Did You Know?

Originally, Richard Donner had filmed Superman talking to his father for Superman II, but Marlon Brando sued for (and won) a percentage of the profits of the first film, so the producers had his scenes removed, and they were replaced by those with Superman's mother instead. The lawsuit also resulted in him receiving a share of the proceeds from this movie - even though he doesn't appear. These scenes with Brando appear in Superman II and can be heard briefly during a scene in Superman Returns

Original director Richard Donner left the production due to a clash with the producers, the Salkinds, over the material.

Director Richard Lester was not sympathetic to the epic look that original director Richard Donner had given the original Superman, saying that he did not want to do "the David Lean thing". Imposing his own control over the Superman saga, Lester took advantage of the death of Donner's cinematographer, Oscar-winner Geoffrey Unsworth, to stamp his own look on the sequel. Lester decided to scrap most of Unsworth's footage, which created an epic stateliness through the use of a gliding camera and unique colors for different locations, and hired potboiler director Michael Winner's cinematographer, Robert Paynter, to create a comic book-style that would evoke Superman's roots in comic books. Lester deliberately wanted to break the stylistic "American epic" mold created by Donner and, with Paynter, set out to recreate the look and feel of a comic book. For this reason, Lester did not use his own long-time collaborator, lighting cameraman David Watkin, as Watkin's photographic style was too classical, and thus not adaptable to a comic book aesthetic. Working with his Lester, Paynter and his camera operator Freddie Cooper developed a different type of framing from the original, but one that was ideal for their concept of a comic book film: They replaced Unsworth's gliding camera with horizontal panning and static framing to evoke comic books and comic strips, with their static frames that are crammed with people and objects. Similarly, the composition of shots the trio developed for 'Superman II (1980'. had objects and people crammed into the frame. To further emphasize comic book composition, the action was photographed from one angle, to give the film a desired flatness. (Harkening back to the technique of the early sound era, Lester's films had always been shot with three cameras simultaneously filming the action all at one time, with two cameras for close-ups and one for the long-shot (the establishing shot). Actors do not like this technique as they do not know when their close-ups are being filmed, and must be "on" constantly, rather than saving their best takes for the close-ups. Lester's technique added to the friction on the set caused by Donner's firing, with Margot Kidder particularly disliking Lester as a director.)

In a 2004 interview, Margot Kidder claimed that there are indeed enough scenes shot for this sequel by Richard Donner "somewhere in a vault" to make his own cut of the film. A website therefore started a petition for Warner Bros. to allow and sponsor Donner with his own cut of Superman II. This claim proved to be correct and the footage was re-edited into Superman II aka "The Donner Cut". The 1984 ABC Television broadcast of the film used over 30 minutes of footage deleted from the theatrical release, almost all of it Donner-directed footage. Among the scenes deleted but used in the ABC print of the movie Superman flying past the Concorde (a scene intended for the first film). Extra dialog between Luthor and Otis in the jail. Extra dialog between Luthor and Eve flying to and within the Fortress of Solitude. The death of the young boy trying to escape East Houston, Idaho The soufflé. A scene between Superman and Lois. Nearly fifteen minutes of extra footage with Gene Hackman, including a pivotal scene within the Fortress where Luthor begs forgiveness from Superman and The Man of Steel decides to risk trusting him.

Giving credence to Margot Kidder's 2004 claim that enough footage exists for a Richard Donner directed cut of Superman II to be released, the 1984 ABC Television broadcast of the film used over 30 minutes of footage deleted from the theatrical release, almost all of it Donner-directed footage. Among the scenes deleted but used in the ABC print of the movie Superman flying past the Concorde (a scene intended for the first film). Extra dialog between Luthor and Otis in the jail. Extra dialog between Luthor and Eve flying to and within the Fortress of Solitude. The death of the young boy trying to escape East Houston, Idaho The soufflé. A scene between Superman and Lois. Nearly fifteen minutes of extra footage with Gene Hackman, including a pivotal scene within the Fortress where Luthor begs forgiveness from Superman and The Man of Steel decides to risk trusting him.

Actor Gene Hackman did not return for the second film and all his scenes were originally filmed by director Richard Donner. Existing scenes that required Hackman used a look-alike and a voice impersonator to add any lines needed.

Towards the end of the movie, when Clark Kent enters Daily Planet floor to talk to Lois for the last time, there is a sign in the background on the white board that reads "Daha iyisi olamaz". It is in Turkish and means "It can't get any better/There can't be anything better".

Two "James Bond 007" veterans contributed to the screenplay for this movie, although neither is credited. George MacDonald Fraser co-wrote Octopussy; Guy Hamilton directed _Goldfinger_, Diamonds Are Forever, Live and Let Die and The Man with the Golden Gun. Moreover, Tom Mankiewicz - an uncredited co-screenwriter of the original Superman - also co-wrote the latter three 007 films.

Richard Donner:  walking out of frame during point-of-view windshield shot as Lois and Clark pull up to diner in car.

In the movie, when a power-less Clark Kent finds the Green Kryptonian Crystal at the Fortress of Solitude, he later returns with his powers restored as Superman and no explanation is given as to how he got them back. In the shooting script for the film, the Green Kryptonian Crystal is actually what gives Superman his powers back. When Clark grabs the Crystal, it glows and pulsates with a powerful energy that is stored within and Clark trembles as its Kryptonian power passes into his body, giving him back his powers. The scene with the Crystal's energy actually shown restoring Clark's powers, though, was never filmed and it is only implied at the Crystal restores his powers in the final cut.