Richard Donner on Superman II DVD
The director tells fans about the "Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut" DVD and his upcoming run on Action Comics.
On November 28, Warner Brothers (DC's parent company) is releasing "Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut" on DVD. It is a re-editing of the 1980 film, cobbling together unseen footage, screen tests and some CGI to complete the director's original vision.
"It was very discouraging that it would never see the light of day, but I accepted it and that was it," said Donner. "The fact that they turned it around has taken a lot of the pain away and has brought a lot of joy back into it and a good feeling of fulfillment.
"I am immersed in Supey and it's a gas. It's really quite interesting, it's very provocative. It's brought back a lot of great nostalgia."
Donner and writer Tom Mankiewicz had intended to work on more than two films. They had ideas for at least two more if the franchise continued to be successful. Now, some of their ideas will be going into Donner and Geoff Johns' run on Action Comics. It will be drawn by well known comic book artist Adam Kubert.
Donner had this to say regarding his new venture with Johns.
"I'm not working with him, I'm working for him - he's my boss," he said, laughing. "Man, it's a role reversal, but it's a great one and I'm learning from him."
Johns was Donner's former assistant, but now is a popular comic creator.
Christopher Reeve packed on 25 pounds of muscle for his role as Superman in the three months between screen tests. A portion of these screen tests are being used for the 'Donner Cut'.
"Yeah, if you really look you can see some of the cuts are quite obviously on the wrong side of camera, and if you study Christopher, you can really see the difference that three months makes of hard work and good food," said Donner. "But it seems to work - it seems to play because for a moment you forget that because you get caught up in the characterizations."
Among the restorations for the film are the 15 missing minutes of the late Marlon Brando's scenes. Gaps in the storyline were filled in by a combination of footage shot from Richard Lester's version, a little dash of CGI and original screen tests of the film's stars.
Expect "Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut" in stores everywhere on November 28.