Man of Steel

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Henry Cavill as Superman stands in costume with a red cape and the S emblem on his chest in a street scene from Man of Steel, with a faded American flag mural behind him.

Man of Steel

film by Snyder [2013]

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July 20, 2026

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Henry Cavill as Superman stands in costume with a red cape and the S emblem on his chest in a street scene from Man of Steel, with a faded American flag mural behind him. — Henry Cavill in Man of Steel Henry Cavill as Superman in the 2013 film Man of Steel, directed by Zack Snyder.

The 2013 film Man of Steel, directed by Zack Snyder, serves as the foundation for the DC Extended Universe, a shared narrative world for DC's film properties. The movie reboots the Superman film series, with Henry Cavill portraying the iconic superhero.123

The film tells the origin story of Superman, also known as the "Man of Steel," a character created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster for DC Comics. It details his arrival on Earth as an infant from the doomed planet Krypton and his upbringing by the Kents in Smallville, where he discovers his superhuman abilities. The narrative follows his journey to adulthood in Metropolis, where he grapples with his dual identity as Clark Kent and Superman.3

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Amy Adams
Stage debut and later career
…Henry Cavill as Superman in Man of Steel (2013). She reprised the character in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016) and Justice League (2017); a different cut of the latter was released in 2021 as Zack Snyder’s Justice League. Her other roles from 2013 include a con artist in…
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…Henry Cavill as Superman in Man of Steel (2013). She reprised the character in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016) and Justice League (2017); a different cut of the latter was released in 2021 as Zack Snyder’s Justice League. Her other roles from 2013 include a con artist in…
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Henry Cavill
Superman
…cast as Clark Kent/Superman in Man of Steel (2013). He later admitted that he had missed the call from director Zack Snyder offering him the job because he had been playing the online game World of Warcraft. To portray the Man of Steel, Cavill transformed his body, adding so much…
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…cast as Clark Kent/Superman in Man of Steel (2013). He later admitted that he had missed the call from director Zack Snyder offering him the job because he had been playing the online game World of Warcraft. To portray the Man of Steel, Cavill transformed his body, adding so much…
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Kevin Costner
Open Range, Hidden Figures, and Molly’s Game
…2013 with the Superman film Man of Steel, playing Clark Kent’s adoptive father. In 2014 Costner portrayed a veteran CIA agent in the thriller Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit, a spy trying to manage his family life in 3 Days to Kill, the general manager of an NFL team in Draft…
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…2013 with the Superman film Man of Steel, playing Clark Kent’s adoptive father. In 2014 Costner portrayed a veteran CIA agent in the thriller Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit, a spy trying to manage his family life in 3 Days to Kill, the general manager of an NFL team in Draft…
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Russell Crowe
Master and Commander, 3:10 to Yuma, and Robin Hood
…as Superman’s father, Jor-El, in Man of Steel (2013); as a New York crime boss in the fantasy Winter’s Tale (2014); and as the titular biblical figure in Noah (2014).
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…as Superman’s father, Jor-El, in Man of Steel (2013); as a New York crime boss in the fantasy Winter’s Tale (2014); and as the titular biblical figure in Noah (2014).
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DC Comics
DC characters in television and film
Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel (2013) earned more than $600 million and served as the foundation for the DC Extended Universe (DCEU), a shared storytelling world for all of DC’s film properties. Later films in the DCEU included Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016, in which…
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Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel (2013) earned more than $600 million and served as the foundation for the DC Extended Universe (DCEU), a shared storytelling world for all of DC’s film properties. Later films in the DCEU included Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016, in which…
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Zack Snyder
Career
…directing the Superman origin story Man of Steel (2013), a reboot of the Superman film series. He followed Man of Steel with Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016), a film about the tension and eventual collaboration between DC’s two main superheroes. Warner Brothers was pleased with Snyder’s work and…
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…directing the Superman origin story Man of Steel (2013), a reboot of the Superman film series. He followed Man of Steel with Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016), a film about the tension and eventual collaboration between DC’s two main superheroes. Warner Brothers was pleased with Snyder’s work and…
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Laurence Fishburne
Film roles
In the Superman movie Man of Steel (2013), he played Clark Kent’s newspaper-editor boss. He reprised the role in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016). Fishburne’s other films from 2016 included Passengers, a sci-fi romance about hibernating space travelers heading to another planet.
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In the Superman movie Man of Steel (2013), he played Clark Kent’s newspaper-editor boss. He reprised the role in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016). Fishburne’s other films from 2016 included Passengers, a sci-fi romance about hibernating space travelers heading to another planet.
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Christopher Nolan
Inception, Dunkirk, and Oppenheimer
…story for the Superman reboot Man of Steel (2013).
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…story for the Superman reboot Man of Steel (2013).
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Superman
The modern era
The result was Man of Steel (2013), directed by Zack Snyder and starring Henry Cavill as Superman. Although the film was a critical disappointment, it grossed over $600 million worldwide. The sequel, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016), earned more than $800 million globally, but the film’s…
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The result was Man of Steel (2013), directed by Zack Snyder and starring Henry Cavill as Superman. Although the film was a critical disappointment, it grossed over $600 million worldwide. The sequel, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016), earned more than $800 million globally, but the film’s…
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Watchmen
Reprints, sequels, and media adaptations
…more straightforward superhero fare like Man of Steel (2013) and Justice League (2017).
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…more straightforward superhero fare like Man of Steel (2013) and Justice League (2017).
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