After Dunking On Star Wars As “Mindless Entertainment,” Michael Shannon Takes Shot At ‘The Flash’: “These Multiverse Movies Are Like Somebody Playing With Action Figures”
John F. Trent
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The Flash actor Michael Shannon, who reprises his role as General Zod from Man of Steel, shared he did not find acting in the upcoming superhero film satisfying.
Michael Shannon as General Zod in Man of Steel (2013), Warner Bros. Pictures
Shannon recently told Empire via Sci-fi & Fantasy Gazette that he turned down a role in Star Wars because he saw the films as “mindless entertainment.”
He relayed, “I’m always a bit wary about those giant movies. Because they take a lot of time and I don’t find them very stimulating to work on. I don’t ever want to get stuck in a franchise,” he said. “I don’t find them interesting and I don’t want to perpetuate them.”
Shannon added, “If I’m making something, I want there to be some kind of purpose to it— I don’t want to make mindless entertainment. The world doesn’t need more mindless entertainment. We’re inundated with it.”
Michael Shannon as General Zod in Man of Steel (2013), Warner Bros. Pictures
Given his comments, it begged the question of why he was returning to the role of General Zod in The Flash. While not directly answering a question about his comments to Empire, Shannon did broach a similar subject with Collider when he was asked if it felt different returning to the character given the character he’s playing in The Flash is a different General Zod from a different timeline.
Shannon answered, I’m not gonna lie, it wasn’t quite satisfying for me, as an actor. These multiverse movies are like somebody playing with action figures. It’s like, “Here’s this person. Here’s that person. And they’re fighting!”
Michael Shannon returns as Zod in The Flash trailer
Shannon elaborated, “It’s not quite the in-depth character study situation that I honestly felt Man of Steel was. Whether people think that’s crazy or not, I don’t even care. I really felt like Man of Steel was actually a pretty sophisticated story.”
“I feel like The Flash is too, but it’s not Zod’s story. I’m basically there to present a challenge,” he added.
Michael Shannon as General Zod in Man of Steel (2013), Warner Bros. Pictures
Despite not feeling satisfied with the film and describing Star Wars film as “mindless entertainment,” Shannon would go on to claim that getting an acton figure made of you or your character means “you’ve accomplished something.”
When Collider posited that somebody should make an action figure of him, Shannon said, “Yeah, somebody should start working on that. I think it’s a sign that you’ve accomplished something.”
“For me, I had the Star Wars action figures. I was also into Greedo. I thought Greedo was really cool looking. My favorite color is green. Greedo, that’s where it was at. Hammerhead was cool, too. That one was weird. That looked like a candy bar that melted a little bit. They were like modern art.”
Shannon concluded, “Luke Skywalker is kind of boring. No offense, Mark Hamill. He’s handsome and gallant. What’s Greedo’s deal? What’s he thinking? I wanna know what he’s thinking about.”
Michael Shannon as General Zod in Man of Steel (2013), Warner Bros. Pictures
The official description for The Flash states, “Worlds collide in “The Flash” when Barry uses his superpowers to travel back in time in order to change the events of the past. But when his attempt to save his family inadvertently alters the future, Barry becomes trapped in a reality in which General Zod has returned, threatening annihilation, and there are no Super Heroes to turn to.
It concludes, “That is, unless Barry can coax a very different Batman out of retirement and rescue an imprisoned Kryptonian… albeit not the one he’s looking for. Ultimately, to save the world that he is in and return to the future that he knows, Barry’s only hope is to race for his life. But will making the ultimate sacrifice be enough to reset the universe?
The Flash arrives in theaters on June 16th.
Barry Allen (Ezra Miller), Supergirl (Sasha Calle), and Barry Allen (Ezra Miller) prepare to take on Zod (Michael Shannon) in The Flash (2023), Warner Bros. Discovery
What do you make of Shannon’s comments?
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