Man of Steel's New Synopsis Sheds Light on Plot, Characters

Warner Bros., Legendary Pictures and DC Entertainment have released a new, official synopsis at the Man of Steel website, which gives a sense for what to expect from some of the characters and what aspects of the mythology are being seen as important this time out. Mostly it's pretty standard "hero's journey" stuff, but it's worth noting that characters we already knew, but which hadn't yet been verified in official documentation (like Steve Lombard and Emil Hamilton) are confirmed below. Check it out:

FROM WARNER BROS. PICTURES AND LEGENDARY PICTURES COMES "MAN OF STEEL," STARRING HENRY CAVILL ("IMMORTALS," TV'S "THE TUDORS") IN THE ROLE OF CLARK KENT/SUPERMAN, UNDER THE DIRECTION OF ZACK SNYDER ("300," "WATCHMEN"). A YOUNG BOY LEARNS THAT HE HAS EXTRAORDINARY POWERS AND IS NOT OF THIS EARTH. AS A YOUNG MAN, HE JOURNEYS TO DISCOVER WHERE HE CAME FROM AND WHAT HE WAS SENT HERE TO DO. BUT THE HERO IN HIM MUST EMERGE IF HE IS TO SAVE THE WORLD FROM ANNIHILATION AND BECOME THE SYMBOL OF HOPE FOR ALL MANKIND. THE FILM ALSO STARS FOUR-TIME OSCAR® NOMINEE AMY ADAMS ("THE MASTER") AS DAILY PLANET JOURNALIST LOIS LANE, AND OSCAR® NOMINEE LAURENCE FISHBURNE ("WHAT'S LOVE GOT TO DO WITH IT") AS HER EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, PERRY WHITE. STARRING AS CLARK KENT'S ADOPTIVE PARENTS, MARTHA AND JONATHAN KENT, ARE OSCAR® NOMINEE DIANE LANE ("UNFAITHFUL") AND ACADEMY AWARD® WINNER KEVIN COSTNER ("DANCES WITH WOLVES"). SQUARING OFF AGAINST THE SUPERHERO ARE TWO OTHER SURVIVING KRYPTONIANS, THE VILLAINOUS GENERAL ZOD, PLAYED BY OSCAR® NOMINEE MICHAEL SHANNON ("REVOLUTIONARY ROAD"), AND FAORA, ZOD'S EVIL PARTNER, PLAYED BY ANTJE TRAUE (UPCOMING "THE SEVENTH SON"). ALSO FROM SUPERMAN'S NATIVE KRYPTON ARE LARA LOR-VAN, SUPERMAN'S MOTHER, PLAYED BY AYELET ZURER ("ANGELS AND DEMONS"), AND SUPERMAN'S FATHER, JOR-EL, PORTRAYED BY ACADEMY AWARD® WINNER RUSSELL CROWE ("GLADIATOR"). ROUNDING OUT THE CAST ARE CHRISTOPHER MELONI (UPCOMING "42") AS U.S. MILITARY MAN COLONEL HARDY, HARRY LENNIX ("STATE OF PLAY") AS GENERAL SWANWICK, MICHAEL KELLY ("THE ADJUSTMENT BUREAU") AS STEVE LOMBARD, AND RICHARD SCHIFF (TV'S "THE WEST WING") AS DR. EMIL HAMILTON. "MAN OF STEEL" IS BEING PRODUCED BY CHARLES ROVEN, CHRISTOPHER NOLAN, EMMA THOMAS AND DEBORAH SNYDER. THE SCREENPLAY WAS WRITTEN BY DAVID S. GOYER FROM A STORY BY GOYER & NOLAN, BASED UPON SUPERMAN CHARACTERS CREATED BY JERRY SIEGEL & JOE SHUSTER AND PUBLISHED BY DC ENTERTAINMENT. THOMAS TULL, LLOYD PHILLIPS AND JON PETERS ARE SERVING AS EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS. ZACK SNYDER'S BEHIND-THE-SCENES TEAM INCLUDES DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY AMIR MOKRI ("TRANSFORMERS: DARK OF THE MOON"); PRODUCTION DESIGNER ALEX MCDOWELL ("WATCHMEN"); EDITOR DAVID BRENNER ("PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: ON STRANGER TIDES"); AND MULTIPLE ACADEMY AWARD®-WINNING COSTUME DESIGNER JAMES ACHESON ("RESTORATION," THE "SPIDER-MAN" FILMS) AND COSTUME DESIGNER MICHAEL WILKINSON ("THE TWILIGHT SAGA: BREAKING DAWN – PART 1 AND 2," "WATCHMEN," "300"). THE MUSIC IS BY ACADEMY AWARD®-WINNING COMPOSER HANS ZIMMER ("THE LION KING," "INCEPTION"). WARNER BROS. PICTURES PRESENTS, IN ASSOCIATION WITH LEGENDARY PICTURES, A SYNCOPY PRODUCTION, A ZACK SNYDER FILM, "MAN OF STEEL." THE FILM WILL BE RELEASED IN 3D AND 2D IN SELECT THEATERS AND IMAX®, AND IS SLATED FOR RELEASE ON JUNE 14, 2013. IT WILL BE DISTRIBUTED WORLDWIDE BY WARNER BROS. PICTURES, A WARNER BROS. ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY.