"Lord of the Rings" Hero to Become "Superman" Villain?

Viggo Mortensen saved Middle Earth as King Aragorn in "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy. Now director Zack Snyder and producer Christopher Nolan want him to destroy our world as General Zod... or at least give Superman a really bad day.

Viggo Mortensen is still in talks over Universal's "Snow White and the Huntsman." But that has not stopped "300," "Watchmen," and the upcoming "Sucker Punch" director Zack Snyder to consider him to play the villainous General Zod for his "Superman: Man of Steel" reboot. The role was previously made famous by Terrence Stamp during "Superman II" in the 80s. General Zod was a memorable villain in that second Superman movie given his intense desire for revenge against Jor-El, who sentenced him to the Phantom Zone prison dimension. He and his lieutenants escaped the zone thanks to Superman's careless disposal of a nuclear bomb. Once free, General Zod and company discovered that they too received Superman-like powers such as flight and strength due to the yellow sun of the solar system. On Earth they caused havoc to its inhabitants by abusing their new powers three-fold.

If the "Snow White" negotiations fall through, then Viggo would be perfectly free for the role if he wanted it. Or Viggo could put his fingers in both pies if he can get Universal and Warner Bros. to formulate a schedule that lets him work on both films. But all of this is currently just whispers since neither Zack or Warner Bros. has talked to Viggo yet. He is only a "person of interest" just as Kevin Costner is for the role of Superman's Earth father Jonathan Kent. Based on meetings with the studios, script rewrites, and other bargains that may happen during the course of pre-production, who knows if Viggo and Costner will even be approached for the film at some point.

In addition to Mr. Kent and General Zod, Snyder is also seeking actresses for three parts-most likely Lois Lane or Lana Lang, a female cohort of General Zod, and perhaps some original female to tie onto this reboot. With producer Christopher Nolan's track record and the tentpole production behind "Superman: Man of Steel," there is sure to be some stiff competition in snagging any role for the film. But one must remember that sometimes tentpoles can topple over after the release date...