SUPERMAN LIVES (1998) request

[mercureyx]

Hey everyone,

I know there are a lot of super-talented (pun intended) artists on this forum, and I was wondering if any of you would be interested in helping with a project I've wanted to do for years.

The Tim Burton directed, Nicholas Cage starring Superman film, titled "Superman Lives" had a teaser poster that was released by Warner Bros. at Toyfare in 1997 -- and only ten were made. Most were destroyed and I believe only one individual has the only surviving one.

Would anyone be interested in helping re-create this poster? I have a couple of images, one of which is relatively high in quality, that we could use as a guide.

Interest?

-I

 

[Changeling]

I would be interested..but how would you recreate it? Like full-sized?

 

[mercureyx]

Yeah, like get someone to do a vector graphic with text that's literally the same size as a standard movie one sheet. Then, we'd have the option of taking it somewhere to get printed -- or someone may be able to hook us up with a printer who can do multiple runnings of it.

 

[mercureyx]

Might also be a fun project to have someone like Bane do a top notch photoshopping of a poster for the movie, recreating stuff we've seen in the form of concept art and what we know about casting. I have tons of information I could bring to bear on the subject, and may have seen a picture of Cage in the Super-suit ...

 

[Ring Deacon]

I wounldn't mind doing something like that.

 

[RAMORE]

Could be a fun side gig! I hated the idea of it but some of the visuals were cool....weird but cool.

 

[mercureyx]

Could be an awesome side gig! Lemme know if you guys need concept art or more detailed logo stuff and we can get going.

 

[Ring Deacon]

Could be an awesome side gig! Lemme know if you guys need concept art or more detailed logo stuff and we can get going.

sure pm me what you have or want in it.

 

[Changeling]

Might also be a fun project to have someone like Bane do a top notch photoshopping of a poster for the movie, recreating stuff we've seen in the form of concept art and what we know about casting. I have tons of information I could bring to bear on the subject, and may have seen a picture of Cage in the Super-suit ...

Duude. Do u have info that other people don;t? If so, I am SUPPER into these undeveloped movies. PM me with info, bro!

 

[Ring Deacon]

dude pm me the pics you have and I'll make something. I love stuff like this.

 

[Scissors]

Look what I found.

 

[Ring Deacon]

Look what I found.

It is a manip and has been around for a while. There is a real picture of cage in costume though. Joel Silver has the only copy. It would have been nice to see what he looked like.

 

[Neto Magnus]

I'm game.

 

[mercureyx]

I'll try to post some pictures sometime today...

-I

 

[spidey-dude]

never heard of it before sounds interesting, I would like to give it a shot for sure

 

[mercureyx]

Background:

http://www.mania.com/superman-lives-development-hell-unmade-film_article_20991.html

http://www.mania.com/superman-lives-part-2-writer-kevin-smith_article_21118.html

http://www.mania.com/superman-lives-part-3-nicolas-cage_article_21288.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Superman_Lives#Superman_Lives

(scroll down to “Superman Lives”)

Script:

http://www.script-o-rama.com/movie_scripts/superman-lives-script.html

Rumored credits:

Warner Bros.: Studio

Release date: Summer 1998

Tim Burton: Director

Kevin Smith, Wesley Strick: Writers

Jon Peters: Producer

Nicholas Cage: Superman/Clark Kent
Lois Lane: Sandra Bullock
Kevin Spacey: Lex Luthor
Patrick Stewart: Brainiac
John Mahoney: Perry White
Chris Rock: Jimmy Olson
Michael Keaton: Batman
Jack Nicholson: K/Eradicator
Hulk Hogan: Doomsday

Production design: Rick Heinrichs

Shooting was set to begin in 1997 in Pittsburg (the city of Steel) and this building (http://www.aintitcool.com/node/5296) was to double as Lex Luthor’s lair.

Also, Brainiac was described by concept artist Sylvain Despretz as looking like "a cone with a round ball on top, and something that looked like a emaciated skull inside. Imagine you take Merlin's hat, and you stick a fish bowl on top, with a skull in it."

Superman was to wear a variety of different suits in the film and was supposed to start off the film looking relatively similar to how he did in the comics (with a new shield, shown above). At one point he was to wear the slick black suit you see pictured above and then a new dark blue suit with a crimson cape.

I had the displeasure of seeing a snapshot of Nicholas Cage in a test fitting for this “final” suit and was horrified. Cage had a long, wavy, raven colored wig on that was basically just an extension of his natural hairline. He had pale white skin and was wearing a dark blue suit that was super shiny and looked very similar to the material Catwoman’s suit was made of in Batman Returns.

He also had a dark red “S” insignia in relief on his chest, with blue, not yellow backing. He had a long dark red cape made of the same shiny material, no underwear, some sort of strange two red plastic pieces on either side of his hips (not connected) that acted as a “belt” -- and he had red boots. If you guys have any more questions about what it looked like, I’ll try to answer them.

What was particularly weird about the suit is that it didn’t really have any definition. There weren’t sculpted muscles or anything, it was just like Cage was wearing something to bulk him up slightly underneath, but that was all.

I’ll keep adding more information/updates.

So basically what I think would be cool would be to do a poster based on all of this information, but like a really legit one composed of new images. I would say we should use the concept art as a base, and not just photoshop the images onto a poster. If anyone has more concept art to add, please feel free, just make sure it’s not from the Ratner or McG versions of the film.

Can’t wait to see what you guys come up with!

-Ian

 

[mercureyx]

 

[mercureyx]

 

[mercureyx]

 

[mercureyx]

 

[mercureyx]

 

[Changeling]

Havent seen half of those. Very cool. I want to see Superman in the rumored red and blue classic suit he was supposed to have. He apparently had a black suit, Eradicator suit, and the classic one right?

 

[RAMORE]

Havent seen half of those. Very cool. I want to see Superman in the rumored red and blue classic suit he was supposed to have. He apparently had a black suit, Eradicator suit, and the classic one right?

I haven't seen most of those either

I want to see the Dark blue one with no underwear.

 

[Jochimus]

I've seen most of these, except for the toy prototype.

Still, I think a lot of those designs could still be salvaged. I mean, I'd probably cobble and mix and re-purpose the heck out of them - the Skullship would probably a pastiche from all the different takes on it and Super-Frankenstein there would become Bizarro in his base form - but on the other hand, it could also save money on production and costume design alone.

 

[Ring Deacon]

If you remember right filming was to start in 1992 and be filmed in Pittsburgh. It was big news around here when it was in pre-production. I was even at one of the casting calls for extras. I was so bumbed out when the anounced it would never be filmed. So maybe some one should use pictures of Pittsburgh for Metropolis too in their poster.