Max Landis has his own unique take on a “Man of Steel” sequel.
A guest on the Screen Junkies YouTube show, “Movie Fights,” Landis revealed what he would like to see in a sequel, and his pitch included Lex Luthor, Batman, and some Justice League action as well.
“In the wake of destruction of over half of Metropolis at the end of ‘Man of Steel,’ Superman is a universally reviled figure… and Clark has terrible PTSD and has given up being Superman,” he said. He compares the destruction of Metropolis to that of 9/11.
Picking up exactly where “Man of Steel” left off, his idea included Superman quitting being Superman, but Clark Kent interviews Lex Luthor for his final assignment at the Daily Planet, (whom he would cast Tom Hanks for) who reveals that he knows that Clark Kent is Superman. To repair his image, Luthor offers to be his PR man to restore his image and send him around the world to save the planet: “I think I can make you look like the greatest humanitarian of all time.”
He agrees, but Batman appears to warn Superman about Luthor. Naturally, Superman ignores it, and only realized that Luthor might have evil intentions when Luthor asks him to start rounding up other superheroes like The Flash, Wonder Woman, and Green Arrow.
Superman teams up with Batman to take on Luthor. Of course, the film would have to be directed by James Cameron.
Evidently, his ideas somewhat overlap with the upcoming Zach Snyder film, “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice,” but still — it’s a pretty developed idea for the writer who hasn’t worked on any “Superman” or “Batman” films.