2012 is shaping up to be a blockbuster year for film with projects featuring The Avengers, James Bond, Hobbits, Pirates of the Caribbean, Titans, Spiderman, Batman, and Superman among many coming to theaters. With 2011 getting off to a disappointing start, especially among our most anticipated films of the year, it is never too early to look forward to future projects. The film I’m most excited about in 2012 is Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel, the latest installment inf the Superman mythos. Superman has always been my favorite of the Superheros and one I feel has been slighted on-screen due to his lack of worthy adversaries (seriously, Richard Pryor?).

If no one else is taking this seriously, then why should I?

The biggest casting news from the weekend came from the Warner Bros project as the Man of Steel had been cast. Candidates granted screen tests for the role included Matthew Bomer, Joe Manganiello (True Blood), Armie Hammer (The Social Network), Matthew Goode (Watchmen), and Colin O’Donaghue (The Rite). Ultimately though, the role went to The Tudors actor Henry Cavill. Just as suspected, the role went to a lesser known actor and one that was reportedly linked to other super hero films in the past including: Batman Begins, The Green Lantern, and even Superman Returns. Cavill was in fact cast as Superman once before, until Bryan Singer replaced McG on Superman Returns.

While there were certainly worse options on the bill, namely Colin O’Donaghue whose performance in the recently released The Rite is not receiving welcoming reviews, there is something so fundamental in the Superman mythos that Cavill cannot possibly authenticate, Americana. Sure by now Superman is an international brand but doesn’t he fight for “Truth, Justice, and the American way”? No matter how stellar Cavill’s performance in this film may be, the prospect of watching our Corn-fed, Kansas raised savior from Krypton being portrayed by a Brit doesn’t sit right. You know who else was British, Terrance Stamp and Callum Blue; what do they have in common, they both played Zod.

What do you think? Does the casting of Henry Cavill as Superman further your excitement for this film’s release? Is there anyone else out there who is just a little bit uncomfortable with a foreign actor playing the iconic American role? Who else would you like to see cast alongside Cavill as Lois Lane and Lex Luthor?