoid all the absurd rumors leading up to production on these two movies.  How long before a 3D cheerleader website posts exclamation point headlines about Superman, or some British tabloid claims Neil Patrick Harris is the Riddler?