Warner Bros. and producer Christopher Nolan have chosen Zack Snyder to direct the new Superman movie, which is one of Warners’ top priorities, since the studio has to get the project into production by 2011 or risk losing the rights to the character.  Snyder, who directed the hugely profitable adaptation of Frank Miller’s 300, as well as the less successful but reverent adaptation of Watchmen, was one of a group of directors who recently met with Nolan about the Superman project (see “Nolan Has Short List of Supes Helmers”).

Snyder told The Hollywood Reporter that he was “psyched” at the prospect of directing the new Superman, saying that “The character deserves to be loved.  It is his time/”  Snyder will start working on the new Superman film, which has a script by David Goyer (The Dark Knight) as soon as he puts the finishing touches on Sucker Punch.  By accepting the Superman job, Snyder has likely delayed the production of Xerxes, the sequel/parallel epic to Miller’s 300 (see “Snyder Writing 300 Sequel”).