Ross is Boss

Alex Ross that is. I've always admired the man for his exceptional work in comics. Exceptional is, of course, an understatement. What I particularly (and consistently) admire when it comes to his art are his renditions of Superman and Batman. Recently, Mr. Ross took the liberty of painting some mock-up posters for the upcoming Superman Movie, were a familiar actor to take on the role of the Man of Steel.

Image courtesy of Super Hero Hype.What can I say? I'm all for Tom Welling playing Superman. Well, I'm pretty sure there are other buff and square-jawed actors out there which would be solid for the part (like this guy, Henry Cavill, who is said to be Director McG's personal choice for the part), but after Smallville and all, Welling just seems to be the obvious and most logical choice. This poster, however, is in no way related to Warner Brothers' planned 5th installment of the Superman movie franchise, which is scheduled for release around 2006 or 2007. Ross just made this (along with one other image, which you'll find here) just to see how Welling would look like if he were actually cast to play the part (well, Ross actually made them for Wizard, but they never got published).

According to Super Hero Hype:

Back in December, Welling said that he had been approached about the lead role when director Brett Ratner was still on board the project. "I actually went to Brett's house in Los Angeles and we sat down and talked about it a little bit, both knowing that scheduling would always be an issue," Welling said. "Basically, if that movie were to happen, the show would pretty much have to go away, and I don't think that's what anybody wants."

I agree. I don't think Smallville's "going away" is what anybody wants, too. But I don't think anybody wants Nicholas Cage to be Superman either. So there.