For months leading up to the release of Zack Snyder's Justice League, many fans found themselves convinced that they would see the iconic black suit appear with the triumphant return of Henry Cavill's Superman. Alas, the film came and went with no appearance by the classic Kryptonian attire, and the black suit only showed up in a brief deleted scene on the recent home release. That said, there were definitely plans to have Kal-El wear the black suit in the earliest stages of the film's development, and like the comics, it would've occurred after the character's resurrection. Opening up at the DC Exhibition: Dawn of Super Heroes showcase in London, Justice League costume designer Michael Wilkinson explained in a recent interview:
When we were prepping Justice League, at first it seemed that it might be a logical choice for the look of Superman when he's resurrected. Zack is extremely respectful and passionate about the depiction of Superman in comic books and graphic novels, and traditionally when he is resurrected, he is in the black suit.
There definitely was a plan to have Henry Cavill get into the black suit during the movie, and some scenes were even shot to show him in the outfit after the League brings Superman back to life; these scenes just didn't make it to the final cut. This reveal makes sense, as Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice very loosely adapted the events of The Death of Superman book from the 1990s. In the comics, when the character came back to life, he wore a black suit that would help him absorb more sunlight and assist his recuperation after his resurrection. Per Wilkinson: Zack Snyder looked to the comics for his earliest inspiration, and he very much wanted the black suit for those scenes.
Alas, despite the fact that using the black suit would show more fidelity to the source material, the film's tone ultimately dictated the need for a brighter suit to reflect Clark's newfound sense of hope. That's why he mostly ignores the black suit and opts for the bright blue, red, and yellow garb when he gets back into action. Michael Wilkinson continued in his conversation with Digital Spy and explained:
But as the tone of the film developed and we were in pre-production, the filmmakers felt that the classic red and blue suit seemed more appropriate to our story and our script. It seemed that a more positive, upbeat image of Superman was what was needed -- the idea of hope and that the world could in fact be saved was important, so that's the direction that we went.
That vibrant Superman now looks like the status quo for the DCEU. The ending of Justice League implies that Clark Kent has nestled comfortably into his role as a comic book-accurate version of the Man of Steel, and he can now be seen ripping his disguise off to leap into the sky when a threat looms. Some reports have suggested that DC is still looking into making another solo Superman movie to follow Man of Steel, but we will just have to wait and see what happens with the current incarnation of the Last Son of Krypton.
Justice League is currently available on Digital HD, as well as Blu-ray. The DCEU will continue to expand later this year when James Wan's Aquaman premieres on December 21, and we will bring you more information related to the future of Henry Cavill's Superman as more updates are made available to us!
