After helming comic book adaptations like 300 and Watchmen (both of which had previously been described as "impossible" to adapt), Zack Snyder seemed a perfect fit to helm 2013's Superman reboot, Man of Steel.
The DCEU movie still has its fair share of fans, but also some highly divisive elements. The destruction of Metropolis, Superman's inability to save innocents, and the hero's decision to kill General Zod are chief among them. The death of Jonathan Kent is another major sticking point.
Regardless, Henry Cavill went on to play Clark Kent in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and Justice League. Had Snyder been able to tell the story he wanted in a trilogy for the latter franchise, we'd have seen Supes fall under Darkseid's control before ultimately finding redemption.
Snyder's plans for Superman didn't come to fruition, but Cavill did return to the DCEU in Black Adam's post-credits scene. He also filmed a cameo for The Flash, which ended up on the cutting room floor when DC Studios was formed and the decision was made to cast a new Man of Tomorrow for James Gunn's DCU.
Snyder, who recently joined Instagram, continues sharing unseen DCEU photos from the movies he worked on. Today, it's a Polaroid shot of Cavill's Superman in Man of Steel, which the filmmaker captioned, "I love this photo...it is pure Superman."
Is it, though? Cavill certainly looks suitably imposing here, but there's nothing particularly joyous or hopeful about this image. It was the kinder, far more positive take on this character that made Superman such a hit when it opened in theaters this summer.
"It’s terrible," Gunn previously said of Cavill's unceremonious DCEU exit. "Believe it or not, the day we were dealing with trying to figure out if we could take the job at DC Studios, the day the deal closed, all of a sudden, they were announcing that Henry was back. And I was like, 'What is going on? We know what the plan is. The plan was to come in and do 'Superman.'' It was really unfair to him and a total bummer."
"There was a vacuum at the time and a lot of people were... They had a take on what they wanted to do at DC and they were trying to force their way and it was just never part of the equation for [WBD CEO] David Zaslav," he continued. "We came in, and that was really unfortunate. I’m like, 'This poor guy.'" Gunn later added that he "would love" to cast Cavill in a different role and claimed to have spoken to him about that.
Check out this newly revealed photo from Man of Steel in the Instagram post below.