This film has a wonderful message about staying true to yourself and being your own person. I love seeing that because it really feels like I saw you in it and what you want to say about these characters and what they mean to you. What was that process like for you, putting that into this film? Did it feel liberating, in terms of being the boss, so you can put whatever you want in there? Or was it like, “I still feel a responsibility to the character, the legacy,” that kind of thing?
I definitely still felt the responsibility of the characters. And the truth is, I’ve done a lot of movies now, really since “Guardians of the Galaxy” 1, where I’ve been able to do whatever I wanted. I’ve never had a problem doing what I wanted in any of the “Guardians” movies or “Suicide Squad” movies or whatever. So that hasn’t really been an issue.
I think it was a matter of being really true to Superman, finding an aspect of Superman that we’ve maybe never seen before, and then focusing on him as a person a little more. At the end of the day, this is a movie about all the pyrotechnics and action and everything, but at its core, it’s really a story about Superman discovering something about himself, not knowing how to deal with it, and then finding a way through that emotional pain. And that’s something I don’t feel like has ever been in a movie before, or on a TV show. I think that’s what was exciting for me.
Your films are known for having great ensembles and being team-up movies, so to speak. While this isn’t technically a team-up film, watching the film, I felt like it’s still an ensemble film because Superman is on everyone’s team. What was it like giving everyone a moment to shine in this film while keeping Superman, Lois, and Lex the focus?
Well, that’s just because I love these characters. I love Guy Gardner. I love Mr. Terrific. I love Lois Lane. I love Cat Grant. I love these characters from the comics, and so giving them a little bit of a moment, like with Metamorpho, and looking at them in a different way, maybe than they’ve normally been seen. Guy is very faithful to the comics. Mr. Terrific is pretty faithful to the comics. Metamorpho is a little more haunted. Really, it was fun because I’m just a fan of these characters in the comics.
