Audiences will finally get to see director Zack Snyder and screenwriter David S. Goyer’s take on Superman late tonight with the midnight release of Man of Steel, and it’s no secret that a lot is riding on the success of MoS.  We’ve already learned that Warner Bros. has tapped Snyder and Goyer to reteam on a fast-tracked sequel to Man of Steel, but the studio is also hoping—in the face of Marvel’s immense success—that the film jump starts the studio’s other DC Comics properties as well as an eventual Justice League movie (ie. WB’s answer to The Avengers).

Snyder and Goyer have been coy thus far with regards to how Man of Steel fits into a larger DC universe, but now that the film looks to be headed towards a strong opening weekend, Goyer has revealed a bit more about how Man of Steel directly leads into Justice League and other future DC adaptations.  Hit the jump to see what he said, along with news that Warner Bros. is “kicking the tires” on Wonder Woman and Aquaman films.

Speaking with Bleeding Cool, Goyer admitted that he and Snyder definitely considered the larger DC universe when plotting Man of Steel, noting that Superman’s actions in this film will lead to the unveiling of other superheroes:

“It is our intention that, in success, [Man of Steel] would be the zero issue and from this point onward, possible films could expand into a shared universe. In our world, the Man of Steel world, Zack has gone on record saying that we’re implying there are other superheroes in this world. But I don’t know that they’ve come forward yet. The idea is that Superman is the first one. There might be people helping people, but not in costumes, and that Superman comes forward and announces himself to the world. In him announcing himself, he’s the one that changes things.”

The interviewer then noted that Superman revealing himself to the world could lead to Batman putting on the cowl, to which Goyer replied:

“Well, yes… there’s definitely… I don’t want to get too in depth. Obviously, Zack and I have had conversations… but there would be a cause and effect. And that would extend to the collateral damage that happened, and to what other countries feel about the fact Superman calls America his home. Man of Steel doesn’t exist in a vaccum.”

Snyder recently suggested that a Man of Steel sequel would be moving forward before Justice League, and the recent report that Warner Bros. is “fast-tracking” the follow-up seems to suggest that we’ll be seeing Man of Steel 2 before Justice League or any further superhero films, but Goyer and Snyder certainly seem to have thought out how these other separate DC films will fit into the Man of Steel universe.

While Justice League is the only other DC feature that has been confirmed, a recent report at The Wrap notes that Warner Bros. is “kicking the tires” on films for Wonder Woman and Aquaman, which would be released after Justice League.  The report confirms that WB plans on releasing two Superman films before moving on to Justice League, but it’ll be interesting to see if Snyder incorporates any other DC characters—however minimally—into the Man of Steel sequel, providing a nice bridge into JL.  As a fan of Snyder's take on Superman with Man of Steel, I'm incredibly eager to see how Warner Bros. moves forward with its DC characters.