Who will play Man of Steel in redo that's not yet solid?

Bryan Singer took over the project and is working on a script for the new movie.
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- A powerful father from beyond the heavens sends his son on a fateful journey to Earth to become a savior for humanity.
James Caviezel starred in the biblical version of that story in Mel Gibson's "The Passion of the Christ." Could he play out that premise again under different circumstances? Say, the comic-book version, with blue tights and a cape?
No superhero fits the literary Christ motif as neatly as Superman, so it's no surprise the soulful, buff and blue-eyed Caviezel is one of the fan favorites to answer a question that has perplexed Hollywood for decades: "Who can play Superman?"
Caviezel's manager, Beverly Dean, is familiar with the rumor but calls it speculation.
"Would he like to do it? He loves Superman," she told The Associated Press. "But the truth is there has been no offer, the script isn't even finished -- but absolutely he'd be interested."
Bryan Singer, who directed the "X-Men" movies, took over the "Superman" project last month, refueling the rumor machine. He is currently at work on a script, and Warner Bros. says he hasn't begun the casting process, although it must start soon to make the target 2006 release date.
From little-known soap opera stars to familiar leading men like Brendan Fraser, Jude Law and Josh Hartnett, it seems like nearly every actor between age 20 and 40 has been draped with the cape at some point.
Qualities required
But playing someone bulletproof has many risks.
"He's got to have all the qualities you want in your president and your father -- a toughness and a sensitivity at the same time," said Danny Fingeroth, author of the book "Superman on the Couch," about the mythical public image of superheroes.
"He has a square-jawed indominatability," Fingeroth added. "He can be tough with bad guys, yet he's got the ability to project sincerity and vulnerability that you want Superman to have."
Some, like Law and Hartnett, considered and then rejected the role, in part out of fear of sight-unseen sequel commitment. Other contenders like Fraser and former "Roswell" actor Jason Behr are still interested but not holding their super-freezing breath waiting for "Superman" to finally come together.
"Everybody is aware of the fact that they've been trying to redo that for a long, long time," Behr told an audience recently at the Comic-Con International in San Diego. "So, you know, until things happen, they happen."
"Brendan was always interested in the piece, and at this point, with a new director attached, it's in the hands of the film gods. Basically they're starting from scratch," said Fraser spokeswoman Ina Treciokas.
History
The Man of Steel hasn't starred in a feature film since 1987's "Superman IV: The Quest for Peace" with Christopher Reeve, despite aggressive efforts by Warner Bros. to resurrect the series.
The Reeve movies grossed a total of $318 million domestically, but each installment had steadily diminishing returns -- from $134.2 million for the 1978 original to a pitiful $15.6 million for the last gasp in 1987.
Superman has had the most success lately as a TV show, "Smallville" on the WB, which chronicles the pre-superhero life of Clark Kent when he was just a farmboy with strange powers.
Tom Welling, who stars as young Kent, is another actor fans say they'd love to see in the movie "Superman" -- but that's an extreme long shot.
There were at least three separate films in the works at various points at the studio over the past 10 years, including "Superman Lives" with Nicolas Cage as the lead and Tim Burton directing before it was aborted in pre-production in 1996 over its ballooning budget.
Copyright 2004 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.