Merrick here...


...with word on an interesting twist in the ongoing SUPERMAN legal conflicts:

In an ongoing Federal court battle over Superman, Judge Stephen Larson ruled Wednesday that the family of the superhero's co-creator, Jerry Siegel, has "successfully recaptured" rights to additional works, including the first two weeks of the daily Superman newspaper comic-strips, as well as portions of early Action Comics and Superman comic-books.
[EDIT]
This means the Siegels -- repped by Marc Toberoff of Toberoff & Associates -- now control depictions of Superman's origins from the planet Krypton, his parents Jor-El and Lora, Superman as the infant Kal-El, the launching of the infant Superman into space by his parents as Krypton explodes and his landing on Earth in a fiery crash.
[EDIT]
DC owns other elements like Superman's ability to fly, the term kryptonite, the Lex Luthor and Jimmy Olsen characters, Superman's powers and expanded origins.

...explains THIS piece in Variety.

A while back, in THIS posting, I mentioned that I felt the best way to approach any future SUPERMAN movie was to avoid another set-up/origin story - i.e. just cut to the chase & make a damn Superman movie. I believe that anyone turning out for a Superman movie already knows why they're in the theater and what it's all about, thereby rendering 45 minutes of set-up passe.

Today's news means I may well get what I want, which makes me happy. But then I started thinking: does this news also mean The Powers That Be at Warner Bros. might be compelled to undertake some kind of forced re-imagining of the concept, similar to what J.J. Abrams & Brett Ratner attempted back in the day (HERE, HERE, and HERE)? Can't you see it now? Some studio guy saying "We saw this as the perfect opportunity to re-envision The Man of Steel's origins in a fresh manner that today's audiences can better relate to" - or some crap like that?

To be clear, I don't know that this ruling leaves room for such shenanigans. I'm just thinking out loud here...pondering...and a tad suspicious about what might end-up on screen...