Michael Shannon talks about Zod, the Krypton sets for ‘Man of Steel’
With Hero Complex Oscar nominee Michael Shannon (star of HBO’s series Boardwalk Empire and upcoming Indie film Take Shelter) talks Zod, playing the famous villain and the incredible sets for the Zack Snyder reboot.
“It’s unlike anything I’ve ever done. It’s massive sets,” Shannon began when describing the scale of MOS. “It’s literally another world. It’s the first time I’ve acted on another planet.”
This was a big change from the Boardwalk Empire environment and Shannon noted the green screen work and his approach.
“As much green screen as there is and I’m sure will be, they’re actually building a lot of the sets as well. I had thought it was just going to be green screens everywhere and we would just be pretending everything. There’s quite a bit of detail they’re building and putting into it. It’s very helpful. The less green screen, the better — I don’t think you’d be able to find an actor on Earth who wouldn’t have that sentiment.”
It may be a surprise to see Shannon join the big budget adventure, but the actor credited the classic Richard Donner films.
“This is one of the biggest stories of all time: the Superman story. Its prevalence is enormous. And I remember watching the original films — the [Richard] Donner films, and Terence Stamp in the role [of Zod], and the three Kryptonians — it scared the crap out of me. It really left an impression on me. Someone asking me to follow in those footsteps seemed like the highest kind of challenge you could have as an actor. And I always like to be challenged.”
Of course, Shannon had to address playing Zod.
“He’s not one of these archetypal villains with horns coming out of his head and breathing fire or something. He’s a man, a Kryptonian man. He’s a general, that’s his main attribute. That’s the way I approach it: playing a general. I’ve done military parts before, but I’ve only been up to sergeant, so this is a big promotion.”
Full interview HERE
