‘Man of Steel’ Originally Had a Different Ending
In the aftermath of Comic Con @ Home, we can finally begin sorting through all the information and hot takes offered at the virtual event. Man of Steel screenwriter David S. Goyer offered a particularly revelatory comment at a panel hosted by Backstory Magazine publisher Jeff Goldsmith. The two talked about Man of Steel’s controversial fight scene between Superman and General Zod, which diverts from the typical notion that superheroes don’t kill in cold blood. Goyer said he understands the problem people have with the movie's ending fight, but still wouldn’t change a thing. However, he also shared an alternate ending that was considered by director Zack Snyder and the rest of the team:
The idea was that Superman would – there was one of those sort of cryopods on the ship that ends up becoming the Fortress of Solitude that he’s able to put Zod back into and then throw out into space. We did talk about it and maybe some people would’ve been happier with that, but it felt like a cop out for the story that we were telling.
With this alternate ending, Superman wouldn’t have killed Zod, which definitely is more in line with what we’d expect from an upstanding, benevolent hero. But Goyer argued his perspective of a more “immature” Superman who is “not aware of the extent of his powers at all.” Goyer also insisted that the stand-off between the two characters “was not some frivolous fight,” justifying its brutal end. While some Superman fans may still disagree with Man of Steel’s final fight scene, at least we know there was a strong creative intention behind it.
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