Ali
Before being crowned diet Spielberg, not to mention one of the busiest producer-director units around, J.J Abrams (“Mission : Impossible”, “Star Trek”, “Super 8”, “The Force Awakens”) was making a plum living for himself as a well-respected screenwriter.
In the ’90s, he wrote such films as “Regarding Henry” with Harrison Ford and “Forever Young” with Mel Gibson, and a couple of years after, co-wrote “Armageddon” for Michael Bay, the Danny Glover-Joe Pesci comedy “Gone Fishin'”, and “Joy Ride” starring the late Paul Walker.
At the same time he was celebrating big-time TV success with “Felicity” and “Alias”, and later “Lost” and “Fringe”.
Now around the time that he was penning lines for then curly-haired heroine Keri Russell, Abrams was working on a ‘Superman’ script for Warner Bros. Abrams’ take on the man of steel would be fun but radical, as the Fandom page for the film reminds us :
Flyby was an origin story that included Krypton besieged by a civil war between Jor-El and his corrupt brother, Kata-Zor. Before Kata-Zor sentences Jor-El to prison, Kal-El is launched to Earth to fulfill a prophecy. Adopted by Jonathan and Martha Kent, he forms a romance with Lois Lane in the Daily Planet. However, Lois is more concerned with exposing Lex Luthor, written as a government agent obsessed with UFO phenomena. Clark reveals himself to the world as Superman, bringing Kata-Zor’s son, Ty-Zor, and three other Kryptonians to Earth. Superman is defeated and killed, and visits Jor-El (who committed suicide on Krypton while in prison) in Kryptonian heaven. Resurrected, he returns to Earth and defeats the four Kryptonians, while the script ends with Superman off to Krypton, leaving a cliffhanger for a sequel.
Brett Ratner, then a much hotter commodity than he is today (aaargh), was attached to direct the film before McG (“Charlie’s Angels”) took over. Warner’s choice for the title role was then it-boy Josh Hartnett and, if I recall correctly, Robert Downey Jr was even attached to play Luthor!
Here are some previously released concept sketches for the big guy…
The film, of course, didn’t end up coming to fruition and Warners opted to go a safer route with the “Superman” movie franchise and instead greenlight a version that would play as the fourth sequel to the Christopher Reeve-starring films. “Superman Returns”, directed by Brian Singer, was released in 2006.
And that was that for Abrams and his ‘Superman’ dream… or is it? Chatter of late has Abrams and his Bad Robot outfit circling Warner’s next take on the Man of Steel. And as opposed to the aforementioned incarnation, this is a film that he’d likely write but also produce and direct.
Anyway, over on Twitter today, “Spider-Man : Into the Spider-Verse” helmer Peter Ramsey dropped some storyboards that he’d designed for the proposed 2002 film, which gives us a pretty decent idea as to what the studio were hoping to accomplish with the film. Cool stuff!
Some storyboards from a version of SUPERMAN written by JJ Abrams way way back in the day. Never made, but I had fun. #storyboards #Superman pic.twitter.com/NidTQM3c6u
— Peter Ramsey (@pramsey342) June 21, 2019
a few more from Supes #storyboards pic.twitter.com/FUSJHERBGr
— Peter Ramsey (@pramsey342) June 21, 2019
