Canceled Man Of Steel 2 Project Would Have Been Amazing
Recent reports have revealed a canceled Man Of Steel 2 draft has been trashed over at Warner Brothers after failing to “thrill” executives. The Man Of Steel 2 draft, which was authored by Peaky Blinders and See creator Steven Knight, would have certainly pushed the boundaries of Henry Cavill‘s titular hero, and propelled the DCU into a new and exciting phase of films. According to a report from MovieWeb, Knight was in the process of redrafting his initial treatment when James Gunn and Peter Safran took over creative control of the ongoing cinematic universe, cancelling the project altogether.
Fans have been waiting years to find out if Henry Cavill would ever return to the iconic suit and reclaim his position as the man of steel, a wait that felt especially dire in the midst of all the chaos surrounding the DCU’s current programming schedule. With Guardians Of The Galaxy filmmaker James Gunn forming a triumvirate of creative forces alongside Dwayne Johnson and Peter Safran, a merger with Discovery, and currently slated films such as Batgirl and Patty Jenkins’ Wonder Woman 3 getting scrapped altogether at various stages of production, the fate of Cavill’s flagship hero seemed especially uncertain.
This series of shakeups has had a handful of major consequences, such as Cavill finally reprising the role in a cameo appearance in DC’s recent Black Adam, as well as putting a nail in the coffin of the potential Man Of Steel 2 draft penned by Steven Knight. Knight is a British screenwriter most known for creating the hit organized crime show Peaky Blinders, which stars Cillian Murphy as a hardened war hero turned gangster Thomas Shelby. Knight’s other writing credits include writing films such as Dirty Pretty Things and Eastern Promises, as well as the original adapted draft for Martin Scorsese’s Shutter Island.
Whether the Man Of Steel 2 draft ever sees the light of day is uncertain, but fans can rest assured that Steven Knight’s work with the last son of Krypton would have been a significant upheaval, as the award winning screenwriter has a well documented knack for subversive and boundary pushing narratives. Of course, Warner Brothers’ executives were not thrilled by the draft, meaning perhaps the initial script was a bit too anti-corporate for the stuffed shirts behind the counter at the DC parent studio. Or perhaps the treatment just hadn’t had enough digital mustache removing for the approval of upper management.
Regardless of Man Of Steel 2‘s continued existence and Steven Knight’s writing credit, the recent Superman cameo in Dwayne Johnson’s Black Adam does seem to suggest Cavill’s Clark Kent will return. The cameo serves to set up an impending fight and power struggle between Superman and Black Adam, though it is unclear at this time whether the continuation will occur in a second installment in the Black Adam franchise or as a plot point in another DCU feature such as a Justice League film or non Knight authored Man Of Steel 2 yet to be ordered by the studio.
