Sometimes, movie stars have to face the most bizarre things as they take up a role. The late actor Christopher Reeve, who is well known for playing the DC superhero Superman, also went through something similar while playing one of the most popular roles of his career. Reeve landed the lead role in the 1978 movie and went on to reprise his character in three sequels of the movie.
While the film was a commercial and critical success, the producers of the movie put forth a weird demand to portray the superhuman physique of the Kryptonian superhero.
Producers’ Bizarre Take on Christopher Reeve’s Superman
Superman is known to have a form-fitting costume. While the appearance of the DC superhero changed slightly in Zack Snyder’s DCEU, it has always been a body-fitting blue costume complemented by red trunks, red boots, and a long, flowing red cape.
The concept of the “form-fitting costume” has also had its issues over time. The costume designer for Christopher Reeve’s first Superman film, Yvonne Blake, also faced some complications when she received different measures from the studio and the producers of the film.
While the studio reportedly wanted her to design a codpiece that would flatten his crotch area as much as possible, the producers of the film wanted the exact opposite. Alexander Salkind and Ilya Salkind insisted, “Either he has a big one, or he has nothing!” Instead of the bizarre demand from the producers, the costume designer did come up with a metal codpiece for Reeve’s costume.
The Saga Continued as Brandon Routh Took Over Superman
After starring in four installments of Superman, Christopher Reeve stepped down from the role of DC superhero. Almost two decades after Superman IV: The Quest for Peace, Bryan Singer brought back the Kryptonian superhero on the silver screen with the 2006 film Superman Returns.
During the production of the film, the same concern as Christopher Reeve’s Superman was followed in for Brandon Routh’s Superman as well. The costume designer for the movie, Louise Mingenbach, opened up about it during an interview.
“There was more discussion about Superman’s ‘package’ than anything else on the suit,” she said before adding, “It was somebody’s job for about a month just working on codpiece shapes. It was crazy.”
Mingenbach raised the concern over such behavior, saying that 10-year-old kids would be watching the movie, and people are busy having such discussions.
Rumors also stated that the studio used CGI specifically for Superman’s crotch area. However, the director of the film denied such claims, saying that he would never waste his resources on anything like that.
Source: Legends Revealed
