THE STORY
Metropolis has a new hero whose god-like powers make him a controversial presence and Gotham’s vigilante takes it upon himself to neutralise this threat. As Superman and Batman engage in battle there is a real threat that arises.... The film is inspired by Frank Miller’s seminal Dark Knight Returns where Superman is sent by the government to contain Batman who has returned with a vengeance. Will the film stick to the comic books? Or will it be more personal? We’ll find out today!

The filming
Both director Zack Snyder and screenwriter David Goyer returned for the sequel to Man of Steel (2013), before Chris Argo Terrio picked up the pen to finalise the screenplay. Production wrapped up in 2014. Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice will lead into the upcoming Justice League movie also slated to be directed by Snyder and starring Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Cyborg and Flash.

Superman
Henry Cavill returns as Superman/Clark Kent and the movie will presumably build on his efforts to find a place for himself on Earth, with his powers and all. He doesn’t look comfortable being either called a “god” or a “false god” as some are dubbing him after what we can assume was the destruction that Metropolis suffered while he fought General Zod in Man of Steel. He himself will have to deal with the consequences of his fight with Zod. His beef against the Caped Crusader? Superman doesn’t approve of the way Batman takes law into his own hands and how the people of Gotham live in fear of the Dark Knight. 

Batman
Ben Affleck’s choice as Batman broke the Internet... with first shock then hate, but a lot of it has been sent to the back-burner after he donned the cape in the trailers we saw. Batman here is very different from Chris Nolan’s version and is around 55 years old — “tired and weary and seasoned”. The Batsuit looks exactly like the one in Miller’s Dark Knight Returns and his body language, from what we’ve seen so far, matches it. Batman’s issues with the Man of Tomorrow? From the trailer we gather that it has to do with a person with such powers being left unchecked. He was there when Superman was fighting Zod and he has suffered losses. Now he wants to take the battle to Superman and contain what he sees as a threat to society.

Lex Luthor

For the first time we see a Lex Luthor, Superman’s arch-enemy played by Jesse Eisenberg, who is almost the same age as Superman. Lex Luthor doesn’t seem to be up to any good, as expected, but he is pretty pally with the government. The owner of LexiCorp seems to have some kind of hold on Superman, maybe it is Kryptonite (we see him staring at a chunk in one of the trailers), maybe it is something else. But we do know that he seems to have a stake in the fight between Batman and Superman. After all, he’s always had a thing against superheroes in general and Superman in particular.

Doomsday

He’s the villain, who in canon, has killed Superman. Doomsday is a genetically engineered, seemingly mindless, Kryptonian who matches Superman punch for punch. He can regenerate and come back stronger. He has defeated the Justice League beaten and Superman to death. In the film it seems that he is the result of Lex Luthor’s tampering with the body of General Zod.