Superman: Man of Tomorrow

## Plot

As Clark Kent grows older, he develops superhuman powers that his adopted parents Jonathan and Martha urge to keep hidden, even refusing Clark's help years later during a tornado incident where he loses his life. Burdened with guilt over Jonathan's death, Clark travels the globe hiding under various aliases seeking a purpose in life.

Daily Planet reporter Lois Lane and photographer Jimmy Olsen receive an assignment to investigate the discovery of a Kryptonian scout ship in the Canadian Arctic. Clark enters the ship disguised as a worker and learns from its artificial intelligence (AI), modeled after his father Jor-El, that Clark was sent to Earth to guide its people. While following Clark, Lois inadvertently triggers the ship's security system, and he uses his powers to rescue Lois from its defenses. He wears a uniform provided by the ship's AI and begins testing his flying abilities. Unable to convince supervisor Perry White to publish an article on the incident, Lois tracks down Clark in Smallville, with the intent of exposing him. However, Lois drops the story upon hearing of Jonathan Kent's sacrifice, keeping Clark's identity safe but fueling Perry's suspicions.

Meanwhile, an extraterrestrial android known as Vril Dox detects a signal from the Kryptonian scout ship and travels to Earth. Following Clark and Lois' capture, Vril Drox, given the codename "Brainiac", meets with Clark who claims that he has come to Earth to gain knowledge. While he does so, Brainiac offers Clark a chance to explore other planets and possibly create a new Krypton. However, Clark later learns from the AI of Jor-El that Brainiac had invaded Krypton to possess its weapons and natural resources, resulting in the destruction of the planet. Clark figures out that Brainiac is planning to takeover the US military to obtain its weapons.

Just as Brainiac is about to takeover the military, Clark confronts him, resulting in a battle with the two as well as Brainiac's drones. Clark figures out that Brainiac can be stopped by separating him from his ship. By doing so, Brainiac begins to deteriorate and his ship self-destructs. Clark adopts the moniker "Superman" and persuades the government to let him act independently, under the condition he does not turn against humanity. To gain covert access to dangerous situations, he takes a job as a freelance reporter for the Daily Planet.

In a post-credits scene, Lex Luthor is watching footage from Superman's battle with Brainiac on the news.

## Production

### Development

The idea for a *Superman* reboot was conceived in late 2001. In November 2002, the newly-formed DC Studios announced that they would reboot the *Superman* franchise, ignoring the "Death of Superman" storyline that had been stuck in development limbo through the late 1990s.

Christopher McQuarrie was approached to write the screenplay, while Ted Griffin was considered. David Franzoni was hired to write the screenplay at a $1.8 million salary.

The Wachowskis, Sam Raimi, Alfonso Cuarón, and Michel Gondry were considered to direct. Peter Jackson turned down the offer. Gore Verbinski declined due to his commitment to *Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest*.

Marc Forster was hired to direct in January 2005 for $1.6 million. Steve Kloves was brought in to rewrite the script.

### Filming

Principal photography began on July 23, 2005 in Vancouver. The Metropolis scenes were filmed in Toronto. Buildings from New York City were added digitally during post-production. The Ohio Bell Building was used as the exterior for the Daily Planet building. The Smallville scenes were shot in Olathe, Kansas. Olathe North High School was used for Smallville High School. Principal photography wrapped on December 16, 2005.

Cinematographer John Seale shot the film solely with the Panavision Panaflex Millennium XL2, using Kodak Vision film stock, as well as Panavision C Series and E Series anamorphic lenses. John Myhre served as production designer, while Crispian Sallis worked as a set decorator. The costumes were designed by Lindy Hemming.

### Post-production

The visual effects were handled by Weta Digital. The sound was mixed in Dolby Stereo, Dolby Digital, Dolby Digital EX, SDDS, and DTS-ES.

## Marketing

On November 18, 2005 an 88-second teaser trailer premiered in theaters with *Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire*. It was released online a week later. It was also attached to *King Kong*, *Memoirs of a Geisha, Æon Flux*, *Syriana, Munich, Underworld: Evolution, Final Destination 3, Firewall,* and *V for Vendetta*.

On April 13, 2006, a second teaser trailer, this one lasting two minutes, was shown on The WB during the premiere of the *Smallville* episode "Fragile". It was shown in theaters with *Scary Movie 4*, *Mission: Impossible III*, *X-Men: The Last Stand*, *The Da Vinci Code*, *World Trade Center*, *Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby, Click, Lady in the Water, Step Up, The Guardian, The Fast & The Furious: Tokyo Drift, Poseidon, My Super Ex-Girlfriend, Little Miss Sunshine, The Omen, The Black Dahlia, Miami Vice,* and *Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest*.

*Entertainment Weekly* was the first magazine to release an exclusive cover issue devoted to *Man of Tomorrow*. The magazine, released on May 4, 2006, featured exclusive interviews and photos of the cast. At the 2006 San Diego Comic-Con International, in addition to a panel with many of the actors, a behind-the-scenes look at the film was presented. On October 16, 2006, Warner Bros. unveiled the theatrical release poster and a third trailer. That same evening, tickets went on sale. The trailer debuted during the halftime break of *Monday Night Football*, before being released online. It was shown in theaters before *The Prestige, Borat, Casino Royale,* and *Happy Feet.*

Warner Bros. and DC announced that September 1, 2006 would be the official launch of all the merchandise for *Man of Tomorrow*. Beginning at 12:01 am, fans could buy toys, books, clothing and various other products at retailers throughout the world. DC announced a series of at least 20 books and comics, which were released by multiple publishers starting in late 2006, prior to the film's premiere. All titles are canon to the film. A novelization was published in January 2007.

Promotional partners included Pringles, Burger King, AT&T, Cadbury, M&M's, and Pepsi. Hallmark released a Superman Christmas ornament. In Hong Kong, Superman appeared on Coca-Cola cans. Ubisoft released a tie-in video game on December 12, 2006 for Microsoft Windows, Nintendo DS, PlayStation 2, PlayStation Portable, Wii, and Xbox 360.

## Release

*Superman: Man of Tomorrow* premiered in Los Angeles at the Grauman's Chinese Theatre on December 11, 2006. The film was originally scheduled for a mid-2006 release, but in November 2004, it was pushed back to December 15, 2006.

*Superman: Man of Tomorrow* was released on DVD and HD DVD on May 22, 2007 in North America. The Wal-Mart edition of the DVD included a shortened animated version of a prequel comic book. The Target copy was packaged with a prequel comic book about Brainiac.