Wachowski Bros. to Direct New Superman Trilogy!?
Filed under: RumorMonger, Fandom, Comic/Superhero/Geek
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This is a wild and wacky rumor right now, but according to a scooper over at AICN who watched a television interview with James McTeigue in Berlin, there might be some funky things happening to some of those much-hyped future franchises. The scooper, Ballack, reports back that McTeigue -- who mainly talked up his upcoming Ninja Assassin -- finished up with news that if Warner Bros. doesn't let the Wachowski Bros. go with Plastic Man as their next project (and they may not, according to McTeigue, because of a "major shake up of projects at WB"), then they could be the guys who reboot the Superman franchise.
Wha??? Supposedly (so says McTeigue), the Wachowskis have been approached about Superman and are "currently reviewing their options." McTeigue, who was supposed to aid the brothers in the second unit department on Plastic Man, says that if they do take on Superman, he'd most likely serve in the same capacity on that flick. Plastic Man, however, is a passion project for the Wachowski siblings, and so expect them to fight hard to make it a reality. McTeigue also noted that Bryan Singer is done with the Man of Steel, and that he's moved on to the Logan's Run remake.
So, while this wacky news makes its way around the internet -- whaddya think of the Wachowskis taking on the Superman franchise?










Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
2-11-2009 @ 7:20PM
DayOldDaddy said...
Sorry Brandon....Routh times ahead I guess
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2-11-2009 @ 7:20PM
carg0 said...
interesting idea, to say the least.
but does anyone know what the current status on Superman is? are there ANY solid or semi-solid facts floating around?
is Singer really out? is WB really starting over?
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2-11-2009 @ 7:35PM
Jared said...
Is there a title editor in the house?
Wachowski Bros. to New Direct Superman Trilogy!?
Wachowski Bros. to Direct New Superman Trilogy!?
Reply
2-11-2009 @ 7:38PM
Erik Davis said...
Yup, it's already been changed. We cannot change the slug, though, but it's been fixed on the actual page. What can I say -- when you're writing up-to-the-minute news, sometimes words get switched around by accident.
2-11-2009 @ 7:57PM
nz said...
The Wachowski Bros are kind of disappointing, aren't they. Matrix I was great. THe other two couldn't continue the same great story. And then there's ... what else? Anything you'd hang your hat on?
If their passion isn't with Superman, then it'll be a bust. He's a tough character to get right. If you are going to introduce Kryptonite, he's easy to beat. Otherwise, he's invincible. There's always the "Save the World / Be Part of the World" angle, but that's been played to death. Smallville is too fresh to do an origins story. What's left?
I think they'd do a great job on the first by dazzling us with some effects, before the second two arrived with those same effects (this time faster) making us realize how weak the story is. Thinking about it some more, I guess I'm OK with that.
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2-11-2009 @ 8:12PM
Kaeli said...
I'm kinda with you here. It could really go either way, and a lot hinges on the script. If a Superman reboot does well, it's going to depend upon the writing, on getting the characters right.. audiences are going to have to be shown that he's an interesting and complex character, even though he's pretty much a god. Not an easy task, but not impossible, either.
2-11-2009 @ 8:13PM
Ross Carroll said...
Nooooooooo!
Not them! They had a great Superhero trilogy trilogy with the Matrix and only got the first one right. As much as I love Speed Racer and I know I'm out on that long limb with very few others, I think their mindset at heart is a bit too cynical for Superman.
If I were king of the world, my choice would be Brad Bird. And not just because of The Incredibles. Mainly because he has beyond first class story and direction skills. He'd lift a Superman movie to where it should be. I have no doubt of that. Chris Nolan went for the truth of Batman and that has a lot to do with it's success. Brad Bird likewise has a track record of looking for the truth in a story or character and I'd love to see his take on Superman. Start the chant; Brad Bird, Brad Bird, Brad Bird...
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2-11-2009 @ 10:14PM
paul said...
If they do it it'll be do or die, so they better be sure of their material or it's likely to become the cinematic equivalent of falling on their swords. After Speed Racer it might be best opt for something smaller and more manageable.
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2-11-2009 @ 10:56PM
morphs said...
So the first one will be good but the rest will suck.
I want someone who has Superman in the heart.
I don't want to see an origins either. I'm a huge fan of Smallville and don't think that any origins movie of Superman can even come close to it. I would like to see a live action Superman Vs. Doomsday though. Then again, Smallville is tackling that right now.
Doomsday
Brainiac
Bizarro
Darkseid
Lex Luthor
Those are really the only Superman villains that would be known to other people.
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2-12-2009 @ 4:02AM
geoffyd said...
nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!
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2-12-2009 @ 5:58AM
Joe said...
So the first one will be really good and the second two will be filmed side-by-side and terrible?
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2-12-2009 @ 9:25AM
Kevin said...
I could say them making a pretty good trilogy, and at the very least they would infuse it more thought into a character that has pretty much been relegated to pout and punch (and I say that as someone who LOVES the Superman movies. I can even watch 3 and 4 for the sheer comedic value). I just want the studio to finally put this movie into motion and get started on it already. The only request that I have is that we don't have Superman vs. Luthor or the main plot to revolve around some sort of real estate scheme. Put Supes up against someone that allows him to use his powers, like DarkSeid. Make him or Brainiac the main villian for a trilogy, and put Doomsday in there so that we can have a full on brawl where superman actually gets to punch something. You do that and the movies will be huge.
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2-12-2009 @ 9:48AM
monstermac said...
Were they who Mark Millar referred to professionally, when he alleged he was in talks with a ' famous action director ' ?
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2-12-2009 @ 10:23AM
JayC said...
after Speed freak Racer......NOOOOOOO!!!
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2-12-2009 @ 2:03PM
Tash said...
Didn't they already vent their Superman fantasies out through most of the last two Matrix films? While these bros. are quite capable filmmakers, I sure hope they aren't who Mark Millar referred to as his "big name director." If Bryan Singer is truly off the project, Warner Bros. must've given him a push in that direction because that man had a heart for Superman. So, if he's going to just drop it and leave, things must've been said (or he must've read reviews of "Superman Returns," a film I enjoyed in the end).
If WB really wants to make a trilogy, you need either one gigantic name director (i.e. James Cameron, Steven Spielberg) to direct the first one and one other lesser name director (i.e., "enter your favorite director here") to finish it off under their tutledge or just hire one dedicated director to stay for the entire tirlogy (i.e., Peter Jackson on "LOTR"). Secondly, drop Mark Millar like a dead-beat dad. The man is proficient in writing his comic books (WANTED was overrated in both novel and film form), but penning a trilogy about the Man of Steel seems far outside this mans' reach. Get a solid, balanced comic writer to pen an outline, get a script writer to smooth it into a solid draft and go from there.
Making a great Superman movie is not only possible, it's actually quite easy when thought all the way through. Lex is the main bad guy, but he never does the work himself. He's the puppet master; so find him a puppet (i.e., the Kryptonian villains in Superman 2) to control and map out a story. Include Brainiac in some capacity as the overseer who knows the end game and sprinkle some solid action of Superman in between.
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2-14-2009 @ 2:34PM
SupesFan said...
Matrix 1 is one of my top ten of all time, though I think the Wachowskis would be wrong for Superman (and I agree that they already explored similar themes through Neo). The Bros. are all about "reality bending". The Richard Donner version of Supes was based on making the audience identify with the character ("You will believe a man can fly"), and that was the success of the first Christopher Reeves movie.
The same approach has also succeeded with the current Batman - pulling the character up from "goofy" to "plausible" (not to mention excellent writing and top notch performances). Superman doesn't need to be that dark, but it must have speaker-pounding action AND at the same time make us believe in the existence of god-like heroes that look a bit like us. This will take a director that can deftly shift "real" just slightly to the left.
Agree or disagree, I think Michael Bay (with either Bruckheimer or Speilberg executive producing) is one for the job. How realistic was "Armageddon"? When did you ever think that Shia LaBeouf could be a heroic character allied with giant alien robots? "The Rock" is an exception, since that scenario has since become awfully believable. But the former two movies provided the rush of action that made audiences cheer while allowing them to identify and suspend disbelief (and without a puerile sub-plot of bygone romance...sorry Singer).
When I was 8, the Christopher Reeve Superman had me tying a giant red towel around my neck and jumping out of trees. It would be great to feel that way about the character again...even though I'm a bit beyond jumping out of trees.
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2-15-2009 @ 11:49AM
chuck said...
Im for it. I believe in Supeman and feel he stil has great merit on the big screen. I liked Singer's Superman Returns despite its many flaws. The reason to move forward is Singer was stuck in the Donner era. The original two Superman films were great but Singer never updated the character for todays world. Im willing to see what the Wachoskis can do.
http://blog.entertainmenttodayandbeyond.com/2009/02/14/my-view-on-the-wachowski-bros-possible-involvement-in-wb-superman-franchise/
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2-20-2009 @ 11:30AM
dave said...
Fanboys are always so damn negative when it comes to anything. Ill be realistic and agree that the matrix movies have issues and that speed racer wasnt perfect but I put down my own bias opinions and accept them for what they are. Once I do that I see that the matrix movies were awesome in so many respect. The speed racer flick was insane actually if you watch. Im an artist so visuals go very far with me but in the end i think they did the story and ideas much better than if any other director could have. There is also the v for vendetta movie of course. It was great but I think it lacked the amount of visuals they normally include. I think they have been making movies long enough to have what it takes to really sink their teeth into both plasticman and superman. I think they will present the best man of steel on screen and off screen. The only other work that really shows a true superman, how i imagine the story needs to feel, is the painter Alex Ross.
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