On the fourteenth of June in 2013, Zack Snyder’s box office hit Man of Steel was released with The Tudors‘ Henry Cavill in the title role.

Russell Crowe appeared as Kal-El’s birth father Jor-El, a role for which Clive Owen and Sean Penn had been considered.

Crowe incorporates how his own fatherhood informed his reading of the script to portray Jor-El, stating that “…it was one of those things where that’s how it was connecting me. That’s the question that Jor-El faces, that’s the situation that he’s in.” Crowe also comments on his preparation for the film stating that: “When I signed on… well, one, I didn’t realize that I would be wearing Spandex—’cause you know that’s Superman’s costume—I didn’t realize that I’d have to fit into it as well,” Crowe said. “But, I also didn’t realize the type of organizer that Zack Snyder is, ’cause this was really old school prep. This is sort of David Lean-level preparation, and I really appreciated him. And I was on the movie for three-and-a-half or four months before I even got in front of the camera.”