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SUPERMAN: MAN OF STEEL (2012): Michael Shannon is General Zod

Michael Shannon, Terence Stamp

Michael Shannon has been cast as General Zod in Zack Snyder‘s Superman: Man of Steel. The Zod role in the 2012 Superman reboot, possibly now titled just Man of Steel, at one point was rumored to be going to Viggo Mortensen but that was dispelled weeks ago.

Here is the official Warner Bros. Pictures press release:

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Warner Bros. Pictures and Legendary Pictures announced today that Michael Shannon will star in the role of General Zod in director Zack Snyder’s new Superman film, titled “Man of Steel.”

Snyder stated, “Zod is not only one of Superman’s most formidable enemies, but one of the most significant because he has insights into Superman that others don’t. Michael is a powerful actor who can project both the intelligence and the malice of the character, making him perfect for the role.”

As General Zod, Shannon will go toe-to-toe with Henry Cavill, who plays the new Clark Kent/Superman in the film. The main cast also includes Amy Adams as Lois Lane, and Diane Lane and Kevin Costner as Martha and Jonathan Kent.

Michael Shannon was honored with an Academy Award® nomination for Best Supporting Actor for his role in Sam Mendes’ “Revolutionary Road,” with Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet. Shannon was most recently seen in the award-winning HBO drama series “Boardwalk Empire,” from executive producer Martin Scorsese. He will next be seen in Sony Pictures Classics’, “Take Shelter,” from director/writer Jeff Nichols.

Charles Roven, Emma Thomas, Christopher Nolan and Deborah Snyder are the producers of the film. The screenplay is being written by David S. Goyer based on a story by Goyer and Nolan. Thomas Tull and Lloyd Phillips are serving as executive producers.

“Man of Steel” will be distributed worldwide by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company.

Michael Shannon’s hypocrite character on Boardwalk Empire is one of the best personalities on the show and he is an intriguing choice for Zod. I wish another villian had been chosen for Superman: Man of Steel though. Why chose Zod…again? Howard Stern hit the nail on the head last week. Almost every time a superhero franchise gets rebooted, they tell the origin story all over again and choose the same bad guys again? Are Zod and Lex Luther the only bad guys in the Superman universe? What do you think of Michael Shannon being cast as Zod in Man of Steel?

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Rollo Tomasi

Rollo Tomasi is a Connecticut-based film critic, TV show critic, news, and editorial writer. He will have a MFA in Creative Writing from Columbia University in 2025. Rollo has written over 700 film, TV show, short film, Blu-ray, and 4K-Ultra reviews. His reviews are published in IMDb's External Reviews and in Google News. Previously you could find his work at Empire Movies, Blogcritics, and AltFilmGuide. Now you can find his work at FilmBook.
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