The story behind the Donner Cut of Superman 2

Superman 2 The Richard Donner Cut has one of the most fascinating stories in the world of cinema, in this video we present all the information behind this film.

All photos, videos, clips and rights are property of Warner Bros.

The information presented in the video and many of the clips in it are part of several documentaries, such as "You Will Believe: The Cinematic Saga of Superman", "Superman ll The Richard Donner Cut Restoring the Vision Feature" and "SUPERMAN II ( 1980) | Behind the Scenes of DC Superhero Movie".

Under the Copyright Disclaimer under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, there is an allowance for 'fair use' of copyrighted material for such purposes as education and research, scholarship, criticism, news reporting, comment, and teaching.

[andylikesstuffchannel]

The beginning of SUPERMAN THE MOVIE is beyond brilliant was when I was a child still is now 47 years later. Brilliant film

[gregobrix]

You talked about "notable actors" around the 8-minute mark, but left out one of the best; Ned Beatty as Otis. He added the humor perfectly without taking away from the film's gravitas. Otis is one of my favorite characters in the original.

[KevyNova]

I bought The Donner Cut on DVD the day it came out and haven’t watched the theatrical version since.

[CophinRuinzrKestra]

The A.I. doing the voice over in this video is unintentionally terrifying, I think.

[Yngvarfo]

You mention that Lester directed the Beatles films, but you omit mentioning that he also directed the Musketeers movies. So he was not unfamiliar with the adventure genre. Also, The Three Musketeers and The Four Musketeers were shot together, so it was not something new with the Superman films, but even something the Salkinds had done before.

[proman]

Had Donner stayed on, it would have been a far better movie. Donner’s eye for Metropolis was amazing.

[boreilly]

This was good. Really enjoyable explanation

[hiridavidfeign]

It's only a matter of time before they release the ultimate version using AI to add the parts that were never filmed. I really enjoyed this. Very well done. Thanks.

[flacofran]

Man, I love Margot Kidder’s loyalty towards Donner. She was the voice of the fans.

[nickperkins]

I would LOVE to see Superman II: The Restored International Cut. I have a feeling that it is the best possible version of Superman II.

[UPCM]

Hopefully someday, Warner Brothers will make a definitive cut of Superman 2 using the best of both Lester's & Donner's footage and the extended deleted scenes. (minus most of Lester's slapstick)

[creamofchris]

Biggest mistake in cinema history firing Donner all because of pride and greed

[dinosaurdino]

This is a well made video! You tell the story in an informative way without making it too long! 👍🏽

[moso]

Apparently, John Williams did return to score Superman II, but promptly got into an argument with Richard Lester and walked out, declaring to the Salkinds that he could not get along with that man (Lester). Considering what a classy gentleman and consummate professional Williams has always been, that says a lot about Lester.

[johnnyskinwalker]

Was really mind blown by the Donner cut. Esp. the way Jor-El gave Superman his powers back. I also loved the shooting blank "gotcha!" (even if it was an audition tape). The only thing I would have done differently is not have Superman turn back the planet at the end so that Lois forget things. The Superman kiss was not only stupid for the unrealistic kiss but cause Lois had her mind erased. Better for her to live with the consequences. They already had their heart to heart talk at the Fortress with her crying.

[georgeharris]

I have all 3 versions on d.v.d. The INTER-NATIONAL TV CUT that runs 19 minutes longer is the best version.

[qui-gonrick]

I liked the theatrical cut when it came out. I was a kid. However, it just didn't stand up over time. Too many dumb things added for humor. The Donner Cut is an improvement in a lot of ways, but it isn't a complete movie. Plus the end part where Clark goes back to the diner doesn't make any sense in that cut. Having said that, both versions are better than Superman 3 and 4.

[TheEdorizo]

It annoys me when people add an. s to Christopher Reeve.

[DWtechfan]

Many thought Donner was the problem but eventually, the Salkinds turned on each other. Seems like Donner wasn’t the problem after all. The Salkinds had too much ego and should’ve left the work to Donner.

[Steven_Duering]

It went on record that Donner asked numerous times what his budget was. The Salkinds and Spengler would tell him that he’s over budget. They didn’t even tell him how over budget he was.