Is Christopher Nolan Getting Too Much Credit For Man Of Steel?

Yesterday, Reuters reported on the amazing success of Man Of Steel, which set a record for highest grossing opening weekend  box office for the month of June. They also recognized director Christopher Nolan, pointing out that he scored hits with The Dark Knight and Inception as well. Of course, Christopher Nolan didn't direct Man Of Steel, as the film was directed by Zack Snyder. Reuters quickly updated their story with a correction. While mistakes happen like this all the time both with blogs and respected news organizations, it brings to light an even bigger issue. Reuters is not the first news organization to mistakenly credit Christopher Nolan as the director of Man Of Steel. Part of the reason for the ongoing confusion is likely because Christopher Nolan's name has been featured prominently in the marketing campaign for Man Of Steel. In addition to recognizing director Zack Snyder, the Man Of Steel trailers have also featured a call out to producer Christopher Nolan, the director of The Dark Knight trilogy. Of course, it was a smart marketing move by Warner Bros. Before Man Of Steel, Zack Snyder's last couple films had fallen flat at the box office, while Christopher Nolan has had an ongoing string of hits. And while it makes sense from a marketing standpoint, one has to wonder if the end result has been Christopher Nolan getting more credit for the film than Zack Snyder. To his credit, Christopher Nolan has kept a rather low profile in the publicity appearances surrounding Man Of Steel. When he has done interviews, he has also gone out of his way to point out that Man Of Steel is very much Zack Snyder's vision. However, the fact that he needs to remind the press that Man Of Steel is Zack Snyder's film kind of goes back to the question that we asked in the headline of this article. Even the news organizations that haven't gotten confused on Nolan's role in the film have often focused more on Nolan's contribution than Zack Snyder's. A re-occurring press question has been whether or nor Man Of Steel ties into Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight, even though it's pretty much been stated in every possible way that it doesn't. Nolan created such an endearing legacy with The Dark Knight that many don't want to see it end. Even though Man Of Steel appears to be a brand new start for the DC Cinematic Universe, many still see it as a continuation of Christopher Nolan's vision. As Warner Bros. moves forwards with more DC Comics movies, it will be interesting to see what role if any Christopher Nolan plays in those films. Will it be Zack Snyder or Christopher Nolan who ultimately get credit as the original architect of the new DC Cinematic Universe? Much of the answer to that question will likely be determined by how large a role either man plays in future DC Comics movies, but for right now, it's good to remember that Zack Snyder was the director of Man Of Steel.