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Post by crazy_asian_man on Jun 6, 2014 16:19:56 GMT -5
Ok- We know the whole story of how the Salkinds wanted a celebrity for Superman.... but Donner and the producers went with Reeve, an unknown at the time.
While we hear about/know about (for the most part) those actors who seemed to be 'in the running' for Superman nowadays- I'm scratching my head as to who they would have chosen/ what would I have preferred if the Salkinds got cold feet and thought: "Nah.... we NEED a celebrity for Superman. Let's raise the paycheck amount."-
If that's the case....
Who would be your top backups preferred if it had to be a celeb star in the 70's?
I guess I could see Redford.... (though he might have made a great Captain America when he was younger) if you HAD to have a star (or semi-star) from that era.... far moreso than Hoffman as Superman... But- Other thoughts?
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atp
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Post by atp on Jun 7, 2014 3:51:39 GMT -5
Impossible to say.
Al Pacino would probably have looked good wearing the costume but I cant imagine him playing Superman.
Clint Eastwood and Martin Sheen might have been good, but were too old in 1978.
I think any of the big action stars would have ended up playing the character the way he was in MoS. Sullen and pretty unlikeable.
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Post by crazy_asian_man on Jun 7, 2014 11:21:18 GMT -5
Impossible to say. Al Pacino would probably have looked good wearing the costume but I cant imagine him playing Superman. Clint Eastwood and Martin Sheen might have been good, but were too old in 1978. I think any of the big action stars would have ended up playing the character the way he was in MoS. Sullen and pretty unlikeable. Yeah... it's a toughie. Thanks for playing, though, ATP! I'm going to give it another whirl: Assuming that Donner would kind of have to bend to whatever celeb (to a degree, remember his battles with Hackman and Brando- though he charmed all the actors) wanted to do- In looking up who was big in the 70's/end of the 60's- Some 'mmmmmmmaybe' choices and predicting what coulda happened if- * Eastwood (who, to me, is almost a dead ringer for a young Hugh Jackman back in the day) might have given a tougher quiet interpretation to Superman. Would be weird to see him as Clark Kent. If Margot were still cast- it'd be more of two tough cookies playing off of each other. Definitely a different dynamic. * Warren Beatty - who I really enjoyed in "Heaven Can Wait" - would have made it 'him', but with a suit. He dodges the 'pretty boy, vapid brain' stereotype with his writing/directing/producing of a number of great movies and might have really respected Donner's work. But- his acting shows a small range. His personality dominates most of his roles. He'd have the same problem that I have with Batfleck and Bendevil. * Kurt Russell- wasn't big at this time, but he was about the right age. Kurt was amazing as "Elvis" (and a surprisingly great movie coming from someone who wasn't previously into Elvis music) even though he looked nothing like him, and we know he's now most known as Snake Plissken and the Disney child actor. He wouldn't necessarily have the best look for it- but there'd be a sincere performance. Wonder if he had auditioned for this? * Michael York- He might have been a little old at this point- but the Salkinds worked with him before. Thought he was awesome in both "Three Musketeers" and "Logan's Run" (How odd that reboot never happened, whereas ten million other reboots did). Great thinking actor (his Logan's Run commentary is very entertaining). I imagine he would have gotten along great with Donner, but he might have been a little too old at that point. He's mostly played the good guy as I recall, so he's got that quality. * Mark Hammil- Would have been pretty unlikely for many reasons, but prior to his facial surgery, he was a good looking guy- but could give off innocence ("But Uncle Owen, I was going to go get power converters!"). Under Lucas' direction, though, hard to know how good an actor he was at the time. (Any director that could make Natalie Portman come off as a bad actress is a peculiar talent on its own). * But if that's the case- Harrison Ford/Han Solo as Superman/whatnot? THAT would be weird...but fun to imagine. * Stallone- a bit too hard for me to wrap my head around. * Muhammed Ali---- THAT would have been interesting if they locked him in contractually a la Brando. If Donner was also contractually committed, along with Jorel as his dad- how does that all work? Would have been a trippy film....
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Metallo
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Post by Metallo on Jun 7, 2014 22:53:41 GMT -5
ATP is right. None of the known actors or big names that were considered where quite right. Most were too old. Reeve really was the best choice. One time were arguably the best choice was made. I always thought John Gavin would have been a good Superman in the 60s but he was too old by the late 70s.
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Post by crazy_asian_man on Jun 7, 2014 23:26:52 GMT -5
ATP is right. None of the known actors or big names that were considered where quite right. Most were too old. Reeve really was the best choice. One time were arguably the best choice was made. I always thought John Gavin would have been a good Superman in the 60s but he was too old by the late 70s. Oh, I totallly agree--- But I just thought it an interesting exercise to imagine a 'what if the producers got cold feet and went back to plan 'a' '- given our familiarity with how the Superman movies turned out. What's a little sad is that after the 'breakthrough' of backing an unknown for a major superhero role over a 'name'- that they decided to go backwards and cast Batfleck. *sigh*
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Post by atp on Aug 20, 2015 2:05:56 GMT -5
How about alternative actors for Jor-El?
Is there anyone at the time who could have done it as well?
Even though some say Brando "phoned in" his performance for STM, I still find it hard to imagine anyone doing it better.
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Post by crazy_asian_man on Aug 20, 2015 23:30:31 GMT -5
How about alternative actors for Jor-El? Is there anyone at the time who could have done it as well? Even though some say Brando "phoned in" his performance for STM, I still find it hard to imagine anyone doing it better. I thought Gregory Peck would have been perfect for Jor-el..... until I read about how badly Peck and Donner got along. *sigh*
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Post by atp on Aug 21, 2015 7:37:06 GMT -5
Do you think Reeve in the early 1990s would have made a good Jor El? For example, the way he looked in Remains of the Day?
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Post by crazy_asian_man on Aug 22, 2015 0:34:25 GMT -5
Do you think Reeve in the early 1990s would have made a good Jor El? For example, the way he looked in Remains of the Day? Absolutely- but not as both. I'm glad that they didn't go with the original idea of using the same actor for Jor-el and Superman..... after having seen the same trick done for Backdraft with Kurt Russell- as father and son- it just hurt the credibility imo.
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Post by Metallo on Aug 23, 2015 13:11:14 GMT -5
If reeve hadn't had his accident it would have been interesting to see him as Jor El in Smallville, SR, or MOS. He would have looked out of place in L&C and Superman Lives
For some reason I like the idea of Warren Beatty as Jor El.
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Post by crazy_asian_man on Aug 23, 2015 18:17:33 GMT -5
If reeve hadn't had his accident it would have been interesting to see him as Jor El in Smallville, SR, or MOS. He would have looked out of place in L&C and Superman Lives For some reason I like the idea of Warren Beatty as Jor El. I'm glad that I wasn't all that exposed to the 'name' actors like Brando or Glenn Ford prior to the movie- Beatty might have been distracting to me, for the famiiarity. Similar to Tom Cruise- I think he's a good actor- but limited. I always see the actor first in those cases, rather than the characters.
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Post by Metallo on Aug 23, 2015 20:42:56 GMT -5
Interesting. I was watching an Oliver Harper review on YouTube and he made a similar point about Cruise.
Someone made a great point about Cruise once. He's very charismatic and charming and can turn in great performances but wether it's on screen or in real life it's like he's s mimick of various emotions. Like it's not quite natural.
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Post by crazy_asian_man on Aug 23, 2015 23:10:40 GMT -5
Interesting. I was watching an Oliver Harper review on YouTube and he made a similar point about Cruise. Someone made a great point about Cruise once. He's very charismatic and charming and can turn in great performances but wether it's on screen or in real life it's like he's s mimick of various emotions. Like it's not quite natural. I love that he's a guy who got rewarded for a good work ethic with the directors/whatnot (as far as I know, anyways) and knew how to make good formula entertainment and makes no bones about it. I remember asking an actor friend what he thought about Cruise during his younger years- whether or not he was actually a good actor.... and my friend took a moment to reply that he thought Cruise was good at being: "The young cocky (fill in the blank)". Now Cruise is an old guy, but he's smart to put together projects properly to keep his name brand going. (Much like Ahnuld used to do in picking projects and Stallone to a lesser degree). I feel a little sad that Ahnuld is trying to get back in the game NOW and do the same, but so far, not even the same luck or success as a Cruise- even with a Terminator movie! :0
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Post by Metallo on Aug 24, 2015 21:25:06 GMT -5
Cruise is smart in that as hes gotten older he's gotten into genres that tend to make more money now instead of sticking to just dramas. When he was younger he didn't have many action movie credits under his belt outside of Top Gun.
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Post by crazy_asian_man on Aug 24, 2015 23:45:08 GMT -5
Cruise is smart in that as hes gotten older he's gotten into genres that tend to make more money now instead of sticking to just dramas. When he was younger he didn't have many action movie credits under his belt outside of Top Gun. He was actually pretty fun in "Tropic Thunder" playing that bald character whose name I can't quite remember. When the guy commits to a role, he commits. I agree he's smart enough to have a good enough sense to what people want to see (most of the time). He probably is sharp enough to realize that it's hard for people to see him as a character rather than a brand at this point, outside of the oddball role for Ben Stiller. On the flip side, I have to admit being a little annoyed at Jackie Chan for now wanting to be 'a serious actor' as his main ambition, now that he's aged out of stunt roles. While it doesn't affect me directly, it is a little annoying that he's not aiming higher than that, considering all that he's achieved in movies.
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