Spoilers

The Flash is a fun time at the movies and part of that fun comes in the form of the cameos that are sprinkled throughout the film. But one really stands out as awesome but if you’re not a fan of the actor or the character, the satisfying moment may have gone over your head or seemed like a random cameo. So let’s dive into why that actor was seen in the movie.

Ok, now that the first paragraph is out of the way (for those who see the article while scrolling, this gives them a buffer-you’re welcome), I’m talking about Nicholas Cage’s cameo as Superman during the Flashpoint sequence towards the end of the movie. This was a really satisfying moment, not because we see a famous actor showing up as the Man of Steel, but because Cage was actually set to play Clark Kent on the big screen once upon a time. And if you don’t keep up with pop culture news, you may not have known about this saga and the moment would have gone over your head. But this is fan service to the highest degree.

The movie in question was to be titled Superman Lives and was going to be directed by Tim Burton and, originally, written by Kevin Smith. The movie was envisioned as being a reboot of the franchise, one that would bank on star appeal and talent behind the screen while tapping more into the lore of Superman. Brainiac, for example, was set to be the villain of the movie alongside Doomsday and Lex Luthor. Smith would be the one to title the film Superman Lives, believing the title was better than Superman Reborn. But after Burton got involved with the movie, Kevin Smith was canned from the project, as Burton wasn’t a big fan of Smith’s vision.

Naturally, this movie ended up going through development hell. First, Batman Returns writer Wesley Strick was brought onto the project and then Dan Gilroy was later hired to modify the script. After Warner Bros. faced some financial troubles, they ultimately axed the project, which was getting pretty expensive, thanks in part to the wish list of actors they wanted for the project, including Chris Rock, Sandra Bullock, Kevin Spacey and Christopher Walken.

The script actually featured a scene where Superman faces off with a giant spider in the third act. While Superman Lives never got made, The Flash finally gave us a brief look at that scene, showing us Nicholas Cage in the Superman suit on the big screen for the first time, fighting the giant spider that was in the script all those years ago.

If you want to know a bit more about this whole saga, the late Jon Schnepp made a documentary titled The Death of “Superman Lives”: What Happened?