After the news of Brandon Routh being pushed away because of the newcomer Superman in JLA, many sites picked up the story, also voicing their own opinions on the matter. The support for Routh is very vocal, "he's the best part about Superman Returns, he's doesn't deserve this", etc etc, but lots of people are relieved about Singer supposedly leaving, too. It does look like many are of the opinion the faults in SR were the writing, the editing, the film itself. Not Brandon Routh. He only did what the director told him to do. People were saying the same thing when SR came out. He's the "saving grace" of the film and whathaveyou.

SR underperforming may not be Brandon's fault, just like him possibly not being Superman again isn't his fault, but he's certainly the casualty in all this. One fan called him "collateral damage" and it's the perfect way to describe it, really. He could go down with the rest because the writers are gone, Singer could walk, WB could support the new JLA Superman instead, there will be a new cast, etc. It's just a domino effect. If Singerverse is gone, Routh is gone. It isn't fair but is movie business ever fair?

Aaaand you know what's coming next! I wondered how long it would take some site to claim right the opposite, that Brandon is IS STILL Superman, so there! Moriarity of AintItCoolNews merely reported what Variety said at first but then they added an update to the article on the same day (this was still the same day the original news broke):

Updated! Brandon Routh Is Evidently Still The Man Of Steel!

UPDATE -- I just got off the phone with a very high-ranking mole who is absolutely in a position to know what's happening with this film, and he tells me that it is "absolutely false" that Brandon Routh is out as Superman for the stand-alone series.

The only thing that has been determined is that JUSTICE LEAGUE will not feature the actors from the other films. That's it.

Right now, Routh is still Warner's choice to return if they make another stand-alone SUPERMAN film, and that's based on conversations as recently as a few weeks ago.

Don't believe this one, kids. Routh's still the Man of Steel.

Then the usual spiel of backpedaling happened and LatinoReview made a correction to their original article:

**EDIT** Other sites are breaking our balls about how I wrote this news piece, so let me correct it. (It's my first news article. Give me a break people!) The article does not state that whomever is cast as Superman will also be the same actor to carry on the stand alone Superman sequel, but we've heard otherwise. If we're wrong, you can go back to breaking said balls.

O_O Um, okay. The usual... but too late. No cookie for you. The damage is done. I was expecting this but frankly, it doesn't lessen the blow to me. They could have done this months ago if they're in it for website hits and traffic and "who's the biggest insider of them all". They could have had tons of "MOS is dead, wait no, MOS is still on" scoops, just like IESB.net ruled the JLA rumour mill for several months.

They're only doing it now because we're so close to JLA starting filming. The date's been set for months. The cast will be announced soon and many people are disappointed about the rumoured names, plus everyone wants to have some sort of scoop right now before all hell breaks loose. It's the perfect timing to scare people. Adding Brandon to the mix just sweetens the deal, makes everything "juicier".

If we've learnt anything from the JLA rumour mill debacle, it's that rival websites and insiders will fight for website hits and traffic and naturally the competition will try to steal it away. Besides, you know what else this Superman drama needs? The TOM WELLING angle. Again. Seriously, you can't have a good Superman scoop without Tom Welling!

( '[Welling] supposedly has discussed this with a close friend and was told that it is already too late to avoid being typecast and he should go where the money is or risk ending up with no career after Smallville.' )

I've been reading some fan discussions on the whole Routh debacle and one fan believes WB is so daring at the mo to dump Routh because Welling was always their first choice anyway and now that they've got him for JLA and possibly the solo Superman franchise, they no longer need Routh. If it's true he was offered an amount few people would refuse (doesn't he get like over $1 million a year for each season of Smallville?), he may as well change his mind and take the role.

One fan mentioned Routh got only $30,000 for SR. That's insane, I've heard it was either $1 or $2 million! I forgot. Does anyone know? Anyhoo, it's not something that's important to me but since WB's all business (all that matters is box office) and is moving ahead with JLA that's probably worth it for very profitable merchandising/toys alone, then maybe they'd be willing to spend a little extra on Welling if that means he'll accept the role. If Welling got the role, he'd be the only really known actor in the superhero team anyway.

The damage is done. It took one short article, no, PARAGRAPH, for the fanbase to see that Brandon would be missed if WB dumped him. People have spoken. Many may be glad about a new director but Brandon they wanna keep. The only problem with this reasoning is that if Singer is gone, a new director would want to follow his own vision and cast his own Superman. Hence the domino effect: First the writers, then the director, then Brandon and the rest of the cast. Bye bye MOS, hello reboot with new Superman, whoever you may be.

Watch a big portion (it's still early!) of the Superman online community go in a frenzy when Variety blog innocently writes the following in their article about upcoming DC comics movies:

Speaking of DC Comics pics, it is highly unlikely that Bryan Singer will return to shoot the next Superman movie. (The director is finishing up Tom Cruise's Nazi film Valkyrie, and prepping The Mayor of Castro Street). The next Superman we will see on the big screen will not be Brandon Routh, but a younger Superman among a cast of youthful superheroes in The Justice League. That movie will likely not be shot, however, until after the WGA strike is resolved. Warners is so happy with Dark Knight that their fondest hope is that Nolan will return to do another Batman.

It's immediately being mis-read by some fans and you can see it coming from a mile away... Brandon not being in JLA is treated as NEWS when in fact we've known for a long time now that he wasn't even approached about the movie. But people are flipping over that one paragraph in the blog anyway.

Of course Routh isn't in JLA. The blog meant the next onscreen Superman we're going to see will be the JLA Superman since that movie is moving ahead of any possible Superman Returns sequel. That's what it really says. We already knew that. It was pretty much one of the main things being discussed in the Superman fandom since past summer. The blog does not mention the sequel at all, it mentions Bryan not returning to direct JLA which is, uh, also not news, since JLA is being directed by Miller. O_O It's trying to sell the "No Bryan" angle as news.

Bad choice of wording. Honestly. Also using words "likely" and "unlikely" which sound more like opinion and speculation, as SupermanHomepage wisely reminds us.

All of this screaming because of a weblog! Also remember Variety was the one source saying months back WB is still unsure how to proceed regarding JLA and that the strike is effecting everything. The rumour sites, on the other hand, kept saying JLA is full-steam ahead and the strike won't affect the filming schedule, according to Miller. Variety's been one of the big players in the JLA rumour mill extravaganza last year if only because they carry more weight than online websites posting rumours.

But then it gets better...

Just when you see people calming down a bit, there's another shock around the corner! The death stroke was delivered by LatinoReview which jumped on board linking to the above article and saying they've known this all along but weren't allowed to say it just yet because DC forbid them. They announce it's been confirmed Brandon will not be Superman again in ANY movie:

News is a funny thing. Sometimes when its reported the person who reported it gets the credit for breaking the news. Latinoreview has always tried to be the front runner in breaking casting news. Sometimes we miss, but most of the time we're dead on.

Kelvin knew about Brandon not being the new Superman for weeks and weeks now, but made a promise to the DC people that he wouldn't break the story. Variety has now confirmed what we've secretly known for a while and Brandon Routh will be replaced in the stand alone sequel by whomever is cast as Superman in the upcoming Justice League of America movie.

Personally, I thought Brandon did a great job. He had the look to pull off the character and the girls all went nuts for him in tighty tights (I conducted a poll). It wasn't his fault that the script was bad. Hopefully Hollywood knows what they're doing in casting someone who may be even younger than Routh in the role. I don't know what the fascination is with younger casting, especially for super heroes. But I'll take a younger actor if it means Nicolas Cage can't go anywhere near the role.

Now, granted, this isn't just any "rumour site". It was LatinoReview who first broke the news Brandon Routh was cast as Superman in SR. He had to hide away from the press for a week. They were also first to report Singer was interested in the SR project in the first place.

Many fans, especially anti-SR people, are rejoicing and seeing this news, ESPECIALLY the LatinoReview article, AS OFFICIAL.

( LatinoReview does not focus on JLA like the Variety blog. It clearly states in plain words that can't be misinterpreted: they've known for a long time Brandon isn't returning. )



I've said it before and I'll say it again. Though it pains me to choose because I honestly like Singer as a director and a person, if I HAD to choose between Singerverse/movie by Singer or Brandon Routh, I'd pick Brandon Routh in a heartbeat. I want him far more as Superman than Singer behind the helm. That choice was always obvious to me.

*SIGH* Not feeling okay today, I really need a while to digest this. Think it through. This could be the lowest point we've reached since the awful WB quote "IF we make a sequel..." so long ago. I'm still not sure whether I even believe the news or not. A huge part of me denies it with a passion because I'm a fan of Brandon's and not letting him continue is just beyond ridiculous to me.
But as others have said already, I wouldn't be surprised if it indeed turned out to be true and the past JLA rumours of a new younger Superman and possible solo Superman movies spinning off JLA all seem to point to this turn of events. I've said it before that it seriously worried me when the SR writers "left" (or were booted by WB, whatever you choose to believe) the project first because it could mean Bryan would walk next and then Routh, if only by association. It's been suggested before.

And now it LOOKS like it's happening and I'm so sick of it, so sick of WB and sick of lack of official news. It's shocking how calm I am, I don't think it has really hit me yet and a huge part of me does reject the news as false. That must be the reason I haven't screamed yet. It's the fighter in me. The loyal fan.

DON'T WANT TO THINK ABOUT IT RIGHT NOW. UGH!

First, before I go on I'd just like to say a few words about my posts on JLA. I'm not posting these daily anymore as I think putting all the latest rumours into one post is easier and not as aggravating to the readers. The news may be a biiit outdated by the time I post them (a few days tops) but they're at least coming in steadily. :)

I've heard some of these news before the major websites reported on them... *chuckle* Made me realize I could run a very up-to-date Superman news journal if I wanted but as SupermanHomepage said many times over, it's a full-time job and you'd need to sacrifice a lot more time if you wanted to beat everyone to the news. Since this isn't a competition, I'm content with reporting a couple of days or so after the major websites already posted the news. :)

That and I also think daily or almost daily news on JLA rumours would tick people off after a while. We're all very tired of them by now, even if some do crack me up still (like Scott Porter as Superman, see more below) and they can be very fun in all their cracktastic glory. With 2 months left till JLA movie starts production, I'll be posting the news in chunks like this unless there's something especially juicy I need to report on right away. Some rumours are so weird they really don't deserve their own post anyway.

On we go then! The latest I've heard, with newest stuff at the bottom:

X-MEN ACTOR PLAYING JLA SUPERMAN?
- The insider Emi of CountingDown.net (she's posting on IESB.net boards sometimes which I got this info from but you need to sign up to view them now) overheard X-Men actor Daniel Cudmore was in talks for JLA Superman. She reminds us: "I'm saying this is purely a rumor as it came from a casting agency as a through the grapevine / overheard a conversation sort of thing." About Cudmore, who played Colossus in Bryan Singer's X2 (and X-men 3), she says: "I've been told Daniel Cudmore auditioned for Superman and was well liked. Given the ages of the other cast members and what it seems like Miller is going for, he could fit in the role easily. At 6' 6 and pretty built up, he'd be better than anyone rumored so far."

( Pics of Cudmore )

You can hear a clip of his acting on YouTube here. Look for the tall cop. ;) His voice is quite nice!

Interestingly, Daniel Cudmore auditioned for Superman in Superman Returns. One time it was even rumoured he got the part but back then rumours were just as crazy as they are now about JLA and everyone and their grandpa apparently auditioned for Superman.

( A fan was saying Cudmore's image as Colossus is too well-known, he shouldn't play Superman now. )

ADAM BRODY AS THE FLASH?
- Finally a big newspaper reporting on JLA! LA Times says Adam Brody has closed negotiations to play the Flash.

The studio is expected to hold off on an announcement until all the roles are cast and a splashy news conference can herald the return of the beloved series. "Justice League of America" is one of Warner Bros.' highest-priority films right now, with an anticipated 2009 release.

They also mention Scott Porter and Megan Gale are "rumoured" for Superman and Wonder Woman. But then again, they also said earlier Scott Porter is Superman and that isn't true (see below). That much about counting on big newspapers to report credible or only official stuff. They didn't really say Brody was confirmed so at least they're being careful with their words!

( Another tidbit about an actor who auditioned for JLA )

NEW WARNER BROTHERS PRESIDENT
Speaking of "next few weeks", I think they'll announce the cast shortly before they actually start filming in February. Fans have been speculating about the date for a long time. It's odd WB hasn't said anything for so long and one fan says it probably won't happen until after WB Executive Vice President Jeff Robinov gets his promotion (he'll be President) in January. The press conference could easily happen then with him "at the helm", revealing all the JLA cast at once.

I should mention execs Jeff Robinov and Dan Lin are reportedly the ones going *FOR* JLA while President & Chief Operating Officer Alan Horn (we last heard about him regarding Brandon Routh's wedding but it was later reported Horn in fact did not attend) spoke nicely about Superman Returns when it didn't do as well as expected at the BO. Horn admitted they expected more but that the movie did what it was supposed to do (introduce the characters, etc).

Lin, on the other hand, we've heard is the one who's been rooting for JLA from the beginning. There have also been whispers Lin disliked SR but I don't remember exactly what's been said and if indeed it was anything official or just insider stuff. Anti-SR folks often use Robinov and Lin as some of the reasons Man of Steel isn't happening while pro-SR people say WB people's thoughts on SR were overwhelmingly positive, basically pro-SR and sequel, and that most of the execs are FOR the sequel.
People are fighting all the time about this, who supposedly said what, who supposedly thinks this and that... We honestly don't KNOW anything for sure, we only have a few short quotes from Horn that WB was pleased with SR but that they expected it to make $100 mil more domestic.

( Here's an old article from 2004 explaining what the job entails, plus a Robinov interview with him mentioning Superman Returns )

More on WB. NY Times reported a year ago about WB's profits, flops, etc. Great article. SR is mentioned as well and Robinov and Horn said in regards to the poorer BO of their movies that year:

"If Superman had done twice what it did, the whole summer would have looked different," said Mr. Robinov. "It's as much about perception as reality. Even with the failure of a movie like 'Poseidon,' we've had much smaller movies we've lost as much on."

Mr. Horn agreed. "I've seen movies that cost $15 million lose as much as $20 million," he said. "But when event movies don't perform well, it is very high profile."

Back to current news/rumours:

( Teresa Palmer is Wonder Woman? )

CHRIS NOLAN ABOUT JLA
- People worrying Chris Nolan will walk away from Batman 3 because Miller is doing another version of Batman at the same time, can breathe easily. IGN.com reports:

IGN: Are you concerned at all about the Justice League of America movie and of a new Batman being introduced to audiences while your franchise is still going?

Nolan: Not really. To be perfectly honest, it's not really something I've thought about much. I really am just immersed in making this movie. Whatever will happen will happen, and we're just working very hard to make this movie the best it can be.

( More on Nolan )

JLA DIRECTOR SAYS THE MOVIE IS ON SCHEDULE
Sydney Morning Herald reports JLA director George Miller (here's a very recent pic of him) said the movie wasn't affected by the recent writers strike in the U.S. and is expected to start shooting in the new year. Nothing new there but it should put people's minds to rest after all the recent grumblings the movie won't get made after all.

JLA fans are hoping the movie will be successful. One fan says he can't see it failing. "Maybe critically, but not financially." I think this is what's going to happen. People, especially kids and young teens, will EAT IT UP.

Saved my fave bit for last:

SCOTT PORTER TALKS ABOUT JLA
- And once again, Scott Porter ISN'T SUPERMAN, no matter what LA Times claimed before. His name keeps popping up. Luckily, he has been interviewed in a vid on YouTube and he addresses the issue in a very charming way. :) He even mentions the word "fandom" (*hugs him*) and the Superman comic a fan gave him to sign at the con (the fan must be flipping out in excitement, he's almost famous for that comic thing now *laugh*). It's so fun hearing Scott talk about it. Do watch the vid. He's like "Oh man, not again" when JLA is mentioned, just look at his tired face. "Dude, you're Superman. It's on the internet, it's everywhere, you're Superman."
Told you he's a nice guy! :) Damn, just when I was warming up to him. *laugh* He mentions his MySpace and goes: "Be my friend!" Aww. ♥

More faves: "And the internet never lies". Hahahaha. Awesome. "Poor Brandon Routh, he never stood a chance. I thought he was fantastic, he got ripped to shreds."

♥ *fangirls Porter* I like this pic of him.

Finally, The Dark Knight viral campaign gives the fans (after a lot of riddle solving and searching for clues on their part) the first teaser trailer as a reward.

The tagline on the poster won't be new to you if you've been following the campaign. For the first teaser poster the image is pretty neat but the fans who've been immersed in this campaign from the beginning are feeling a bit let down. You can't expect a lot from the first teaser, really! People were expecting the trailer but that's coming on the 14th.

It's not spoilerish IMO but I'm putting it under the cut anyway.

( BATMAN TEASER POSTER!! And some fun things about the campaign. A good idea for Man of Steel, perhaps? )

Speaking of the great campaign, I hope they think of something similar for Superman fans when/if the sequel's coming! Perhaps clues as to who's the new villain? Or villains? It'll have to be more than one game, perhaps clues like "Where is Lex Luthor now?" or "Help Superman recover the crystals!" Perhaps via a star/planet chart or something like that, since they're on New Krypton floating in space, right? I know a deleted scene said it has drifted close to Jupiter by now or something like that but maybe it mysteriously "vanished" from space? Got destroyed by the new villain? There's so much stuff you can do here. Have fans participate in it.

Last time we got Bryan Singer's video journals. If they'll be having a viral campaign at all, they'll have to outdo themselves next time around, don't you think? Do something new. Something different. Get fans excited again, especially all those who've been disappointed by the first movie. Maybe the sequel really needs the hype because the general response to SR wasn't as hugely positive as they were hoping?

If it were me, I'd release cool scrambled Daily Planet newspaper reports on Superman and by unscrambling them or cracking the code, the fans would get the real report that reveals something interesting about the movie's storyline. Little nuggets here and there, getting juicier and juicier the closer we are to the official posters and the premiere and all that. Perhaps we could be getting newspaper headlines, inspired by "WHERE HAS HE GONE?" from the last movie and such. Nothing hugely spoilerish but enough to tease the fans and let them speculate. Maybe clues of a surprise star/villain. Or clues of some threat, something Superman doesn't see coming but the fans are!

Heck, even a pic of Clark's new tie would be awesome. Anything. *sporfle*

Have fans solve a riddle that gives them a page or two from the script/draft. Be like JK Rowling and her official site, yes! *laugh* She's done some great things on her website before ("What's behind the locked door?"). She'd hide nice little gems and treats all over the place for fans to collect. I'd do something similar with Man of Steel. It'll be a looong wait. Have fans something to do in the meantime.

I'll cover some fan reactions and some news in this entry.

NO JLA CASTING ANNOUNCEMENT DESPITE RUMOURS
Nothing particularly interesting to report these days regarding the JLA casting development. Moviehole.net posted another rumour a couple or so days ago that the cast will be announced that very day and IESB.net went with the same story but unsurprisingly, nothing came to pass. I didn't want to post another "AN ANNOUNCEMENT IS COMING!" rumour 3 days in a row, so I saved it for today. Though it would have been hilarious if the one rumour I didn't post about actually came true!

Thanksgiving came and went and still no announcement. From what I could gather, the fan reactions haven't changed. If anything, they're more intense than before. Fans are getting angrier by the day and many do agree it's rumour/news sites like IESB, MovieHole and AintItCoolNews that keep adding fuel to the fire. Some are now pointing fingers at these sites instead of WB (and their rumoured "misinformation campaign") for a change. "This isn't WB's fault, if it weren't for sites like IESB and others, we wouldn't have been so pissed off!"
It's mostly the casting announcement that people are angry about, not the other rumours we've been getting via these sites (JLA storyline, who auditioned for what, etc). No one was complaining about IESB when they were reporting casting rumours. Now everyone's complaining because fans aren't getting what they want. Hypocritical much?

( More... )

You know what? SPONGEBOB SHOULD BE MAKING THE CASTING ANNOUNCEMENT. *points at icon* At least he'd do it in style.

SUPERMANUEL AND BATBOY!
As posted in an earlier entry, a silly rumour surfaced about a 21 year-old actor for Batman and an unknown "of Hispanic/Latino descent" for Superman. On one fan forum they're by now a bit of a joke, especially the Hispanic Superman. One fanboy mentioned it looks like we won't be getting SUPERMAN in this movie. More like Supermanuel. Bwah! Cue lots of cackling. The word Superhombre was also thrown around. Another fan joked we'll be having Batboy instead of Batman! :)))

JLA DELAYED? FANS ARE WORRIED.
Another shift (we'll see how long it lasts) happened when several sites picked up the story about the writers strike postponing JLA because it has an unfinished script. I've reported about this already, the story made a few rounds and is being treated as "news" even though the article's re-hashing old news written by other sites, especially Variety's article from weeks ago. The point is that all the rumour sites are saying JLA is going forward as planned and Variety was the only source that reported right the opposite. It said "WB was unsure how to proceed" and things like that.
This is old news but it was making rounds again as if to remind us a lot of things could go wrong with this project.

The "reminder" caused a few fans to start doubting JLA will ever get made, especially after all these rumours that didn't come true. Some who haven't been particularly keen on the idea of a JLA movie from the beginning are commenting the longer we don't get any official casting announcement, the more chances there are the movie will get delayed. We all knew JLA would be extremely difficult to cast... Now some are hoping it'll be too difficult.

A lot of the rumoured cast so far (just people who auditioned) aren't exactly fan favourites. A fan on SuperHeroHype forums comments:
"This JL film is reminding me so much of Superman Returns when it comes to developmental buzz. The cast for Singer film was underwhelming and there was a heavy split of fans between the casting of Routh.
The samething is happening here and it seems Miller is going the exact opposite route with casting then he should be going. He should be looking for solid B grade actors if not A grade.....but he will be going the C and D grade route with babyfaced unknown TV actors. Utterly disappointing..."

TRANSFORMERS WRITERS WRITING 'SUPERMAN RETURNS' SEQUEL?
Another rumour that I've posted about previously, in fact it was just a little tidbit thrown out by Iris of BrandonRouth.com concerning "Man of Steel". She said Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci "seem to be interested" in writing the sequel, now that the doors are open for new writers to come on board. Fans agree this rumour should be taken with a grain of salt like other rumours and indeed it didn't make a splash on any website besides a couple of forums. The thing is, anyone could be writing the script and Kurtzman and Orci are just one of several teams that I'm sure we'll be hearing about in the future in connection with MOS.

The rumour was taken as such but the fan response was positive for the most part. Fans are hungry for more action in the sequel and action's certainly something Transformers delivered.
Kurtzman and Orci are also in negotiations to write Transformers 2. It was reported they could be getting $5 - $7 million for the screenplay. They've been friends since childhood and have co-written stuff for Xena: Warrior Princess, Alias, and movies The Island and Mission: Impossible 3.

BRANDON ROUTH MARRYING!
Brandon Routh and Courtney Ford are getting married tomorrow, Nov 24! Be brave, fangirls! :) The wedding pics will be featured in INStyle magazine. CONGRATS! I think I'll be posting a huge Brandon picspam tomorrow to celebrate. :o)

JAMES MARSDEN IN GAP AD CAMPAIGN
Aww, James Marsden (Richard White in Superman Returns) is featured in one of GAP's new Holiday 2007 ads! Look how sweet he looks:



Check out the link above for a hi-res picture.

*goes back to bed with tea and muffins* *has a cold*

This post is about something I've been thinking about for a while now that it's been almost 3 weeks since news hit us Superman Returns writers Doughterty and Harris left the project and won't be writing the sequel. The news said Mike and Dan have "opted not to come back", they'll be focusing on their other projects.


(Singer and Routh behind the scenes of SR)

This was just months after they told us in August at the Saturn Awards they're working on the sequel script right now (see video). They also mentioned they "work in a bubble" and don't know about any rumours about other movies like JLA. I found the quote interesting because it was used by Singer at the awards, too (another video, he talked about Valkyrie first, then about the SR sequel). "I certainly live in a bubble," he said about the movie Megneto being announced. He didn't hear about it right away.

Maybe Bryan, Dan and Mike talked beforehand what to say in case they're asked if they know anything about other projects with Superman in it. JLA rumours were already popping up in August. People knew something's going on. Maybe Singer & Co. didn't want to comment on it and decided to use the "living in a bubble" expression as a useful "Don't ask me, I don't know anything" tactic. It's better than "No comment", anyway. People read too much into such things. Better say "I haven't heard anything" than have fans analyze your body language and tone of voice. *chuckle* Because it's been happening a lot ever since we've had the first wave of JLA rumours. Lotsa analyzing. It's all we have.

According to Bryan, he and the writers were "starting to discuss" Man of Steel at the time. They had ideas for villains, etc. Things were moving slowly but at least there was some progress.

Then we've heard rumours two sequel pitches were presented by Singer & Co. to Warner Brothers. Not completed scripts by any means but storyline ideas, the beginning of a draft or whatever you want to call it. They were pitches.

Apparently WB didn't like them.

This is where it gets interesting. A few fans (a couple who work in the movie industry and have been posting online before SR even went into production) have been saying the Superman Returns writers Doughterty and Harris were actually fired by Warners instead of walk on their own to "pursue other projects", as was reported. It's been hinted "pursue other projects" is Hollywood lingo for "fired" since nobody says fired anymore, they'd rather have people resign/walk on their own and retain their dignity, as well as leave their careers unblemished (getting fired from a movie wouldn't exactly help your career, eh? So they let people leave the project on their own, it just sounds better).

It was also hinted the writers, friends of Singer's (he likes to work with people he knows), were forced to leave by WB because they want Singer to walk next. And if he doesn't, they will keep Man of Steel postponed for so long that Singer *will* eventually walk, tired of waiting.

I could see this happening, at least about the writers getting fired (I didn't at first, I was shocked at the implication), I really would but I'm not sure... We've heard WB didn't like the two sequel pitches Singer & Co. presented them this year. No script was finished, even though the writers said in August they are currently working on it. It was not finished by the time the strike hit us but the JLA script was finished way beforehand, so JLA is moving forward. As was reported, Gregory Noveck of DC/WB stated the fact JLA had a finished script and could begin prepping before the strike were two of the reasons why WB's fast-tracking JLA and putting MOS on the back burner. So, whatever Dan and Mike have written up to that point (pitches, ideas, etc.), it wasn't finished.

( Why didn't the SR writers finish the script on time? What happened? What was in the pitches that WB didn't like? )

Fired or no, it's a sad business. "Opted not to come back". What a delicate way of putting it.

Funny how my Clark icon fits this subject. It's from the SR Daily Planet scene with him saying: "Maybe he had to go..."

Yes, maybe they had to go.

This via SupermanHomepage: MTV.com asked Superman Returns actors James Marsden and Frank Langella about the sequel and how JLA will affect it.

Apparently the last people we should have asked were the actors involved.

"I know nothing. I saw one article about 'Justice League' being made, and I thought well, how's that going to affect the future of [Superman]?" James Marsden, who played Richard White in Bryan Singer's "Superman Returns" confessed to MTV News. "So I have no idea. I really don't."

Ok, fine. If Marsden couldn't give up the goods we thought maybe his on-screen dad UNCLE could - being a fellow journalist and all for "The Daily Planet." So Mr. Perry White - will there be another Bryan Singer "Superman"?

"I have no doubt it will happen again. I just don’t think it will happen soon," Frank Langella said.

"I thought the first one was a beautiful film. I thought the concept was staggering. It got criticized for not being the kind of Superman everybody expects but Jesus!" Langella continued. "[But that said] I had dinner with Bryan a couple months ago and he said he wants to do the next one shorter, tighter, and with a lot more action in it."

And IESB.net continues to report the JLA movie cast will be announced this week and that the strike will not delay the production:

The WGA is not slowing down the WB and its plan to get Justice League on track, WB sources tell IESB that the cast will be announced this week.

Variety reported that there may be some delays on some studio tent poles including Justice League, this is not accurate according to WB sources.

They tell the IESB that unlike the story ran by the trades, casting is 100% locked. The cast has been chosen and sworn to secrecy but official confirmation will happen sometime this week.

Well, IESB seems to be the only insider source for JLA these days. No other website has posted similar news regarding the announcement that's supposedly happening this week. It might happen by Sunday Nov 18 at the Wizard World Texas convention (it's from Nov 16-18). I've read some WB execs will be attending it.
The Nov 18 rumour actually started on CountingDown via their female insider Emi. We'll see if she was right all along!

The funny coincidence is Scott Porter will be signing autographs at the convention as well. He was one of the rumoured actors for the JLA Superman. Whoo, boy. ;) Hey, worth a chuckle!

Langella dined with Singer 2 months ago. That would be September then. If you remember, September was the month we got the news Singer's sequel will be "postponed indefinitely" and that JLA will start shooting in February and will be filming at Fox Studios in Sydney. Also, casting for minor roles began and rumours about potential actors were getting really juicy (Welling for Superman, Jessica Biel for Wonder Woman, etc). It was the month where it all REALLY started: JLA was moving forward, it was happening. The rumour mill was in full gear. At the same time we got the first news in months that Man of Steel is getting postponed.

So, around this time Singer and Langella chatted about the sequel. JLA was already happening, so Singer knew about it. I'm sure he has heard about the rumours, if nothing else.

This gives me a little hope because Langella and Marsden may only be stars in the movie who don't know what's going on and when the next movie will be but Singer's the director. 2 months ago MOS was still on the table. Let's hope nothing has changed Singer's (or WB's, they're in charge) mind in the meantime.

All in all, the quote "I have no doubt it will happen again. I just don’t think it will happen soon!" sounds kind of depressing to fans who've been waiting for so long for some actual news (or a release date). SIGH. Define "soon". He's talking like it'll take years!