The first teaser for Warner Bros. Pictures’ Man of Steel — from the director/producer duo of Zack Snyder and Christopher Nolan — failed to inspire a number of us, especially those who had been burned before by a new, modern Superman movie. The second trailer didn’t do much either, beyond showing off Clark Kent’s life on the run. This third trailer, released today in conjunction with WB’s presence at CinemaCon in Las Vegas, is pretty major. In one fell swoop, director Zack Snyder answers a number of questions. Will it be set on a grande scale? Yes. Will we see the destruction of Krypton? Yes. Will the flying and fighting scenes be fast, in-focus and at normal speed? Mostly, yes. Does this film deserve a place at the top of Summer’s Most Wanted? Absolutely.

Fair warning to anyone who thinks they can avoid a certain piece of information regarding who exactly Michael Shannon plays in the upcoming Superman film Man of Steel… this new teaser confirms something that’s been rumored for a while. So stop reading now if you’re still hoping to steer clear of that reveal. WB has released a new teaser for Zack Snyder‘s darker-looking continuation/reboot of the Superman films, but instead of including new footage (or any footage at all) they’re going the viral route a la Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight marketing. But just because we’re not seeing anything doesn’t mean there isn’t something to hear. Check out the teaser for Man of Steel below.

These pictures will make you believe that a man can fly. Except he’s not a man. He’s an alien, and he’s got some other crazy powers as well. The new issue of “Entertainment Weekly” is all about Supes, and alongside a bunch of information about Man of Steel, they’ve got seven new images that give us a great look at all the major characters. From an airborne Superman to a Zod that looks like he’d be welcome fighting alongside Master Chief, there are some pretty cool looks here.

UPDATED: THR reached out to Snyder’s reps, who told them:  “While he is super flattered because he is a huge fan, Zack is not involved in any way with the new Star Wars. He is currently in post on his two films, Man of Steel and 300: Battle of Artemisia.” Just for the sake of clarity – we still don’t know who is directing Star Wars: Episode VII (though, we certainly know who is not directing it), but that little piece of key information hasn’t seemed to sway the trickle of still more chatter about the Star Wars movie universe and what other projects we can start expecting to see. Next up, Vulture reports that the reason director Zack Snyder put the kibosh on rumors that he could direct the seventh Star Wars is because he might already be busy making a Star Wars film. Wait, what? The outlet reports that the filmmaker is “developing a Star Wars project for Lucasfilm that is set within the series’ galaxy, though parallel to the next trilogy. It will be an as-yet-untitled Jedi epic loosely based on Akira Kurosawa’s 1954 classic Seven Samurai, with the ronin and katana being replaced by the Force-wielding knights and their iconic lightsabers.” It’s still somewhat unclear when exactly Snyder’s new project would take place in the Star Wars chronology, but Vulture also reports that “one insider expects it will not be considered part of the ‘numbered’ episodes, but rather a stand-alone film set sometime post–Episode VI events,

There’s a ton of inspirational philosophizing in the new trailer for Man of Steel, and damn does it also look awe-inspiring. Massive in scope, potentially intimate in its character arcs, terrifying use of Michael Shannon‘s eyes. All excellent notes (even if the song choice is a bit too cloying). If trailers can be trusted, this one yells from the cold mountaintops that Zack Snyder‘s take on Superman will be a thing of wonder. It’s exhilarating. I think I need to catch my breath. Man of Steel hits theaters June 2013.

If you were asked to design a poster for a new Superman movie, probably the first few images that popped into your head would involve the big guy flying through the air, majestic and free, or possibly lifting some sort of impossibly large object, muscles bulging – something to show off what an impressive guy this super man really is. The latest poster for Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel is taking things in a different direction altogether though. This poster, which debuted earlier today on the film’s Facebook page, gives us a passive and solemn Superman, handcuffed and being taken into custody by what looks to be some sort of military squad. Not exactly the kind of image you’d expect to represent the world’s most beloved and powerful superhero, is it? It would seem this is an early glimpse of that studio-mandated “grit” that’s meant to help this new franchise-launcher duplicate the success of Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight series. Grit…yuck.

“We approach the film as a single endeavor,” he says. “There are a lot of gears that have to turn in the world of commerce and the world of the mythology we create to facilitate more adventures for this character. We’ll see what happens.” That’s Zack Snyder telling the New York Post about the kind of loose coordination that goes into planning Man of Steel and two following Superman movies, but he could just as well have been talking about the Justice League universe itself (although that film seems a bit more definite). Warners has made no secret that it plans a Marvel-style omnibus for 2015, but right now, Supes is the only speeding bullet in the chamber with no concrete plans to bring Wonder Woman, Flash, a rebooted Batman, a rebooted Green Lantern, Aquaman or Elongated Man to the big screen before the big event.

There’s been this prevailing notion for a while now, that director Zack Snyder will be going for a far more gritty, realistic look at Superman in his upcoming reboot Man of Steel. It’s a notion only enhanced by the fact that Christopher “I Made Batman Real, Yo” Nolan was brought in by Warner Bros. to serve as producer and shepherd for the project. Nolan’s Batman Begins is the  go-to for Hollywood producers who want to make superhero stories for the second, third and sometimes fourth time. Now Snyder is doing something similar with Superman. He’s taking the character seriously. And he’s just begun to talk about how that’s all going to work.

We all know what time it is, people – it’s time for our daily Star Wars: Episode VII rumor! While this week’s other rumors have centered on people possibly wanting to get involved with the project (namely, that director Colin Trevorrow might helm the project and that screenwriter Michael Arndt is probably a lock to script it), today’s is all about people who are not interested in signing their lives away to Disney’s latest endeavor. And, man, are some of these people being harsh about it. To wit, the project’s “maybe-director” list has been rumored to include names like Trevorrow, Brad Bird, Steven Spielberg, J.J. Abrams, Matthew Vaughn, and many more, but at least three possible helmers have now taken various opportunities to talk about how not interested they are in the project. Who’s out? Let’s find out.

The trailer for Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel recently made it online after rolling in front of the related DC property The Dark Knight Rises. Reactions have been mostly positive to the somber looking film, with words like “restrained” being laid upon it. Many have chosen to highlight the apparent effect that Batman producer/director Christopher Nolan has had on the Superman story. The trailer for Supes does seem to harken to a more Batman Begins esque story rather than say, Superman Returns or Green Lantern. Hey, the Batman movies were good for the most part right? Having Christopher Nolan involved is a great idea, right? Well, not if you want your universe to do anything other than implode.

Superman doesn’t look all that happy in these first two (near identical) teasers for Zack Snyder‘s Man of Steel. If you thought Bryan Singer‘s Superman was an unbearable mope, wait until you get a peak at Snyder’s, who has apparently made one of our greatest heroes in the galaxy a bearded, lonely and sad fisherman. You can’t get more “gritty” and “real” than that shocking transformation. Check both teasers out below, one with Kevin Costner narrating and one featuring Russell Crowe’s melodic grumbling.

UPDATE: After speaking with the head of WETA’s marketing, we can confirm that the sizzle reel mentioned below was not WETAs. Again, this IMDB posting should be taken at arm’s length, and there’s also the possibility that Rothbart got the effects company wrong, but if these scenes are real, they are not the work of WETA. Original posting follows: There was never much doubt that Man of Steel would have a comic book feel. It was only slightly less guaranteed than it looking like a Zack Snyder movie. The Warners mulligan on Clark Kent is set for theaters in June of 2013, but apparently WETA just showed two scenes as part of a sizzle reel that played at a fancy gathering with smoked salmon and a bunch of visual effects artists. Allegedly, one of those effects wizards, Jonathan Rothbart (Avatar, Priest, Iron Man), posted a description of the scenes on the film’s IMDB message board. He was pretty excited. Here’s what he (spoilerifically) had to say:

When you watch a Tarsem Singh film, you figure out pretty damn quickly that you’re watching a Tarsem Singh film. The auteur filmmaker isn’t the type to play it safe, and he’s clearly not afraid of polarizing an audience. Even with his modern take on the classic Snow White fairy tale, Mirror Mirror, he goes for an unabashedly childlike and wacky tone – which may not be for everyone. Tarsem’s films are rather similar to his persona: unfiltered, without any hint of compromise. This is the third time I have spoken with Tarsem in the past year, and although heaps of ground can be covered with him in mere minutes, courtesy of his rapid conversational style, it was a real treat to finally have an actual conversation with the filmmaker. Tarsem is one of a kind in terms of his filmmaking and demeanor. Whether you love or despise his films, the man is certainly an original. Here’s what Tarsem Singh had to say about polarization, the goal of not being different for the sake of being different, and the glory days of hanging with the college versions of Michael Bay and Zack Snyder:

Warner Bros. has revealed a new logo for Man of Steel, the Zack Snyder directed next chapter in the ongoing saga of Superman. It was posted this afternoon to the film’s official Facebook page as the page’s new cover image. Led by Immortals star Henry Cavill as Superman, Russell Crowe as Jor-El and Michael Shannon as General Zod, this new Superman tale is said to be a bit darker, a bit grungier than the grand gloss presented in Bryan Singer’s 2006 film Superman Returns. It’s hard to say anything beyond that, as Warner Bros. is keeping a tight marketing lid on the June 14, 2013 release up to this point. But with The Dark Knight Rises heading to theaters in July, it stands to reason that a trailer can’t be that far off. Until then, lets talk about this logo…

After successfully bulking up enough to trade blows and dialogue with Tom Hardy in the recent fight film Warrior, Australian actor Joel Edgerton has proven that he can pretty much do anything. And after starring in another recent, high profile Hollywood film, the remake of The Thing, he has shown that he’s an actor whose star power is on the rise. So it makes sense to me that Warner Bros. and director Noam Murro would be looking at him to fill Gerard Butler’s shoes as the star of a 300 movie. According to Vulture, Edgerton is in talks to join Murro’s 300 sequel/prequel Battle of Artemisia as the lead badass Themistocles. Themistocles was an Athenian general and politician who is mostly remembered for leading the Athenian Navy in a successful campaign to beat back a Persian invasion. After his military exploits, he stuck around Athens as a bigwig politician, but eventually rubbed a lot of people the wrong way because of his arrogance. Also, he rubbed the Spartans the wrong way because of his insistence that Athens be refortified. Once he was eventually ostracized from Athens, he had nowhere else to go in Greece – he had pissed pretty much everyone off. What choice did that leave him? It meant that, in a stunning bit of irony, he had to flee to Persia and work in service of their king.

Shooting in downtown Chicago for Zack Snyder’s upcoming Superman movie Man of Steel will begin on Wednesday, and local rag Chicago Business has scoops on some of the locations that will be used and what they will be doubling as. More specifically, while they’re not sure of the locations of any street shots, they know what building Snyder plans to use as the headquarters of Metropolis’ number one newspaper The Daily Planet. Apparently Chicago’s Board of Trade building will serve as the Planet building exteriors (with digitally inserted globe atop, I’m sure) and the interiors of the newspaper office will be filmed inside of the Wesley Willis Memorial Tower (formerly known as the Sears Tower). These choices make a lot of sense, because the Board of Trade is a big imposing building that looks nice standing at the end of a street, and the Willis Tower is huge, so there’s probably plenty of room inside to be converted into movie sets. Eagle eyed Chicago enthusiasts or great big super hero nerds might have noticed that there’s a sweet little bit of trivia created by Snyder’s choice though. The Board of Trade looks so good as a big imposing building that it was also used as the headquarters for Wayne Enterprises in Christopher Nolan’s Batman franchise. Using the same building twice for two big superhero movies shouldn’t be a big deal; you slap a big W on it the first time, you put a big globe on it the second time,

A couple weeks ago a spy photo from the set of Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel made the Internet rounds. It contained what appeared to be Michael Shannon wearing what appeared to be a motion capture suit. If that was the case, then that would mean General Zod, the Evil Kryptonian General that Shannon is playing in the film, would have a completely computer generated outfit akin to the super suits in the recent, awful looking Green Lantern. Okay, so your opinion may vary, but I thought that the effects in Green Lantern looked horrible. Depending on whether you agree with me or not, a recent interview that Shannon did with MovieFone could either make you weep or make you cheer. It turns out that yes, that was Michael Shannon in that photo, and yes, the General Zod costume will be created using CG. When asked about the motion capture suit Shannon said, “ … it’s funny because when I met with Zack we were talking about it before it started and he mentioned that there was going to be a lot of CGI, or whatever. I said, ‘Just don’t make me wear one of those silly suits.’ He said, ‘Oh, yeah, don’t worry, I know exactly what you’re talking about.’” It turns out that Zack Snyder is a liar. Shannon is wearing the suit. However, even though Shannon was forced to wear a silly suit because of Snyder’s lies, he assures everyone that fans will be happy with how

Hopefully the spoiler warning is loud and clear enough here, and, yes, I still take them seriously. Even if a fancy scientific study shows that we like things that are familiar, there’s still no replacement for being surprised or awe-struck with the wonder of newness. So if you’re avoiding information about Superman: Man of Steel, you can stop reading now. And if you keep reading, simply know that all of this might be untrue – it’s the work of an “insider” with the production that scoop site Comic Book Movie trusts. Their track record is pretty stellar, but nothing is confirmed until it’s truly confirmed.

Here’s a nice little surprise to start your Thursday morning. Warner Bros. has released a first look image of Henry Cavill as Superman in Zack Snyder’s upcoming reboot, Man of Steel. At first glance, it all looks a little darker and broodier than the Sups men of the past. Even Brandon Routh’s stoic demeanor didn’t look quite as menacing. Cavill’s version, based on this one lone image, looks a little like Danny Zuko crossed with Clark Kent, with something potentially sinister mixed in. Are we sure they’re not doing a remake of Superman III with evil Superman? Also, that suit has a little grunge thing going on. It’s a fascinating indicator as to what sort of style Zack Snyder will be delivering. After the jump you can see the official press release (with no mention of Danny Zuko) and an image you can make full size. Now just try and imagine it all moving in slow-motion.

That headline should really say that Laurence Fishburne has been cast as the first non-white Perry White for Man of Steel, because it’s not like there’s been a Chinese or Puerto Rican version of the character either. The LA Times is reporting that the veteran actor will suit up (hopefully with suspenders) for Zack Snyder to play the iconic boss at The Daily Planet. Speaking of which, with a scoop this close to their doorstep, you think The Daily Planet would have broken it. Digressions aside, Fishburne brings years of dramatic experience to a cast that echoes his talents. In one way, it’s historic that this production (in a long line of television and film adaptations of Superman) will have the first African-American White, but in another it’s not such a big deal at all. The casting makes sense, no matter the actor’s race. Unless they put him in White Face, which would be horribly, horribly racist. Otherwise, there’s not much else to say beyond how over the top Fishburne could be in this role. Just don’t call him Chief.