Michael Shannon Fell Asleep During ‘Batman v Superman: Dawn Of Justice,’ Even Though He Was In It
Zack Sharf
When you think of Michael Shannon, Hollywood blockbusters aren’t the first thing that come to mind, which will always make his involvement in the DC Movie Universe something of an outlier in his career. While his turn as the villainous General Zod in “Man Of Steel” sticks out against dramatic roles like “Revolutionary Road,” “Take Shelter” and the upcoming “Nocturnal Animals,” Shannon recently revealed to Fandango the reason he said “yes” to Zack Snyder’s Superman reboot.
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“When I did ‘Man of Steel’ I thought the story was interesting,” he said. “I thought it was relevant. It was about a civilization that destroys the planet they live on and goes looking for another one. Ring any bells? That’s why I did it. I didn’t do it because I felt I needed a big comic book franchise — I honestly thought it was a beautiful story.”
The same can’t be said for sequel “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.” Shannon’s face makes a tiny cameo as the dead General Zod, whose body is being used by Lex Luthor to create Doomsday, but it turns out Shannon didn’t even make it that far while watching the critically derided superhero film. Like many of us, “Dawn of Justice” put Shannon straight to sleep.
“Zack [Snyder] is gonna kill me for this — he’s gonna kill me. I watched it once and I fell asleep,” Shannon admitted. “I was on an international flight and I was tired…I shouldn’t have been watching it on a plane. But I never go to the movies anymore. I don’t have time to see anything. I used to go to the movies all the time when I was 20 years old and wasn’t working 10 days a week.”
READ MORE: Michael Shannon Speaks Out Against Indie Actors Working for Free
It’s safe to assume we won’t be seeing Shannon in future DC Movies, but has this dive into mainstream Hollywood scared him off from future blockbusters? Apparently not. As long as the story is interesting, Shannon will show up. He told Fandango he recently got an offer from a blockbuster, or “some version of a movie that’s been made already countless times” as he put it, but that he turned it down despite a lot of money on the line.
“I have to think it’s an interesting story,” he said about taking roles. “If I don’t, I can’t do it. I won’t do it.”
Shannon returns to theaters this Friday in the very interesting “Nocturnal Animals.” He plays an oddball local sheriff who helps Jake Gyllenhaal’s grieving family man on a path towards revenge. The Tom Ford-directed drama opens in select theaters November 18, and will expand in the coming weeks.
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