Lots of names suddenly seem to have been linked to playing Superman in the upcoming reboot of the franchise. We round up the latest chatter right here...
There are things we now know about the upcoming reboot of the Superman franchise. Thanks to an interview in the latest issue of Empire magazine, we know that director Zack Snyder hasn't been brought on board to direct a continuation of the other films, and that this one is a full-on reboot. We also know that General Zod, contrary to earlier rumour, will not be the villain.
And we also know that several names are now being linked with the project, specifically the lead role.
The early Internet frontrunner for the role of Superman was, of course, Mad Men's Jon Hamm, who would be an inspired choice, even if he's probably a bit older than the leading man Warner Bros is looking for. Then, the might of the Internet turned its attention to trying to get Brandon Routh re-cast, but there's been little chatter about that since.
Next off the Internet movie rumour contraption, then? Joe Manganiello, of True Blood fame, found himself linked with the role, courtesy of True-Blood.net. The site also reckoned that Routh was still very much in the running, and that Smallville's Tom Welling was on the shortlist too.
However, that rumour didn't last very long. Manganiello, through his Twitter account, posted a quick and straightforward denial that he was negotiating for the role. "Just to be clear... as of today, I am not "negotiating" to play Superman ...but keep your fingers crossed and thanks for the wishful thinking!", he wrote.
Welling is perhaps too obvious a casting rumour to come near to the truth, especially if the new film is looking to make a full break with Superman of old.
Next up with the rumours? That's the Examiner, who put forward the names of a couple of wrestling stars. It reckoned that John Cena and Dwayne ‘The Rock' Johnson were possibilities for The Man Of Steel. We can't help thinking that we've got more chance of snagging the role than either of them.
Finally, then, for this round-up comes Movieweb, which is putting forward that Patrick Wilson is in the running, too. This at least sounds more plausible, given that Wilson has played Nite Owl for Zack Snyder in the Watchmen movie. However, read into the site's interview with Wilson and it looks like some joining of dots that aren't necessarily there. Wilson, wisely, doesn't rule himself out of the running, but actually says "who knows?" on the question of being cast in the movie himself.
Expect a few more names to be thrown into the mix before we find out who the new Superman is in the months ahead...
Follow Den Of Geek on Twitter right here.