In a recent interview, the filmmaker confirmed that Cavill had been up for the led in 2006′s Superman Returns before Brandon Routh won the part. He also revealed thatMan of Steel was the title he’d been considering for his planned sequel, which would have featured the villain Darkseid.
Say what you will about Superman Returns, I still think it is the second best Superman film made up to this point and I really wish that Singer’s sequel which he wanted to call Man of Steel was the Man of Steel we had rather than that awful mess Zack Snyder delivered to us. But alas, it was not meant to be.
At the time, though, Singer was apparently pleased enough with Superman Returns to consider what he’d do for the sequel, which he would have called Man of Steel. “Actually, my buddy, one of my two best friends, came up with that [title],” he said. “We did explore it a little. Just hammering out ideas. I think Darkseid was going to be the villain. It was pretty world-destroying, actually.”
But the movie never got made, Singer said, because “I ended up having the opportunity to go and make Valkyrie, and I think the studio lost interest at that point. I can’t say it was all the studio’s fault and I can’t say it was all my fault. It just fizzled out.”
I’ll just have to remain forever sad.