The spirit of Superman lives on.
Will Reeve, whose father Christopher Reeve supplied one of the crucial iconic portrayals of the Man of Metal to grace the display, has revealed how the forged of “Superman” paid tribute to his late dad’s legacy on the set of the brand new film.
The forged and crew got here collectively to observe a documentary about his dad’s life earlier than filming the James Gunn-directed challenge, which is now in theaters.
“I do have a secondhand story from the set of the new movie,” Will, 33, completely informed The Submit. “It’s actually quite meaningful to me to have learned.”
“Right before this cast and crew of this new ‘Superman’ began principal photography, they gathered to watch ‘Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story.’ Some of the actors have told me that watching that helped them contextualize and better understand how much it meant to get this movie right,” he defined.
“And to do right by not only the fans who love this character and this franchise, but also loved my dad and knowing how much playing Superman meant to my dad as well.”
“Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story” was launched in November 2024. The documentary focuses on the late star’s rise to stardom upon being forged as Superman within the Nineteen Seventies, and the stunning horse-riding accident that tragically left him paralyzed in Could 1995.
The doc additionally shines a lightweight on how the actor established the Christopher Reeve Basis (later renamed the Christopher & Dana Reeve Basis) and spent the rest of his life searching for a treatment for spinal twine accidents.
Will stated that he and his two siblings “really were touched” to be taught that the “Superman” forged watched the documentary earlier than filming on the brand new film.
Christopher shared his first two youngsters, Matthew Reeve, 45, and Alexandra Reeve Givens, 41, together with his former accomplice Gae Exton. He later married Dana Reeve in 1992, and the couple welcomed Will that very same 12 months.
“It all coalesced into what I understand to be a great feeling of camaraderie and responsibility and passion and purpose, in which we really were touched to hear when we learned that they had all screened our documentary as a way to kick off their journey,” he stated.
After portraying the Man of Metal and his alter ego, Clark Kent, in “Superman” in 1978, the actor returned to the function three extra occasions for “Superman II” (1980), “Superman III” (1983) and “Superman IV: The Quest for Peace” (1987).
The late star, nonetheless, didn’t share too many tales from his time enjoying the Final Son of Krypton.
“Not really, to be honest,” Will stated. “Not because they don’t exist, but because much of my time spent with my dad, which ended up only being 12 years, was not spent talking about Superman or any other role that he played. It was much more grounded in our daily existence.”
Christopher died from coronary heart failure in 2004 on the age of 52. His spouse and Will’s mom, Dana, handed away from lung most cancers two years later at 44.
“Of course, after he got injured, a lot of our daily life centered around my dad’s injury and us navigating all that entailed,” Will defined. “He was focused much more on being a present and engaged father than he was in regaling me with tales of the old days.”
“But he always remembered his time as Superman, and in making those movies fondly and with a sort of reverence, because he knew how important Superman the character is to so many people worldwide across generations,” Will added.
“And he felt a great responsibility, I know, to make that role resonate and matter around the world, and he succeeded in that mission, and I think that’s how he viewed his time.”
The newest “Superman” installment paid tribute to Will’s dad by giving the 33-year-old Reeve a cameo within the new film.
His look parallels his real-life profession as a correspondent for ABC Information.
“It was such a treat,” he stated about his blink-and-you’ll-miss-it scene. “I was honored to get the call from the wonderful filmmakers, and I jumped at the opportunity.”
“And it was a nice homage, I think, to my dad, who for millions of people has been Superman for generations,” Will added. “And for the filmmakers of this new version of Superman to include me as a way to include him meant a lot.”
As for the brand new film itself, Will stated it’s “everything that a great superhero blockbuster movie can and should be.”
“It’s just so fun,” he informed The Submit. “I think that Superman, the character, is a bit quirky and slightly corny, earnest. Pure of heart, so on and so forth. And that shines through.”
“I think that’s what made my dad’s version so resonant with audiences back when it came out and through to the present day,” Will continued, “because he played the character as it was ideally conceived, and really, he embodied it.”
The newest “Superman” film stars David Corenswet, 32, as the most recent Man of Tomorrow.
Rachel Brosnahan (Lois Lane), Nicholas Hoult (Lex Luthor), Nathan Fillion (Inexperienced Lantern) and Skyler Gisondo (Jimmy Olsen) spherical out the forged.
Whereas Will praised the movie as a complete, he complimented Corenswet’s Superman portrayal particularly. He additionally shared what he thinks was his father’s “greatest work” because the Caped Kryptonian.
“… Convincing audiences to believe not only that a man could fly, but also that the same being was also Clark Kent, who was a bit bumbling and awkward,” Will informed The Submit.
“I don’t know what it’s like to play Superman, but from what I can tell, there’s a trick you have to pull off, and I commend David for doing that, and for picking up the torch.”
