[Update 8/4/11: Check out Henry Cavill as Superman in Man of Steel]
One of the worst attempts I’ve heard of for a new Superman movie comes from a screenwriter, specifically Kevin Smith. The film, Superman Lives, was to be written by Kevin Smith, directed by Tim Burton, produced by Jon Peters, with Nicolas Cage as Superman. The development of the story is revealed in great detail in one of Kevin Smith’s Q&A videos.
Peters, who would eventually go on to direct the movie Wild Wild West, wanted a vast departure from what we know as the iconic Superman. He wouldn’t fly and wouldn’t have his signature costume or cape. Brainiac would have a gay cyborg sidekick, Lex Luthor would have a “space dog”, and there would be a giant spider for whatever reason(which would eventually show up in Wild Wild West).
It all sounds like a description of a movie from Entourage, which it kind of is in the way of the description of the Aquaman 2 production in the series. Timburton.jp, a Japanese Tim Burton fansite, has pictures of what Nicolas Cage as Superman in a screen test that includes the Superman outfit. For a man who took his actor’s name from a Comic book character he sure does like to destroy them.