Superman Set To Fly

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Posted by samzenpus on Wednesday October 20, 2004 @09:58PM from the faster-than-something-and-really-strong dept.

arock99 writes "After many years of battling various script rewrites, Superman is set to soar again. Various sources (superman-v.com, darkhorizons.com, aintitcool.com) report that Brandon Routh (of Gilmore Girls) has been cast as Superman. With production only a month away, Brian Singer is set to tackle yet another super-hero film after previously having directed both X-Men and X2. Had it not been for his recent passing, Christopher Reeve would surely have been part of the production team in some capacity. Superman should hit theaters around summer 2006."

36 of 316 comments (clear)

Brandon Routh? by sofakingon · 2004-10-20 22:00 · Score: 5, Insightful

Who the heck is this guy? Gillmore Girls? C'mon now, why not use the guy from smallville or something. I mean how many supermen can we have? Not that anyone can top Christopher Reeve, may he rest in peace.
1. Re:Brandon Routh? by harlows_monkeys · 2004-10-20 22:09 · Score: 3, Insightful
  
  Not that anyone can top Christopher Reeve, may he rest in peace
  He was a good Superman, but Dean Cain in Lois & Clark was even better.
2. Re:Brandon Routh? by (SM)+Spacemonkey · 2004-10-20 22:33 · Score: 3, Informative
  
  Brian Singer has said all along he wanted an "unknown" to play Superman. Rumor is Kevin Spacey will be the bad guy.
3. Re:Brandon Routh? by will_die · 2004-10-20 22:39 · Score: 4, Insightful
  
  The problem with getting the kid from smallville is that the movie would be seen as being based on that version. So it would be a matter the same story line, but in the future, or risk upsetting the viewers.
4. Re:Brandon Routh? by TheViciousOverWind · 2004-10-20 22:46 · Score: 4, Funny
  
  He was a good Superman, but Dean Cain in Lois & Clark was even better.
  
  That comment, really must be a good example that drinking and posting isn't a good mix.
  
  --
  My <1000 UID is with a hot chick
5. Re:Brandon Routh? by danger_boy_13 · 2004-10-21 00:28 · Score: 4, Informative
  
  They approached the actor from Smallville, but he didn't want to do it.
6. Re:Brandon Routh? by Pxtl · 2004-10-21 01:05 · Score: 3, Interesting
  
  Dean Cain was a better Clark Kent, but Reeve will never be topped as Superman. He pretty much defined the role himself.
  
  The only thing is that always strikes me is that Superman is a small-town Kansas boy - so why doesn't he sound like a bumpkin? The actors that play him always sound like East Coast (or LA) city folks.
7. Re:Brandon Routh? by rednip · 2004-10-21 03:00 · Score: 3, Informative
  
  Which TV series are you talking about? The Adventures of Superman stared George Reeves (how's that for old) long before Christopher Reeve had the role. I am just old enough to remember a time before the last 'crop' of Superman movies (look up Superman on IMDB, hell, I didn't know there were so many titles), when the old 50's show was in heavy syndication. I saw the Lois and Clark (and for that matter smallville) as fair and worthy tellings of the Superman story. George Reeve was my 'first superman', I quess that since he was long dead by the time I saw the show, I am more open to other 'flavors' of the story.
  
  --
  The force that blew the Big Bang continues to accelerate.
Bad taste by Dancin_Santa · 2004-10-20 22:02 · Score: 4, Interesting

Not that they are making another Superman series, but that they are doing this with the full knowledge of the Superman curse.

I don't know who this latest guy is, he doesn't even warrant a picture in IMDB, but we'll soon be seeing him hiding in some bushes or thrown from a moving train or some other strange and inexplicable circumstance.

On top of that, the real Superman, Clark W. Kent, died in the comic books years ago. So did Bruce Wayne, the original Batman. Can't we just let these heroes among us pass in peace? Do we have to drag their dead carcasses out of the grave to squeeze just one more penny out of the franchise?
1. Re:Bad taste by Anonymous Coward · 2004-10-20 22:38 · Score: 4, Funny
  
  ...or frozen!!!
2. Re:Bad taste by Lisandro · 2004-10-20 23:18 · Score: 5, Informative
  
  Of course, it was just a publicity stunt; the guy died in the comic allright, complete with special editions and stuff, but killing Superman would be just like killing Daffy Duck. You can't make a comicbook character die and dissapear, even less one like Superman.
  
  IIRC, the Superman comics actually continued, but with a different storyline; something like "Son of Superman". Check this link:
  
  "Naturally, this would not be the end of the Man of Steel; after a number of stories in which Superman's friends and family deal with their feelings, it's discovered that his body is missing from his mausoleum, driving speculation that he might still be alive. Adding to the mystery are four new characters who each claim to be a new incarnation of Superman: a young, cocky kid with Superman's powers; a steel-suited African-American construction worker; a cold and vengeful hero who had taken over Superman's Fortress of Solitude; and a cyborg who half-resembled Superman and half-resembled the robots from the Terminator movies. After months of stories in which all four new Supermen worked and fought with each other, the one true Superman returns to claim his rightful place in the DC pantheon."
  
  Anyway, i bought the comic when it came out. It worked on me, the bastards :)
3. Re:Bad taste by TwistedSquare · 2004-10-20 23:29 · Score: 4, Insightful
  
  I presumed that's what the original poster was referring to, Superboy/Steel/Eradicator (I think)/Cyborg, but they made it sound as if Wayne/Kent had gone for good, which was puzzling me... Although I don't remember Wayne dying, though his back did get broken by Bane and he got replaced for a bit... ah the joys of Marvel/DC continuities!
4. Re:Bad taste by servognome · 2004-10-21 00:11 · Score: 4, Funny
  
  a steel-suited African-American construction worker
  How the hell did he try to pass himself off as superman?
  "Yeah I'm Superman, I was just in the Carribean getting a tan"
  
  --
  D6 63 0D 70 89 81 BB 8E 7B 7C 5F 5D 54 EA AB 73
5. Re:Bad taste by micromoog · 2004-10-21 00:59 · Score: 3, Insightful
  
  Not to mention the bad taste of announcing this just after Christopher Reeves' death, to ride on the free publicity.
6. Re:Bad taste by Pxtl · 2004-10-21 01:18 · Score: 3, Informative
  
  Full body-covering armour. Couldn't see his face. Still, he was a massive black guy from Seattle so everyone could tell that he was black inside (he sounded like it). Basically people considered him a "spiritual successor". Then they had Shaq make an awful movie of the character ("STEEL").
  
  Other replacements from the "reign" of the supermen: a very confused electrokinetic android, a sinister cyborg, and a teenaged "clone" who was actually just a very complicated genetic-engineering program designed to make a *human* that was as similar to superman as possible. Also, a drunken bartender named Bibbo, as comic releif. And eventually, an unpowered gunwielding hero who just happened to be the real thing, slowly recovering from his "death".
  
  IIRC, the story resulted in the annihilation of Coast City, which is what eventually caused the Green Lantern to go insane and wipe out the entire Green Lantern army.
7. Re:Bad taste by Mant · 2004-10-21 01:32 · Score: 4, Insightful
  
  On top of that, the real Superman, Clark W. Kent, died in the comic books years ago. So did Bruce Wayne, the original Batman.
  
  Comic book characters die, and come back to life, all the time. Spuerman was dead for a bit, but came back soon after. I'm not aware of Bruce Wayne ever dieing in main continuity.
  
  Of course, they get killed is some non-continuity Elseworlds stuff. Plus back when DC had parralel univerese (they all got merged in Crisis on Infiniate Earth) Bruce Wayne died in Earth-2, but not the 'main' Earth.
  
  Characters like Superman and Batman are pretty archetypal. Subsequent generation re-invent them to suit the times, that is what happens with mythlogy, it keeps it alive and relevant, and IMO is much better than just leaving them alone.
8. Re:Bad taste by Scutter · 2004-10-21 01:43 · Score: 4, Funny
  
  killing Superman would be just like killing Daffy Duck.
  
  You can't kill Daffy Duck. All you can do is blow his feathers off with dynamite or make his beak spin around with a shotgun blast or something.
  
  --
  
  "Tell me doctor, with all of your defenses, are there any provisions for an attack by killer bees?"
Re:crude humor by Anonymous Coward · 2004-10-20 22:07 · Score: 5, Funny

Q. Whats the difference between Christopher Reeve and someone who tells a Christopher Reeve joke?
A: Christopher Reeve still had some feeling left
Brandon Routh Bio by sofakingon · 2004-10-20 22:10 · Score: 3, Informative

Somehow I don't think this guy can do it:

Birthday: October 9, 1979
Birth Place: Des Moines, IA, USA
Birth Name: Brandon James Routh

Also credited as:
B.J. Routh
Brandon 'B.J.' Routh

View Biography

Notes

Born in Des Moines, Iowa and grew up in nearby Norwalk.
Attended the University of Iowa, and starred in many productions at the Norwalk Theater of Performing Arts.
Appeared in Christina Aguilera's "What A Girl Wants" video.
Enjoys playing basketball, biking, soccer and swimming.
His sister Sara is a singer/songwriter and a radio D.J.

News

October 17, 2004
Has Bryan Singer Found His Superman?
Brandon Routh is The Man Of Steel. We think. Probably.
More Info

Crew Credits

Acting Appearances

Starring Roles
Undressed (1999) - Wade (Season 3)
One Life to Live (1968) - Seth Anderson (#1) (05/23/2001-04/17/2002)

Guest Starring Roles

Will & Grace - Sebastian - A Gay/December Romance (2004)
Cold Case - Henry Phillips ('64 - A Time to Hate (2003)
Gilmore Girls - Jess [as B.J. Routh] - Concert Interruptus (2001)
Odd Man Out - Connor [as B.J. Routh] - You've Got Female (1999)

Co Starring Roles

Oliver Beene - Brian - Dibs (2004)

Movie/Mini-Series/Special Roles

Deadly -

Quick rundown:

His name is "BJ"
He was a regular on a soap opera
He was a gay guy on "Will and Grace"
He was a dancer in a Christina Aguilera video

How do you go from the above to Superman?
Someone please tell me cuz I've got a lot more under my belt than he does. I wanna be superman too!!!!
Picture of Brandon Routh by CheesyPeteza · 2004-10-20 22:12 · Score: 5, Informative

Heres a picture of Brandon and a write up of him at Latino Review: http://www.latinoreview.com/scoops/brandon-superma n.html
1. Re:Picture of Brandon Routh by Quobobo · 2004-10-20 22:19 · Score: 3, Insightful
  
  Is anyone else somewhat creeped out by that website? I'd find it equally weird if there was a "Caucasian Review" or something similar, entertainment reviews based on race are just pretty strange.
Uncouth by JerSully · 2004-10-20 22:17 · Score: 5, Insightful

Some of the replies to this article are amoungst the most tasteless and uninformed that I've seen on Slashdot. Come on guys, take 10 seconds to research the new actor and refrain from saying mean things about Mr. Reeve for now. But... yeah... Gilmore Girls... Until I looked him up I was confuzled.
Re:Aince there is no pic at imdb by Anonymous Coward · 2004-10-20 22:18 · Score: 3, Informative

Thats not Brandon, thats (KAMAR REYES) this is Brandon http://www.geocities.com/televisioncity/9779/pubga l/br2.jpg
Re:Aince there is no pic at imdb by Xpilot · 2004-10-20 22:19 · Score: 3, Funny

There's a better pic at superman-v.com . The pic at that geocities site makes it look like Superman was outsourced to India.

--
"Backups are for wimps. Real men upload their data to an FTP site and have everyone else mirror it." -- Linus Torvalds
Anybody else by Anonymous Coward · 2004-10-20 22:23 · Score: 5, Insightful

Think this is kind of weird timing after Christopher's death?? Kind of like the HHGTTG movie timing. They had to wait for Douglas to die before they could go forward with what production wanted, (ie a money making movie, not a GOOD movie). Anybody else think Mr Reeve maybe had some say that the production didn't like, and now that he's gone it gives them the chance to go forward?? Just my 2 cents.
Re:Let's not be hypocrites by Anonymous Coward · 2004-10-20 22:30 · Score: 5, Informative

Rubbish. The Superman project has been in development hell for something like 5 or 6 years now: it has gone through several incarnations and several directors. Nicholas Cage was rumoured to be in line to play the Big Blue Boy Scout, Wolfgang Petersen was going to direct Batman v Superman but dropped out to helm Troy instead, Brett Ratner was then attached to Superman for a long while (the Batman element was dropped when Chris "Memento" Nolan signed up to helm Batman Begins), Kevin "Clerks" Smith wrote a script which got ditched, then McG was mooted to take over after Ratner got dropped, before Singer signed up a couple of months ago. Not necessarily in this order. All this happened *before* Christopher Reeve's death.
w00t ! another superhero flick... by Maavin · 2004-10-20 22:32 · Score: 3, Interesting

I'd rather see a good "Tripods" Movie...
that story has potential...

--

Crivens! I kicked meself in me own heid!
Don't know about that by Chuck+Chunder · 2004-10-20 22:38 · Score: 5, Funny

But Teri Hatcher's breasts were the best Lois Lane breasts ever.

--
Boffoonery - downloadable Comedy Benefit for Bletchley Park
1. Re:Don't know about that by schpmock · 2004-10-21 00:24 · Score: 3, Informative
  
  Lois Lane in "Smallville", you be the judge.
Gilmore Girls? by Anonymous Coward · 2004-10-20 23:25 · Score: 3, Insightful

Wow, you must really have a photographic memory, since I've watched every episode of Gilmore Girls and he's in it for literally 5 minutes as a bit part in the first season.....and that's all.
They're real by chegosaurus · 2004-10-20 23:40 · Score: 4, Funny

and they're spec-tacular!
Spider-Man cash-in? by Yolegoman · 2004-10-21 00:24 · Score: 3, Insightful

I can't help but feel like this is a cash-in on the recent Spider-Man movie franchise's popularity. Both Spider-Man and Spider-Man 2 have done really well, and it seems to me like they are just trying to milk the superhero thing for everything they've got.

Of course, I'm willing to be proven wrong. Give me a good old-fashioned B - Popcorn movie with decent Special FX, and an interesting Trailer for the film, and I'll certainly be in line.

- Yolego
Re:Why Brian Singer? by SoTuA · 2004-10-21 00:29 · Score: 3, Insightful

What's so bad about X-Men casting?
Cyclops is a complete dick? check.
Storm a shapely black woman that looks good in white hair? check.
Prof. X? Spot on.
Magneto? Maybe he could have found someone who didn't look as old/frail, but his acting was spot-on.
Jean Grey is all but carbon-copied from the X-Men comics I used to own.
The only casting choice I'd disagree with would be Rogue...
Comics and stereotypes... by Spy+der+Mann · 2004-10-21 01:25 · Score: 5, Interesting

Well for one, I like the Smallville story. They present us a vulnerable, guy with problems like everybody else, who wants to hear about caped princes on their stallions to "fight for justice"? Way outdated. (Not that we don't need an idealist hero in this screwed up time, but we need a REAL one)

But if they make a batman based on "Batman of the Future", yeah cool. :)

I remember reading the history of comics on a TV documentary.
(related history of comics link).

Comics are always made by people based on the time's moral standards and public expectations.

Like for example, the wonder woman was so popular in the time where women were seen as inferior. One day the guy decided to take away her powers, and the story sucked. Lotsa women protested against that.

And Flash Gordon. Always rescuing the girl. Because in that time, i don't know about you, but IMHO women just acted stupid and submissive.

Another example? Captain America. It was made in WW2. Everybody wanted to see Hitler smashed by capn's shield. Good ol' times when America was the REAL Iron fist of democracy. Is it a coincidence that the "Golden Age" of comics was from 1938 to 1945, just as the WWII?

So, in those days, superheroes were seen as Role models. "What I want my child to be". But now they're the escape of teenagers who can't find their own place. Look at the latest comic movies. Do they focus on the superpowers, or more on the personal problems and conflicts of the heroes (Spiderman, Daredevil)? And they're a hit.

So yeah, the script guys BETTER give us a good movie adapted to our current times, or we'll smash the reels on their faces.
What?!? by nicktripp · 2004-10-21 01:56 · Score: 5, Interesting

Why did the original poster list him as "of Gilmore Girls"? If he had bothered to read the profile at IMDB that he linked (instead of just looking for a picture?), he would have seen that he was only on one episode of "Gilmore Girls", yet he was on the soap opera "One Life to Live" for two years and MTV's "Undressed" for another year. Unforunately, it seems most of you fell for this and are were immediately biased based on his one appearance on a WB show.
where was /. when Christopher Reeve passed away? by funkdancer · 2004-10-21 02:08 · Score: 5, Insightful

Don't know about you guys, but to me Reeve was a very big man not only being the best Superman there could ever be but also for the strength and incredible courage he showed when almost everything was taken away from him in that accident.

I checked in then and several times of the next few days, over and over again, to see any mention of it and a thread regarding his life and his fight for pushing technologies and research in the spinal areas, but alas no mention at all. It would not be an understatement to say that I did get quite emotional thinking about how he would not live to witness the fruits of all that will be discovered in the next 10 years.

So I guess I've finally found the thread to oust my disappointment with the editors.... Just to think that only the _new superman_ warrants mention when a _great one_ passed away. Bloody good one, mates.

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