``Supergirl'' Why didn't Superman appear in ``Supergirl''? [That's when movies were born Vol.2]

Batman and supergirl

`` Superman III '' started filming on June 21, 1982, finished filming in early October of the same year, and was released in the United States on June 17, 1983 (released in Japan on July 16). The film's final box office revenue was just under $6 million, nearly half that of its predecessor. Audiences were clearly starting to get tired of Superman. At the film's premiere in New York, Richard Lester and Christopher Reeve told Warner Bros. executives that it would be their last time. Not just the audience, they too were tired of Superman.

Two films based on DC Comics were being planned to replace Superman. One was `` Superman '', which had been in development since 1979, the year after ``Batman'' was released. However, the project did not make any progress, and in 1983, an entirely new script was written by Tom Mankiewicz, who had previously worked on the scripts for Superman and Superman II . For reference, let's take a look at it.

In 1960, 10-year-old Bruce Wayne and his parents were shot to death by criminal Joe Chill on their way home from seeing The Nun's Tale , starring Audrey Hepburn. Shortly The Day After, Chill is killed by the Joker. Meanwhile, as Wayne grows up, he trains his body through karate, mountain climbing, and other activities. One night in the early 1970s, he fights off a thug he sees on the street, but is shocked when the victim dies. Then, he discovers a cave under his house and is inspired by the bats hiding there. That night, there was a man in a black cloak who fought off thugs on the subway, appeared on the outer wall of a 40th floor high-rise building, released the hostages in the robbery, and then flew away. At the moment when two police cars try to pinch a mysterious man running through the dark night, the man easily jumps over the hood and lands, leaving behind the police cars that collided head-on and disappears. At that moment, the officers see his whole body for the first time. Batman wears a black cowl, black boots, and a huge black cloak.

This is the content of the first 30 minutes, but since the script was used as a template for a long time until director Tim Burton's `` Batman '' (1989), the story centers on the battle with the Joker. , you can see the influence on Burton's version, but since Tom Mankiewicz wrote the screenplay, the similarities with Superman are striking. A young man loses his biological parents at a young age and goes through adolescence with a sense of loss, but through some kind of learning and training, he acquires powers that are not found in ordinary people. Or become aware of something that was hidden. That's how they become Superman or Batman, but one thing they all have in common is that there is something in the basement of their home that awakens them. The first incidents he solves after he transforms into a hero are also very similar to `` Superman .''

"Batman" preview

Another project is ``Supergirl.'' Currently, there is a plausible theory that ``Supergirl'' was made as a fresh start after `` Superman III '' was not a hit, but the plan for this work was announced when , in April 1982, two months before filming began on Superman III . Rather, it was planned in anticipation of the expansion of the series. Producer Pierre Spengler added: ``We'll keep making ' Superman ' as long as audiences want us to. There have already been 13 Bond films, and we hope we can have the same level of success. '' (``Kinema Junpo'' early June 1983 issue), making remarks in anticipation of a long-term series.

However, after the release of `` Superman III ,'' Ilya Salkind went so far as to calmly say, ``Superman no longer has any potential.'' The movie is terrible. However, Illya is well aware that the audience for `` Superman '' will not easily migrate to ``Supergirl.'' In order to ensure a smooth transition between the main characters, it was essential that Christopher Reeve act as a go-between. In other words, this is a collaboration between Superman and Supergirl, which was envisioned in the phantom `` Superman III ''. He has to persuade Reeve, who had announced his retirement from the role of Superman, to play the role a little longer.

Why did Christopher Reeve leave Supergirl?