Iconic 'Superman' Theme Not In Snyder's 'Man Of Steel'

Indeed, it's a sad thing. It's just not necessarily a bad thing.

"Man of Steel" director Zack Snyder recently broke to Total Film the bad news that his 2013 rebirthing of the cinematic Superman mythos won't feature John Williams' stirring, iconic 1978 score from Richard Donner's "Superman."

Eventually, his re-introduction of Superman will feature orchestration by another legendary composer, Hans Zimmer. He recently also composed the scores for all three movies in director Christopher Nolan's own Batman saga, "The Dark Knight Legend." In the meantime, the most recent teasers have temporarily employed snippets from Howard Shore's similarly evocative "Lord of the Rings" score.

Consider that the previous Superman legend’s sequels have escalated into grander and grander train-wrecks ever since Donner’s 1980 “Superman II” was nearly entirely scrapped after he was sacked roughly 75-percent through filming. Snyder really can’t be blamed if he wants that proverbial slate so clean, he could eat off it.

“We decided to act as if no Superman film had been made – even though we love the films that have been made,” Snyder explained. “We had to say, ‘This is a Superman movie for the first time’ and you can’t then go, ‘Oh, now let’s steal a little music.’

“So, yes, it’s awesome music but Hans Zimmer is going to do something awesome.”

Honestly, that’s a commendable approach. “Superman” was the first great superhero movie. Donner, original Man of Steel Christopher Reeve, Margot “Lois Lane” Kidder and even Williams will forever by synonymous with it. If “Superman Returns” taught us nothing, it’s that those are nigh-impossible standards to replicate, and anything that cops part of that legacy and falls short of what the original evokes will only generate frustration and fan-rage.

Snyder clearly realizes he’s far better off perhaps forging his own path and coming to ruin than potentially sullying fans’ collective fondness for the legendary original. One supposes Nolan himself, as “Man of Steel” executive producer, might have instilled this. He didn’t craft his Batman trilogy with constant winks at director Tim Burton’s previous two darker, very successful efforts.

Fans will rage. Oh, will they rage. There’s either a dearth of understanding or recognition that Snyder isn’t following in the footsteps of the previous five films. Henry Cavill isn’t Christopher Reeve – nobody should expect him to be. Amy Adams isn’t Margot Kidder – that’s not a bad thing.

Look on the bright side: all the same, there’s no guarantee Cavill will be Brandon Routh or that Adams will make anybody long for Kate Bosworth.