The special invitation-only event was much more than just a photo op for the upcoming Superman Returns film. 25 sets of the Superman Returns Superman and Lois Lane dolls were autographed by Routh and Bosworth, with two sets designated for a silent auction at Kitson's and 23 going up for bid on eBay. 100% of the proceeds from both auctions will be donated to the Christopher Reeve Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to finding treatments and cures for spinal cord injury.
Before taking part in the charity event at Kitson, Routh spent a few minutes talking about Superman Returns and tackling the role of the iconic superhero:
Putting on the Superman Costume for the First Time: "The first time I wore the suit was really kind of nerve-wracking because there were a lot of people watching me and I hadn't worked out for the film yet," said Routh. "I kind of would have liked to have done it alone in my own room." Unfortunately Routh didn't get his way and instead had to try on the suit in front of a small crowd. "About 10 people watching. [They were] all kind of watching and taking notes. It was a little bit nerve-wracking."
Soon after trying on the costume Routh got serious about preparing for the role. "The first two to three months I was working out about two and a half to three hours a day. Lifting weights, doing rope yoga - my first trainer designed this method of working out. That was the bulk of it. Eating healthy but well."
Taking on Such a Beloved Character: "It was very exciting and challenging. I learned a lot from it." Routh explained what inspired his interpretation of the character: "It's from my vision of the character and how I see Superman and what I want out of Superman. But also it's everything that’s come before me. It's George Reeves, it's Kirk Alyn, it's Christopher Reeve. The cartoons, the image, how society views Superman, how everybody feels about it. All of that wrapped up into my interpretation of it."
What did Routh bring to the role? "The only thing that I can think of that sticks out to me is my approach really just to Clark, that he's a spy for Superman which is kind of fun," said Routh. "He's just really excited about everything he does. He's not actually clumsy for the sake of being clumsy, but he gets really excited and your hands go and stuff happens (laughing and wiggling his fingers)."
What Superman Fans Can Expect of Superman Returns: "They can expect a lot of action and a lot of flying. There are many homages to the past films and comic story lines and characters in it and other actors that have been in other things, which is really kind of neat. They'll get a kick out of that that the general public won't see. But I think that there’s a lot of new things to see that they won't expect, which is a really great story and relationships and some deep emotions. But yet they won't feel like it's a drama piece. There's a really, really evil and scary Lex Luthor in it from Kevin, which is fantastic."
Comparisons to Prior Superman Actors: Routh is the spitting image of a young Christopher Reeve, and out of all the actors who have played the role, it's Reeve that Routh most likens his performance to. "I have to say it's probably Chris' performance because he was my Superman and so in my head, that's what I see. I think probably most in the beginning of the film when I thought about Superman flying or reading the script, in my head it was probably actually me envisioning him in a way as I was playing it back in my head."
Delving Into Superman's Past: Routh says the research process basically came down to figuring out how society views Superman. "It was important that everyone be able to relate to the character. I had a strong feeling about how I felt about the character of Superman that was important to me – his physical prowess but also the intelligence and the awareness and his ability to take on problems and not stress about five million pounds of rock or whatever. So it was a lot of that and a lot of studying the first four films, which is what I knew most – that being the first two films which were my vision of Superman, what I grew up with. Since our film was roughly based on the details that happened in [a prior] film, that was really important to know his life and the experiences he had in that film. It was a lot of different things all mixed into one. But also to know how people feel about Superman so I can bring that to them."
Dealing With Superman Fans: Asked if he's had any weird encounters with hardcore Superman fans, Routh said he hasn't really had anything strange happen - yet. "No, the coolest things though are when people have tattoos. It’s kind of cool. They want me to take pictures by their shoulder, which is kind of interesting."
