Brandon Routh is his own Superman! On his own Earth. I am not burying the lead; that is a fact, and I am here to prove it.
In 2006, when “Superman Returns” was released, it was said to be a continuation of the Superman film series that had come before, ignoring “Superman III” and “IV: The Quest for Peace.” At this time, no one was thinking of multiverses or film universes. “Batman Begins” had come out the year before and was a full-fledged reboot of the franchise. I won’t go into the history of the unmade Superman projects. This is to discuss how I see Brandon’s Superman as a soft reboot.
‘Superman Returns’
My first question to you, dear reader: what aspects of “Superman: The Movie” or “Superman II” tie to “Superman Returns?” Any references? The only things that I can think of are the picture of Glen Ford as Jonathan Kent and Marlon Brando’s Jor-El, created with unused archive footage. Don’t argue the score. We know the theme is just the Superman theme now.
We will start at the beginning. “Superman Returns” opens up, telling us what it wants us to know about our characters. Hmm… reminds me of something else we recently saw.
The suit and the symbol look nothing like Christopher Reeve’s suit. It has been completely redesigned, giving Brandon his own look. The large family crest that is on Superman’s chest is not so large anymore. It is shorter and smaller, and the S is changed in some ways. It is not the same shield logo.
Even in the deleted opening when Kal-El (aka Superman) travels to the ruins of Krypton, the symbol he sees of his family is the new symbol. Look at Brandon’s characterization. Is he being Christopher or is he playing Superman? The mannerisms are similar, but not the same.
The Kent family farm in “Superman Returns” was shot in Australia, and the land looks different. We see them growing corn. There is no corn on the family farm in “Superman: The Movie.” Metropolis is no longer New York.
The Daily Planet building on the outside does not resemble the previous films. Before you comment about the globe in the opening narration of “Superman: The Movie,” it is never seen in the film proper. The inside of the Daily Planet’s offices has been completely redesigned.
Let us look at the staff. Is Kate Bosworth portraying Margot Kidder? They don’t even try to make them look or act the same. Sam Huntington is not Marc McClure. Let’s not even talk about Frank Langella’s laid-back, quiet Perry White compared to the great Jackie Cooper’s boisterous persona.
Kevin Spacey’s Lex Luthor is not Gene Hackman. The way he dresses, the demeanor of his performance—there are few things they do have in common, which can be boiled down to both being Lex Luthor. There is no mention of his previous associates, Otis or Eve Tesmacher. Who is Kitty? Where did she come from?
I got you thinking now, don’t I? None of the costuming tries to copy what came before. Heck, Brandon’s hair is brown instead of black.
Hold the thoughts you have and let’s move to the second part. Let’s examine the 2019 and 2020 CW crossover event.
‘Crisis on Infinite Earths’
Brandon returns to play Superman, continuing his role as the same Clark. He does mention his son Jason, who was established in “Superman Returns.” He also mentions the clown from Gotham destroying the Daily Planet, which is a different building for the offices than what we saw in “Superman Returns.”
He states he lost friends and family that day, eliminating the need for the other actors. Clark’s suit is different again, but he explains the black because, “Even in the darkest times, hope cuts through. Hope is the light that lifts us out of darkness.”
A second key factor is based on “The Flash” movie from 2023. Ezra Miller’s Barry Allen appears during the events of the “Crisis on Infinite Earths” crossover as part of the multiverse. Then, in his own film, while traveling the multiverse, we see the Earth with Christopher Reeve’s Superman alongside Helen Slater’s Supergirl.
We know Supergirl exists in the same universe as Christopher Reeve’s Superman by his poster photo and Marc McClure as Jimmy Olsen. Seeing Christopher Reeve’s Superman alive after the events of Crisis would show that he is alive, and the events of “Superman III” and “Superman IV” did occur.
A reboot, not a sequel
Brandon Routh’s time as Superman and Clark Kent was a soft reboot that tried to piggyback off what came before, but it is a reboot, not a sequel. If you think I am full of it, then please argue how Brandon is the same Superman as Christopher Reeve. He is his own Superman.
In May, the Krypton Report podcast discussed this same topic. Listen for some more discussions.
Listen to the May episode on this subject here:
Brandon Routh, his own Superman
Tyler and James, with special guest Perry Constantine of Superhero Cinephiles, talk about the Brandon Routh Era, Superman Returns & Crisis, and how he is his own Superman.
I believe this is completely accurate. While Singer and co. intended Superman Returns (2006) to be a follow up of solely the Richard Donnerverse, it was meant to only extract details from the parts Donner himself filmed. Thus, Superman: The Movie (1978) and Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut (2006) which was released on home video/media at the time to supplement the theatrical release of Routh’s first outing as Superman.
In other words, a huge chunk of what we grew up with as the Christopher Reeve universe (or in DC nomenclature, his Earth on the Multiverse, Earth-78) doesn’t line up with what Returns is building off of.
Moreover, CW’s Crisis on Infinite Earths (2019-2020) event clearly states that Routh is on Earth-96, and the Reeve tie-in comics DC is releasing now is confirmed to be Earth-789.
It’s like how Tim Burton’s Batman is Earth-89, but Schumacher’s is designated by Crisis as Earth-97, despite the two originally being intended to be tied together when they released it.
Continuities with errors are always retconned into newer, more sensible Earths, lol.
For The New Adventures of Wonder Boy (@WonderBoyTVShow) we kept things close to Lynda Carter’s Earth-76, and this allowed us to pay the sort of continuity accuracy fans always demanded out of DC.