Although we are living in the universally acknowledged 'golden age' of the superhero film, the original (and most influential) superhero of them all hasn't been able to join the party.  According to today's Hollywood Reporter the option for Brett Ratner, the director currently assigned to the Superman project, ran out on Saturday with no word as to whether or not Warner Brothers would renew its hold on the helmer.  Add to this uncertainty the fact that Paul Walker and Josh Hartnett have reportedly turned down what should be a very lucrative role as the Man of Steel and the future of the new Superman film becomes even more confusing than it was six months ago (see 'DC Superhero Movies Still In Limbo').  Today's Variety even raises the specter of a 'Curse of Superman' as a possible reason that high profile actors are turning down a role that could provide a lifetime of financial security.

Variety cites the accident that paralyzed Christopher Reeves, the mental breakdown of Margot Kidder and the multiple sclerosis that hit Richard Pryor as examples of the 'curse,' as well as the 'suicide' of George Reeves, the unsuccessful career of Kirk Allyn, who portrayed Superman in a 1940s serial, and the premature death of Bud Collyer, who provided the voice of Superman in the New Adventures of Superman cartoon series in the 1960s.

Of course other elements including fear of 'type casting' and a required major commitment for three Superman films over a 10-year period must also figure in the high profile refusals of two of today's top young male stars.  Brendan Fraser and soap star Matthew Bomer are still contenders for the role along with several relative unknowns.  The fact that Dean Cain and Tom Welling have remained immune to the curse (at least so far) should count for something, but, if Variety is to be believed those money-loving, deal-cutting Hollywood agents also have a superstitious side.