Warner Bros. Pictures
Here’s something that is true: filmmaker Kevin Smith is a consummate comic book fan, one who almost got to see his own vision of Superman hit the big screen a couple of decades ago (the film that would have been titled Superman Lives, a failed feature that was so tweaked, rewritten, and run into the ground that it was eventually in the nineties), one who has also penned some special series about another favorite comic book superhero (that would be Batman) and someone who is clearly excited about what Zack Snyder’s Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice holds for DC Comics’ most beloved superheroes and the DC universe at large. Here’s something else that is true: Kevin Smith is not involved with Batman v Superman, and the proliferation of rumors that link the busy filmmaker to a film that he’s not even remotely attached to have become so bizarre and bloated that it’s incredible that anyone could discuss them with a straight face, no matter how desperate everyone seems to be for information on the much-hyped film.
The latest Smith-centric rumor that recently hit the web held that Smith penned an entire fake script for the production, which was then purposely leaked it to the press to throw them off the trail of the film’s actual direction. This is, of course, not true. Smith himself took to the Internet today to straighten out a rumor that gained significant traction, well, on the Internet. Cinema Blend clued their readers in to a Smith announcement (Smith-nnouncement? Smod-ment?) earlier today that vowed to clear up the confusion, at least in his own way.
So did Kevin Smith, a director who has a history with both Superman and Batman and an abiding love for comic book heroes write a fake script for a film that he has zero involvement in beyond his own intense fandom? Of course he didn’t. Come on.
The admittedly juicy “scoop” that Smith had actually conceived of and penned an entire fake script hit MovieWeb just before the holiday weekend, instantly stirring up both wonder and disbelief. Did it seem wrong to you? Too much? Kind of insane? That’s because it is.
Smith himself wrote on his site:
There’ve been a few movie websites reporting I might’ve been involved in a BATMAN v SUPERMAN: DAWN OF JUSTICE misinformation campaign, at the behest of Warner Brothers, director Zack Snyder and producer Chuck Roven. The idea was that everything I’ve ever said about the forthcoming big screen team-up of the World’s Finest is a carefully constructed web of intrigue to throw movie sites off the real track.
Since last year at this time, I’ve been enjoying an unexpected period of prolificacy with screenplays. It all started with CLERKS III and was followed by me finishing nearly 5 scripts in a year, including the fall release TUSK. After TUSK, I penned ANTI-CLAUS (formerly COMES THE KRAMPUS) and a sitcom pilot that’s now seeing some action (both co-written with Professor Andy McElfresh from the EDUMACATION podcast). Then I wrote YOGA HOSERS and now I’m in the middle of MOOSE JAWS.
However, none of those has been a fake BATS v SUPES script. C’mon, kids… No major studio would let a guy like me near their franchises – even if it was for a dummy script meant solely to fool the news sites. (Don’t know if it’s true or not, but this Twitter user is claiming credit for a fugazi script that’s currently being reviewed online.)
No, anything I’ve said about “Milo and Sage” was based on an image Zack showed me while hosting a MAN OF STEEL online event at Yahoo many months back. The little I know of the flick beyond that I learned from some cats involved (though never BatFleck himself; as I’ve said a few times now on the Babble-On podcast, beyond email, I haven’t spoken to Ben in years). Fun story, though.
Although Smith is granted a certain level of access to films he’s personally interested in (which he references above), including Snyder’s next feature, that doesn’t mean he’s involved with the project directly – sure, he reportedly saw the Batsuit back in November and he’s long been hip to the fact that Batman v Superman is meant to kickstart a Justice League series, but that’s something most people suspected for quite a long time and has long been confirmed. Hell, Smith even took this chance to dispel the frequently floated rumor that he’s been getting information from his former star Ben Affleck, someone he has apparently not spoken to for entire years (although it’s fun to imagine their email relationship). Yes, drawing a connection between the newly minted Batman and Smith is simple, but not when you actually consider the state of their relationship. (Or, you know, actually give the smell test some of the most wild of rumors.)
Yes, it’s a juicy idea, but it’s just not true.
On the flip side, if you’re interested in seeing how the life – at least, social media-wise – of the guy who reportedly wrote that fake script is going, well, just give his Twitter feed a look. Yup, people are definitely pissed, “SonofArrogance,” but people are also pretty damn gullible. It’s some strange stuff.
Again, just for good measure, Kevin Smith didn’t write a fake script for Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice at the behest of the studio, because Kevin Smith is a busy dude who is also not involved with this film.
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice will arrive, totally free of Kevin Smith input, on May 6, 2016.
Related Topics: Kevin Smith, Zack Snyder
