Next Superman Movie Director – Poll Results

In the latest Superman Homepage Member Poll we asked you the following question:

Who would you pick to direct the next Superman movie?

With the recent rumors that Matthew Vaughn was at the top of Warner Bros.’ list to direct the next Superman movie, he ranked second (with 20%) in this poll… coming in just behind Richard Donner (with 21% of the votes). The fact that Donner is in his late 80s obviously didn’t deter those nostalgic for his success with “Superman: The Movie” back in 1978.

Here’s the complete voting breakdown:

Who would you pick to direct the next Superman movie?
  • Richard Donner 21%, 111 votes
    111 votes 21%
    111 votes - 21% of all votes
  • Matthew Vaughn 20%, 104 votes
    104 votes 20%
    104 votes - 20% of all votes
  • Zack Snyder 15%, 80 votes
    80 votes 15%
    80 votes - 15% of all votes
  • JJ Abrams 14%, 73 votes
    73 votes 14%
    73 votes - 14% of all votes
  • Joss Whedon* 8%, 44 votes
    44 votes 8%
    44 votes - 8% of all votes
  • Steven Spielberg* 5%, 28 votes
    28 votes 5%
    28 votes - 5% of all votes
  • George Miller* 4%, 21 vote
    21 vote 4%
    21 vote - 4% of all votes
  • Mel Gibson* 3%, 16 votes
    16 votes 3%
    16 votes - 3% of all votes
  • Peter Jackson* 3%, 14 votes
    14 votes 3%
    14 votes - 3% of all votes
  • Guillermo del Toro* 2%, 10 votes
    10 votes 2%
    10 votes - 2% of all votes
  • Ben Affleck* 2%, 8 votes
    8 votes 2%
    8 votes - 2% of all votes
  • None* 2%, 8 votes
    8 votes 2%
    8 votes - 2% of all votes
  • Justin Lin* 0%, 2 votes
    2 votes
    2 votes - 0% of all votes
  • TARETINO* 0%, 1 vote
    1 vote
    1 vote - 0% of all votes
  • Kathryn Bigelow* 0%, 1 vote
    1 vote
    1 vote - 0% of all votes
Total Votes: 521
March 13, 2017 - March 20, 2017
* - added by visitor
Voting is closed
15 Comments
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DE-EL
DE-EL
March 21, 2017 7:17 am

Matthew Vaughn so long as he doesn’t try to do anything like Mr. Donner. Gotta say though, as much as I like the guy and love his work with Superman, I expected Zack Snyder to be MUCH lower. Like, 20s or something. Glad he’s not, though, lol!

DE-EL
DE-EL
April 7, 2017 6:10 pm
Reply to  DE-EL

Coin!

MattComics
MattComics
March 21, 2017 11:02 am

As I said in another thread trying way too hard to run away from Donners film hasn’t helped anymore than trying way too hard to live up to it.

SuperJMC79
SuperJMC79
March 21, 2017 4:42 pm

So, anecdotal evidence incoming: I’ve seen more instances where people have become interested in Superman, or jumped headlong into Superman fandom, as a result of Zack Snyder’s take on the Man of Steel than fans that have been chased away by it. I would say the diversity of the fans on this site is skewed very heavily to the Donner-era Superman (be it in either movie or comic form). My vote was for Matthew Vaughn, as much as I really enjoy Snyder, because I would like to see what he can do with the character. All things being equal, I… Read more »

DE-EL
DE-EL
March 21, 2017 5:47 pm
Reply to  SuperJMC79

Yeah, I actually thought J.J. would be a good choice at first given his background in sci-fi and drama, but ultimately, I changed my mind. And I never thought George Miller would be a good choice because of what he said about Superman, “I think it’s been said many times before: he’s potentially a very boring character because he has no faults, so you really have to find his demons really to get an internal conflict going. You’ve really got to do that. Whether that’s by an external agency or something deep inside himself. You need that conflicted character. That’s… Read more »

SuperJMC79
SuperJMC79
March 21, 2017 6:15 pm
Reply to  DE-EL

I’d never considered Miller at all after the failed JL movie sounded like a hot pile… but who knows how it would have turned out. That quote you provided almost sounds like it could have come from Snyder, IMO, as it seems to say that delving into Superman requires a deconstruction and an antagonist that challenges who and what he is, not what he can do; which Snyder did with the world view of Superman, and of course how Batman saw him in BvS. Maybe that’s just me. You allude to some other thoughts that Miller has on Superman… I’ll… Read more »

DE-EL
DE-EL
March 21, 2017 8:58 pm
Reply to  SuperJMC79

Agreed. But I can’t help but think what kind of Superman D.J. Catrona would’ve been… Yeah, even I have to admit that Zack more or less would say something philosophical on behalf of Superman. Though, I’ve seen him cough and sneeze at criticisms about many people’s general beliefs about Superman being uncool because he helps people and at one point stated that he wanted to fight that belief by showing that even being a boy scout can have consequences. He really shows that in spades in both films, especially BVS. I can’t wait either! The way BVS ended on a… Read more »

SuperJMC79
SuperJMC79
March 22, 2017 12:35 am
Reply to  DE-EL

I appreciate that a lot about Snyder and Cavill’s take on Superman; there are consequences to even good actions. As the saying goes, “What’s right isn’t always popular, and what’s popular isn’t always right.”

Ashamed I haven’t seen Man from Uncle yet, but I have no doubt that the fully formed Superman will have a lot of Cavill’s natural charm. Awesome and fun things are on the horizon for folks like us, I think.

JasEl
JasEl
March 21, 2017 7:05 pm
Reply to  SuperJMC79

I don’t hate what Snyder has done, in fact, I quite enjoyed MOS, but the dark and dreary atmosphere and the washed out color pallete has gotten old pretty fast. I’m not saying I want the Donner campyness back, but Bring back some color and FFS let the man(of steel) smile once in a while.

SuperJMC79
SuperJMC79
March 22, 2017 12:32 am
Reply to  JasEl

I like your take. The atmosphere didn’t seem dreary to me though, but I can agree that the colors are too muted for the direction I might go if given the choice.

sundevil82
sundevil82
March 21, 2017 5:30 pm

I’m all for a director who is going to make Superman the star of his own movie again. Snyder succeeded in making a very generic version of the character and we saw Bryan Singer make a very odd rehash of the Donner movies. Both films feature a Superman who barely speaks and is only there for other characters to react to. So I would say the problem has not been with the tone of those films, but in the characterization of Superman. I’ve said on more than one occasion that I only felt connected to those 2 versions of the… Read more »

Kal-Ed
March 21, 2017 6:54 pm

Guillermo Del Toro!!! Really!?
Though I love his films,you can’t fit his style and vision onto a Superman film. But let’s say if two directors work on it, Guillermo could direct scenes on Apokolips should the plot feature Darkseid.

Matthew Vaughn would be my suitable choice should Snyder does not return. Though I don’t mind if Zack gets another go. But seeing how decisive and divisive the Superman community on film has become because of the direction taken depicting Superman on screen, I’m sure most fans would want to breath some alternative air.

macca38
macca38
March 22, 2017 5:08 am

Having idolised Donner’s Superman film & enjoyed the Lester’s two sequels alongside Superman Returns, Superman film wise for me has at best been average. Sorry folks but for me Donner made the best Superman film ever & after nearly 30yrs later it is still comparable. I choose Donner for new director but I’m sure he’d decline. JJ would be my next choice as first two Star Trek & Force Awakens were excellent films. I’d love a brand new take on Superman with the John Williams music added. Superman flying around on large screen without Williams music is for me a… Read more »

mindhavens
mindhavens
March 22, 2017 7:31 am

I’d love to see JJ Abrams apply the same approach he gave to Star Wars and Star Trek, taking the old and honouring it whilst updating it. What he’s done with SW and ST is what Bryan Singer tried to do with Superman Returns but with a more muddled result.

robojac
robojac
March 22, 2017 2:22 pm

Matthew Vaughn would be a good choice if he gets to start from scratch and ignore MOS and BvS. If he’s not given any freedom to do that then he should direct the Shazam movie. Richard Donner seems like he’s retired and wouldn’t do a Superman movie that’s a direct sequel to MOS and BvS. Guillermo Del Toro would rather direct superhero movies that are based on obscure C-list comic book characters like Hellboy and the like. Zack Snyder will hopefully move on to direct other things after Justice League and should stay far away from DC and Marvel properties.… Read more »