This morning we were hearing that Carlos star Edgar Ramirez might be in line to play a villain in Zack Snyder's Superman: Man of Steel; now there's another quality actor who may also be in line for the job. Deadline is reporting that Michael Shannon is a contender, though once again for a villain role that's not being specified.
Shannon, who was nominated for an Oscar for his performance in 2008's Revolutionary Road, is the kind of fearless and intense character actor you can't forget once you've seen him-- recently he's been playing the devout and dark FBI agent Nelson Van Alden on Boardwalk Empire, and also played the manipulative and skeezy Kim Foley in last year's The Runaways. He was a sensation at this year's Sundance as well, playing the lead in the dark and moving indie Take Shelter, which is scheduled for release later this year and, for my money, was the best thing to screen at the festival.
All of that is a way of saying that Shannon would be a phenomenal choice as a Superman villain, an actor capable of playing darkness and menace without ever giving over to cartoony showboating. The Ramirez and Shannon casting rumors seem to complement each other-- they're both intense, committed actors who are relatively physically similar, and could easily be up for the same role. Either one would be a fantastic pick.
