Ever since Zack Snyder walked away from Justice League due to family issues and Joss Whedon was brought in to finish the film, rather unsuccessfully, the DCEU has been in a weird flux. Their connected universe did not take off like the Marvel Cinematic Universe did and in fact it mostly flopped due to multiple reasons. Because of this, many projects were scrapped and in turn new takes and stand alone movies were put into production. With this, Superman has all but been put on the back burner. Henry Cavill, who is still ready and willing to don the cape again, sits in limbo waiting to see what WB is going to do. That being said, when J.J. Abrams signed a huge exclusive deal with the studio, many assumed he would jump on a Superman flick (after all, he was one of the people attached to the much maligned run of films that never came to light before Superman Returns).
There have also been rumblings of doing a black Superman, with Michael B. Jordan pitching a project which he who play the role. Now, those talks are popping back up from reliable sources.
Will audiences be introduced to a Black Superman? That is the intent and something that the studio has been trying to find a way in for months if not a year or two, according to sources. https://t.co/X8RTtSJ7EK
— Borys Kit (@Borys_Kit) February 26, 2021
Michael B. Jordan tried to develop a Black Superman project when he first arrived to the studio with his deal in 2019 but that did not go very far at the time, according to sources. It is possible that the studio could return to him to star down the line. https://t.co/0Z38vfs5eH
— Borys Kit (@Borys_Kit) February 26, 2021
Hollywood Reporter insider, Borys Kit, tweeted about WB in talks again to produce a black Superman film, based on several comic story arcs. He isn’t clear on whether Michael B. Jordan is still involved, however. This news is backed up by Deadline reporter, Justin Kroll. If this does happen, it is likely that this will be the film adaptation of Calvin Ellis, who is a black Superman from another Earth (as well as President in that world) in the DC Multiverse. This all comes on the heels of the news that Ta-Nehisi Coates has been tapped to write a new Superman flick by WB and J.J. Abrams. Coates, an award winning author, is known to comic book fans for his work on Black Panther and Captain America comics.
WB for some time has been trying to figure out how to reboot franchise with a Black Superman in lead role going as far as meeting with Michael B. Jordan to hear his pitch more then a year ago on what that would look like. MBJ not involved now but we shall see if that changes https://t.co/Pm8UwqutqZ
— Justin Kroll (@krolljvar) February 26, 2021
Whatever direction WB decides to go, seeing the most iconic superhero representing people of color who be huge for minorities worldwide and, if done right, could help revitalize interest in a character that some feel is one dimensional. Whatever happens, hopefully something official will be announced soon so that fans can have a legitimate idea of what is to come.
Are you down for a black Superman film? Let us know in the comments below!