Last week, DC Films storyboard artist Jay Oliva revealed that Man of Steel was originally planned as “chapter 1” of a five-part story. But he also debunked a rumor that’s nearly five years old.
Man of Steel came out on June 14, 2013 and was met with mixed reviews. The movie made $668 million but reports said that Warner Bros. expected it to do better. When Batman v Superman was announced just a few months later at Comic-Con, it was reported that it was in response to Man of Steel’s box office numbers. Warner Bros. was just putting Batman in the sequel to give it a boost.
But that’s not true, according to Oliva. He says he met with director Zack Snyder back in April 2013, before Man of Steel hit theaters later that June. Snyder showed Oliva Batman v Superman storyboards, which featured a Dark Knight Returns style Batman.
Okay school is in session… Back in April 2013 (before MoS released in June) I was tasked with doing the Superman 75 short. I met with Zack who was the exec producer on it and he showed me storyboards of BvS with Batman already in it. AND it was a Batman from DKR.
— Jay Oliva (@jayoliva1) April 22, 2018
So there you have it. A rumor has been debunked nearly five years later. Batman v Superman was always intended to be the sequel to Man of Steel. For fans who loved Man of Steel and want another solo Superman movie, fear not. Last week at CinemaCon, Henry Cavill confirmed that talks are ongoing and that he has a lot of ideas.
