Man of Steel Star: Why Not an American James Bond?

In an interview with gossip site TMZ, Man of Steel star Henry Cavill stood up for himself, claiming that just because he's from the United Kingdom doesn't mean he shouldn't play one of the most iconic characters in American fiction. "It didn't even cross my mind--acting is acting," he told the photographers, who followed him into an airport. In response to a reporter's follow-up--whether an American should be allowed to play James Bond--Cavill said, "Any good actor can play any role. Of course!" He added, "People weren't fond of Daniel Craig playing Bond, but then he blew it away and has been the best Bond yet." Cavill's performance in Man of Steel has been drawing raves from everyone associated with the production, which has mostly quieted the naysayers that naturally tend to come along with projects on the scope of Man of Steel. Whereas the last Superman film, 2005's Superman Returns, was a critical and commercial dud, most are expecting Man of Steel to perform at least well enough for Cavill to continue the role into a rumored Justice League movie, set to start filming in 2013. Superman's long-standing credo of fighting for "truth, justice and the American way" was truncated in the 2005 film to be "truth, justice--all that stuff." It was a small change, but one that resonated negatively with a lot of viewers, who complained about it after the film's release. A similar controversy occurred in the comics when Superman declared himself to be a "citizen of the world" and not just an American, "renouncing" his citizenship in a semi-canonical story that appeared in a backup feature to Action Comics #900. This month's issue of Superman--#13, in which Clark Kent quit his job at the Daily Planet--brought the "American way" back with a vengeance, making the reference loudly enough and with an "I'm not ashamed to say it" tacked on to leave no ambiguity that DC has put those things behind them. While Daniel Craig has two more movies on his contract as James Bond (reportedly a two-part story that will film back-to-back), filmmakers are reportedly already looking for replacements, and sticking to the old Sean Connery mold is not a concern; there's apparently already been discussions with Idris Elba about the possibility of being the first black actor to play the iconic role.

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