Mark Millar's Many Thoughts On Superman

[Showtime]

Christmas worked pretty well for Superman: The Movie.

They're obviously not opposed to it.

 

[mego joe]

aha the 70's. this is a fair comparison?

i forgot that the world and the pople on this f... world are the same as 30 years ago........

Clearly that's not the case- SUperman the Movie didn't feature the lead character as a deadbeat dad.


So I guess no big films open during Christmas time these days, eh?

Didn't all three Lord of the open during the Christmas season? Aren't the Harry Potter flicks usually Christmas time releaes?

 

[matrix_ghost]

Clearly that's not the case- SUperman the Movie didn't feature the lead character as a deadbeat dad.


So I guess no big films open during Christmas time these days, eh?

Didn't all three Lord of the open during the Christmas season? Aren't the Harry Potter flicks usually Christmas time releaes?

Yes all 3 LOTR movies were released in X-mas. Aside from Harry Potter And the the Order Of the Phoenix and Prisoner Of Azkaban , all Potter flicks have opened in november.

Christmas really seems to be the season with family oriented flicks whereas november is the month where you'll see action movies , only with more dramatic performances.
Usually summer is the month with bombastic fare like say Transformers or POTC.

It depends on how the next superman movie will be. If it's more action-driven , like the majority of all comic book movies lately, the movie would benefit from a summer release date .
If it's anything like say SUperman:themovie or Superman Returns or even I AM LEGEND , the movie would fare better in the thanksgiving / x-mas season.

 

[matrix_ghost]

They're obviously not opposed to it.

I think that with the Potter series reaching it's end , WB might consider releasing their superman flicks in november. While their highest grossing Potter movie ( the last one) was released in the summer , their most profitable Potter movies have been released in november.

 

[matrix_ghost]

aha the 70's. this is a fair comparison?

i forgot that the world and the pople on this f... world are the same as 30 years ago........

I AM LEGEND was released in december, just a few days before X-mas.
And despite the bleak tone and very few action scenes , the movie still made 256 million in the US alone. Obviously Will smith is important in the movie's success.

But it shows that the december month is a profitable month for action flicks.

 

[dark_b]

I AM LEGEND was released in december, just a few days before X-mas.
And despite the bleak tone and very few action scenes , the movie still made 256 million in the US alone. Obviously Will smith is important in the movie's success.

But it shows that the december month is a profitable month for action flicks.

LOTR were BO smash hits. it is how it is.
i am legend is a will wmith movie. again will smith.harry potter.........well harry potter.

a superman could work........or it could not work. are we in a position where we can experiment with superman realese date? come on tell me. is WB in a position to experiment and to be a smartass?

 

[matrix_ghost]

LOTR were BO smash hits. it is how it is.
i am legend is a will wmith movie. again will smith.harry potter.........well harry potter.

a superman could work........or it could not work. are we in a position where we can experiment with superman realese date? come on tell me. is WB in a position to experiment and to be a smartass?

IMO it isn't a question of experimenting with release dates. WB has done that with movies like 300.
Big budgetblockbusters don't have to be released in the summer time to make money. That's why i used I AM LEGEND as an example.

However it's the type of blockbuster that's important. A superman movie done right is just like the Harry Potter or LOTR movies. People will flock to see it. However if your talking about a "dark" movie like I AM LEGEND , you're better of releasing it in the thanksgiving/X-mas period. While it is true that X-mas is a period where you'll see lots of family movies , to me at least it also seems to be a period where we see more dramatic blockbusters.

Summer always has been the traditional period for more popcorn flicks. TDK is an exception to the rule but if you look at the megablockbusters of the summer you'll see why :
Transformers
Iron Man
POTC 1/2/3
Indiana Jones

All these movies are suited for the summer.


If WB decides to make the next superman movie a lightweight movie like Iron Man , it would be a good candidate for the summer. If WB makes the movie like The Dark Knight ( mature content) , X-mas would be a better period.

 

[stargazer]

There is a new article on Mark Millar at empireonline.com,

I didn't post the link; I'm not sure is 'allowed' now, is it? Any way, this is what it says:



29 October 2008
Exclusive: Mark Millar Talks Superman
Pitches his 'Magnum Opus' to Empire

Mark Millar wants to create an epic 8-hour screen story which will follow the entire life of Kal-El from his birth on Krypton a thousand years ago, until he is the last being left on Earth.

Empire sat down for a chat with comic book writer and creator Millar, the man behind Wanted and the upcoming Kick-Ass, and he filled us in on his pitch for the follow-up to Superman Returns.
Mark has been working closely with a ‘big-Hollywood action director’ – who he refuses to name at this stage – on a pitch for what he is calling the Magnum Opus of Superman stories. His idea is for an 8-hour saga, split into 3 films to be released a year apart, in a Lord of the Rings fashion. Although several other sources have reported similar conversations with Mark, he went into further detail, fleshing out the story arc a little more.
“It’s gonna be like Michael Corleone in the Godfather films, the entire story from beginning to end, you see where he starts, how he becomes who he becomes, and where that takes him. The Dark Knight showed you can take a comic book property and make a serious film, and I think the studios are ready to listen to bigger ideas now.”
“The problem with Superman Returns was like releasing Star Wars in ’77, The Empire Strikes Back in ’80 and then waiting 28 years to release Return of the Jedi, it wasn’t relevant. I understand what Bryan Singer was trying to do, to pay homage to Richard Donner’s original vision, but I think you should pay homage by doing something completely different.”
“I want to start on Krypton, a thousand years ago, and end with Superman alone on Planet Earth, the last being left on the planet, as the yellow sun turns red and starts to supernova, and he loses his powers."
Certainly no-one can ever say that Millar lacks vision and if he and his ‘bigHollywoodaction director’ friend get backing for the project, and we certainly hope they do, it might just prove to be the Godfather of superhero films.



Well, I HATE his ideas for Superman, and I just don't like him at all.

 

[BatJeff7786]

Well it'll probably never happen that way now, since he gave the ending of the trilogy away before they even shot the first one. That's a very cool way to end it, but I doubt WB would be fine with "3 Superman movies" and that's it. These movies can go on forever, and WB knows that.

 

[Compi716]

8-hours in 3 films?! HOW?! Those would be some long movies.

I'd love to see Millar's idea in graphic novel form, but having the film end with Superman as the last person on Earth? Not something I want to see on the screen. Maybe as an Elseworlds tale, if WB/DC were to start releasing an Elseworld line of movies or something.

 

[The Sage]

That's a much different ending than I expected from Millar's idea. Him losing his powers at the end feels very grim. But WB wants dark, and Millar's ending is dark.

I prefer something similar to DC One Million, or even All-Star. Still, I think Millar's vision could work to an extent that leaves it open for the next person to come aboard and continue telling stories.

But regardless of that, I'm hoping he gets the opportunity to write it, but what are his chances with him talking to magazines about his ideas?

 

[stargazer]

8-hours in 3 films?! HOW?! Those would be some long movies.

I'd love to see Millar's idea in graphic novel form, but having the film end with Superman as the last person on Earth? Not something I want to see on the screen. Maybe as an Elseworlds tale, if WB/DC were to start releasing an Elseworld line of movies or something.

Me neither! that's waay too depresive.

Having him having children is so much better, uplifting and hopeful. And that's what Superman is all about.








Yay, for Jason.

 

[The Sage]

Me neither! that's waay too depresive.

Having him having children is so much better, uplifting and hopeful. And that's what Superman is all about.








Yay, for Jason.

If Superman having a child didn't give hope to the audience, I don't see how it would in another interpretation.

Barring that ending--which I can see being changed--bring on Millar's vision and his mystery director.

 

[I Am The Knight]

I don't hate Millar's ideas, really. That ending could be really cool.

But I still don't see him writing this thing for some reason.

 

[04nbod]

So superman commits suicide with the earth rather than relocating to another planet? Its not like the DCU is sparse. Rokyn.Colu.Thanagar.Rann.New Tamaran. and more unless they all disappear

 

[The Sage]

So superman commits suicide with the earth rather than relocating to another planet? Its not like the DCU is sparse. Rokyn.Colu.Thanagar.Rann.New Tamaran. and more unless they all disappear

Same. I see Superman leaving Earth to find another planet to protect if he becomes the last person left. The neverending battle would continue.

 

[dark_b]

its nto bd to me. but its also not very good.
i would need some more details.

of course Miller knows that this is just to promote himself. its so that he can be in a magazine and maybe writte a smaller movie. but no way is this good for a writter.

he told in an itnerview the endign to a trilogy? ''yeeeeeees i am an idiot,naive and stupid. yes this is normal in hollywood''.

 

[ultimatefan]

That ending idea sounds intriguing to say the least, but I can´t imagine a studio that would greenlight that - then again, I didn´t imagine that a studio would greenlight The Dark Knight.

 

[Showtime]

Wow. I actually really like that quote from Millar...

 

[Dark Jaguar]

I liked Superman Returns.

Sure, it could've been better. But that just means there's more room to improve with another movie...

Like the Doomsday story. That could be worth a couple of movies. It's better than (once again) rehashing the story of Krypton, or giving us a depressing story of the end of the world and a lousy death of Superman (losing his powers when the sun turns red!? c'm on. WEEEAAAK.)

Make one story the arrival of Doomsday and the death of Superman. Then make the second story the arrival of the Supermen. And a third movie the Return Of Superman...

c'm on. We'd rather see that kind of action and drama than...
than...
well...

you get the idea.

 

[GhostPoet]

This sounds like an epic snorefest to me. When is superman going to get a worthy movie??? I want to see him fight some of his toughest villains.

 

[The Sage]

This sounds like an epic snorefest to me. When is superman going to get a worthy movie??? I want to see him fight some of his toughest villains.

I imagine Millar would have Superman battling Luthor, Brainiac, Parasite, Bizarro, and other villains from the rogues gallery.

 

[The Guard]

I can see what he's going for...but no.

 

[GhostPoet]

I imagine Millar would have Superman battling Luthor, Brainiac, Parasite, Bizarro, and other villains from the rogues gallery.

Yes...but that would be in the second film. From what I read...the first film doesn't even have superman in it as the film takes place almost entirely on Kypton.

 

[Prison Mike]

this idea sounds really good. hoping he gets his film made!