Warner Bros. has officially announced that actor Michael Shannon, perhaps best known as the creepy and seriously disturbed federal agent Nelson Van Alden on HBO's Boardwalk Empire series, will be playing the role of the villainous General Zod in Zack Snyder's upcoming Superman film, now called Man of Steel. And as you might expect, there was a press release:
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.
Shannon is the third actor to play Zod in live-action, after Terence Stamp in the films Superman (1978) and Superman II and Callum Blue on the television series Smallville. This casting also completely counters statements that Snyder made back in November that General Zod would not appear in his upcoming film. "The internet has no idea what's going on," remarked Snyder at the time, who said that rumors of General Zod's involvement in the reboot were "just wrong."
So for those of you keeping score at home, that's The Internets - 1, Snyder - 0 so far.