ALL-STAR SUPERMAN Premiere Interviews: Dwayne McDuffie, James Denton & Matthew Gray Gubler

I recently attended the L.A. premiere of the new DC animated feature All-Star Superman and was able to talk with some of the crew and cast on the red carpet.

In All-Star Superman, the Man of Steel rescues an ill-fated mission to the Sun (sabotaged by Lex Luthor) and, in the process, is oversaturated by radiation – which accelerates his cell degeneration. Sensing even he will be unable to cheat death, Superman ventures into new realms – finally revealing his secret to Lois, confronting Lex Luthor’s perspective of humanity, and attempting to ensure Earth’s safety before his own impending end with one final, selfless act.

Based on the Eisner Award-winning DC Comics series/graphic novel of the same name by Grant Morrison with illustration by Frank Quitely, All-Star Superman is executive produced by animation guru Bruce Timm and directed by Sam Liu (Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths) from a script by acclaimed comics writer Dwayne McDuffie (Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths).

The film's voice cast is headed by James Denton (Desperate Housewives) as Superman, Christina Hendricks (Mad Men) as Lois Lane, and Anthony LaPaglia (Without A Trace) as Lex Luthor.

KIM: Can you tell what some of the hardest things are about adapting a rich storyline like All-Star Superman into an animated film?

DWAYNE MCDUFFIE (Screenwriter): There's so much good stuff and I knew I was gonna have to leave some good stuff on the table. On the other hand, it's such a strong piece... it's real emotional and dramatic that it was pretty simple to figure out what we absolutely had to have. Then a little bit of argument of which of the secondary and tertiary material that we could fit in, that we had room for, or that would work in the arc.

KIM: Is there anything in this film that was left out that you wish would have made it in?

DWAYNE: Oh absolutely. My favorite scene in the comic is when Superman saves a girl from committing suicide. It's a great scene, but given the arc of the movie there was no place to put it where it didn't derail [from the story]. I tried, and I tried, and I tried. I brought my friends in and let them try. I felt like it was better to not have that scene in then to have it in and screw it up.

KIM: Do you find it easier to write a animated film or series?

DWAYNE: They're very different. Thing I like about a series is you sort of learn as you go. If you screw stuff up and it's out there then you go 'well I'm not gonna make that particular mistake next week,' so you get better week to week. With movies you have one chance so you feel a lot more pressure... So you know, it's a fair amount of pressure.

KIM: What about these heroes that you think make them fun to write about?

DWAYNE: Superman is a real challenge. Because Superman's values are values that are important to us and we're kind of ashamed of them. That's why people think Superman is corny but Superman's values are our core bedrock values. So it's a lot of fun to create a world where that wins. Because that's what we want to believe.

KIM: Are there any heroes you wish to but haven't written about yet or is there one that you didn't focus enough on in an episode?

DWAYNE: You know, I honestly can't think of any that I haven't written, but there are tons of them that I would love to do more with, you know? I had a ball doing the Question in Justice League. I'd like to do one of these with my own character Static Shock... I wouldn't mind seeing the old Justice League gang again.... Fantastic Four. [laughs]

KIM: So I overheard that you weren't a big comic reader?

JAMES DENTON (Superman/Clark Kent): Well yeah, not since I was a kid. But it's really interesting to sort of find out the world of grown up, adult comics fans and how the characters have continued to progress even though I stopped reading when I was twelve. It's been really fun, yeah.

KIM: Were you a fan of the Superman films growing up?

JAMES: Yeah, I remember George Reeves the best from TV. Of course, Christopher Reeves too, but for me, it's still the black and white George Reeves. Mostly because he wasn't all rocked up and he was, like, so normal and kind of paunchy; he seem really kind of human.

KIM: So, do you now have bragging rights with your kids, or maybe even your friends, now that you've played Superman?

JAMES: It's great! My kids are happy to be here tonight. They've never cared about anything I've ever done before so they're here tonight and they're pretty excited about this.

KIM: Is there anything about voice acting that you found difficult compared to acting in front of the cameras?

JAMES: It is different because you can't rely on anything but your voice. You know the animation is gonna help you but you don't know what it's going to look like because you don't get to see it. So you don't wanna risk being melodramatic and yet you have to push a little bit because you don't have anybody to help you portray it, so you have to rely on the director and luckily Andrea Romano is a genius. As long as she waved from the back and said, “We've got it, move on,” I believed her.

KIM: Are there any other heroes you would love to voice?

JAMES: Not really. This is pretty hard to beat, you know? Where do you go from here? I'm pretty happy with this one.

KIM: What did you enjoy most about your foray into voice acting?

MATTHEW GRAY GUBLER (Jimmy Olsen): Quite a bit of things actually. I liked the professionalism in voice over acting. Sometimes on real life sets, there's waiting for actors to come out of their trailers, and like, I don't know. There's something about showing up with people that really want to work and want to make this special, know exactly what they want, doing it and then going home; in a timely fashion. Not only that, I think cartoons have been integral to me and who I am so being one is a dream come true.

KIM: Do you have a favorite comic book character?

MATTHEW: The Joker! [But] the original, prior to The Dark Knight. I like the more, purple suit, and...

KIM: Jack Nicholson Joker?

MATTHEW: Yeah, Caesar Romero/Jack Nicholson, the shorter hair Joker. Yeah. [laughs]

KIM: What can you tell us about the upcoming Alvin and the Chipmunks film Chip-Wrecked?

MATTHEW: I can tell you a little about it! We may or may not be ship-wrecked on a dessert island. The Chipmunks are at it again with their crazy antics. We've been on a cruise with Dave, and I don't want to spoil too much, but we've gone haywire and we're making new friends on a crazy island and Theodore may or may not think that the island is inhabitied by zombies. It's gonna be great. It's awesome. I love that franchise; it's so fun to do that.

KIM: So, can you sing like Simon?

MATTHEW: Would like to hear me sing?

KIM: Sure! Let me hear it.

MATTHEW: [Begins to sing the beginning of the Greatest American Hero theme until his voice starts cracking] There ya go. Does that answer your question? [laughs]

KIM: Hey you sound better than me.

MATTHEW: But not well.