Actor Michael Shannon became one of the most memorable villains in the DC Extended Universe when he portrayed Kryptonian General Dru-Zod in 2013’s ‘Man of Steel.’ Years later, Shannon, Henry Cavill, Ben Affleck and many of the other DCEU stars are being replaced by new iterations. This is the result of James Gunn and Peter Safran taking the reins at DC Studios and setting up a new DC Universe, which begins next year with Gunn’s Superman. While he’s not scheduled to appear in that movie, Zod’s recasting as one of the most iconic ‘Superman’ foes is inevitable.
Shannon is not too upset. In an exclusive interview with Screen Rant, the actor revealed his thoughts on making ‘Man of Steel’ and offered advice for the next General Zod. Shannon said of his approach to playing the villain, “When I was doing ‘Man of Steel,’ I didn’t really look at it as a big blockbuster; I just looked at the story in the situation.”
However, he noted that the next Zod actor should not try to emulate his portrayal, as “so much of it is connected to the writing.” Shannon explained:
“What Terence Stamp did was very different from what I did. It’s kind of like Shakespeare. There can be a lot of different Hamlets, and there can be a lot of different Zods. It’s not my property. It’s literally not my property. So, make it your own. That’s always the best thing to do.”
He further stated that he didn’t think of Zod as “some supervillain or something” but rather he “just thought of Zod as an individual who’s trying to do their job” and “trying to protect his people.” According to Shannon, this mindset is a commonality across his roles.
