‘Batman vs. Superman’ Rumor Control: No, Michael Shannon’s Zod Does Not Have Flipper Hands

A few weeks ago Michael Shannon got the internet buzzing when he made comments during an interview about his involvement in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. It involved General Zod (whose corpse appears briefly in the trailers), flipper-hands and a hilarious story about a port-a-potty. Michael Shannon would now like you to know that he was joking.

Following his interview with Vulture, Shannon’s comments about his Zod costume got fans speculating about why the character — last seen totally obliterated by Superman — would be sporting flippers for hands. Previous rumors about the film’s plot involved Jesse Eisenberg’s Lex Luthor obtaining and experimenting on Zod’s body to build a weapon to defeat Superman — that weapon would be Doomsday, who has also been heavily rumored for the film.

But according to a new interview with The Daily Beast, that speculation is incorrect. In fact, Shannon says he’s hardly in the film at all:

It’s a really awkward situation—I’m in the trailer for a movie that I didn’t work on.

So why was he on set? Shannon goes on to explain that his part in Batman v Superman is similar to Russell Crowe’s in Man of Steel. A dead Jor-El was “resurrected” via holographic technology that allows his consciousness to live on. Superman uses this technology to seek his dead father’s advice. Shannon explains:

The thing about the whole Krypton universe, apparently, is that even when you destroy them, there are ghosts. The first [film], Jor-El is there even though he’s been dead for lord knows how long.

I went over and did some voice-over stuff because it’s like that ghost thing. But I don’t know if I’m supposed to say that. I get very nervous.

As for his comments in the Vulture interview about having flippers for hands, Shannon says it’s “obviously a complete bullshit story,” and he’s genuinely shocked that so many people took it seriously. Michael Shannon, I’d like you to meet the internet.

Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice hits theaters on March 25, 2016.