Posted on Friday, May 27th, 2011 by Germain Lussier
Would you want to see a Superman movie where he can’t wear his iconic costume? It could happen. Variety printed a fascinating article Friday about how the legal rights behind the Man of Steel could result in the biggest severing of the character since he met Doomsday. This doesn’t affect the current film; that Zack Snyder movie will be moving along as planned. But if it doesn’t succeed, another origin story could be impossible. Basically, come 2013, the rights to key elements of Superman break into two where the heirs of the character’s original creators, Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, retain elements such as his costume – red cape and boots, blue leotard – plus his ability to “leap tall buildings in a single bound” while DC Comics will keep the rights to most of the villains and the ability to fly.
How is that even possible and what does it mean for the future of the franchise? We try and make sense of the legal jargon after the break. Read More »