'Superman' Update 02.05.11

With the recent announcement that Henry Cavill will be playing Clark Kent/Superman, it's only a matter of time until we hear more casting decisions for the Zack Snyder helmed reboot. Lois Lane, Ma and Pa Kent, Perry White, Jimmy Olsen, just to name a few. And that doesn't even get us started on the villains. Everything is still pretty hush about the flick, but we have received some news regarding some female casting.


Similar to the actress shortlist we saw with TDKR, this one features three actresses rumored to be going for the leading role opposite Cavill. Except the role might not be who you think it would...


From /Film:

Warner Bros. is narrowing the search for a female lead to star opposite Henry Cavill in Zack Snyder‘s upcoming Superman, and three names have emerged, all of which moot previous shortlist stories. Alice Eve, Diane Kruger and Rosamund Pike are said to be the top choices. But there’s a new wrinkle: the role the studio is looking to cast is not Lois Lane.


Variety has the report, and says that the studio doesn’t want someone who might overshadow Henry Cavill. In other words, someone well-established (like the previously rumored Rachel McAdams) isn’t going to get the job.


With big roles in the National Treasure movies and Inglourious Basterds, you’d think that Diane Kruger would also be out, but evidently she makes the cut. Alice Eve flirted with superhero roles when she was in contention for gigs in X-Men: First Class and Captain America. And Rosamund Pike kicked off her film career in a big way with a role as a Bond girl in Die Another Day (a relatively good Bond girl, too ) but then went towards more indie fare. She did a great job in An Education, for instance.


So who could this mystery role be? SuperHeroHype has an idea:

Now, Latino Review, who have gotten many a scoop on Warner Bros.' past superhero movies including the casting of Brian Singer's Superman and Heath Ledger as the Joker in The Dark Knight, have come forward with some new information they got from one of their inside sources. 

First, they say that contrary to rumors, Lois Lane will still be in the movie (possibly playing a smaller role?), but also that the three actresses cited were auditioning for the role of Ursa, who Superman fans will remember from the 1980 sequel Superman II as General Zod's second-in-command. Snyder has mostly denied that General Zod would appear in his movie although that may have changed since he was last asked, and the choice of a European actress would follow in line with her casting in the earlier sequel in which she was played by British actress Sarah Douglas.

While I don't think Zod would be the main villain in this reboot, it stands to reason that they could be setting him up as on overall trilogy villain. But of course that's all speculation at this point. I do hope we see Lois Lane and Not Lana Lang in this movie. I've had more than my fill of Lana with Smallville. I'm sure we'll be hearing a lot of Superman news in the weeks to come.

UPDATE: According to SuperHeroHype, Diane Kruger has denied these rumors, saying she's not up for a role in the reboot:

"No, it's not true."

Thanks, Ms Kruger. So could this be a ploy to keep everything secret? Or is it just not true. We'll bring you more when we get it... and check it out... thoroughly.