Let's start by staying that this "news" comes firmly from the rumour mill, is confirmed by nobody, and may be based on a misunderstanding of the source. Nevertheless, you may find it hard to stifle a whistful "oooh" at the very notion that Mad Max: Fury Road** director: Henry Cavill's second solo outing as Kal-El after the team-up / face-off antics of Batman V Superman: Dawn Of Justice.
The rumour stems from Jon Schnepp, the director of this year's documentary The Death Of Superman Lives. Appearing on a DC focused episode of chatcast Popcorn Talk{
"George Miller is doing Man of Steel 2. I don’t feel weird about breaking it. Obviously Zack Snyder is doing Justice League one and two, James Wan is doing Aquaman. … I think George Miller’s a perfect choice to do Man of Steel 2. He’s going to bring so much to it."
So then. There are two things working in favour of this rumour. Firstly, Schnepp's work on the Tim Burton Superman docco has obviously put him in a position where he's believably got some credible sources within DC and Warner Bros. And secondly, post-Fury Road, Miller is popular with the Warner brass and has had a brush with Superman previously, as director of the ultimately-abandoned Justice League: Mortal (itself the subject of an in-the-works documentary).
Plus, a possible third piece of evidence on the pro side is that George Miller has been spotted on the set of David Ayer's **Suicide Squad. Social call or research trip? Would Miller have to dilute his berserk Mad Max aesthetic to work with the machinery of a franchise that wasn't his?
On the other hand, Schnepp's is currently a lone voice in the wilderness making this claim. And when you listen to the conversation in context, despite his use of the word "breaking", it's not at all clear that he's not simply making a prediction in an "I'm calling this / mark my words"-type way. Schnepp is active on Twitter but has posted nothing to clarify.
There's also the fact that, as yet, there's no Man Of Steel 2 anywhere on the DC/Warner slate, although that's surely just a matter of time. Ben Affleck's Batman has already had a solo outing announced, which Affleck will direct himself.
Pluses and minuses then, and nothing official anywhere. So treat this with the Gloves Of Caution for now, and keep an eye out here for updates.
Batman V Superman: Dawn Of Justice is out in the UK on March 25 next year. If you've yet to grab our massive exclusive feature in the pages of Empire magazine, you have until Thursday, when it'll be replaced on newsagent's shelves by some little indie called **Star Wars...