Prior to Zack Snyder launching his DC universe, Matthew Vaughn (known for Kick-Ass, Kingsman, and Argylle) had imagined an oversized Superman trilogy. “It would be an interesting film…” When BroBible gave Superman: Red Son to British director Matthew Vaughn, he struggled to hide his excitement. He played a huge role in the rise of superheroes in the 2010s. In 2006, he left the chaotic production of X-Men 3. In 2010, he directed Kick-Ass, a comedy that mocked the genre. In 2011, he had his vengeance with X-Men: First Class, which started a new era for mutants in cinema. However, he has always wanted to take Superman to new heights. Hollywood gave him not one, but two opportunities to live out his dreams with the Man of Steel movies by Zack Snyder. Departing X-Men for Superman In 2006, nearly 20 years after the comic failure of Superman 4, which left the franchise comatose, Warner wanted to produce a new Superman movie. For years, Superman has been trying to make a comeback without success, including a version supervised by Tim Burton. However, as superheroes gained popularity in the early 2000s, the studio hired Bryan Singer, a director who had restored their reputation, to direct Superman Returns, while Matthew Vaughn succeeded him in directing the third X-Men movie. However, the tight deadlines and the prospect of relocating convince Vaughn to also leave the production. This was a risky decision for his budding career, considering Returns’ disappointing box office success, but it could have been a strategic move. Superman Returns and the exit of Routh Warner’s goal was no longer to start a sequel but to reboot the saga. Several concepts were proposed by comic authors who were dissatisfied with the previous installment, such as Grant Morrison and Geoff Johns. Another author tried his luck, Mark Millar, who recently saw his comic Wanted adapted into a movie. Much later, Vaughn admitted that he was the director who wanted to reboot the Superman franchise. They pitched the idea of a Superman trilogy to Warner, but it was not pursued further. The Vision of the Man of Steel Vaughn’s pitch was ambitious: an eight-hour trilogy that covered all of Superman’s adventures, from his birth to his role as the last being alive on Earth. This included a modernized version of the film by Donner, claiming that Krypton did not explode right away, leading to a mass exodus and chaos as Superman grew up. The villains included Zod, Brainiac, and Lex Luthor. Even though Vaughn wanted to bring these ideas to the Man of Steel sequel, they were not officially included. He has continued to express interest in working on a Superman project, and perhaps the new DC universe organized by James Gunn and Peter Safran will have a place for him. Vaughn has not ruled out the possibility, saying “Never say never,” indicating that there may be a chance for his vision to come to fruition..
