I recently had a conversation with my friend Jim Bowers about all of the deleted scenes that were featured in the extended version of Superman II, and it turns out that there is an incredible plethora of scenes shot for the film but for one reason or another were not included in the theatrical version from 1980-81 or in both versions of the Richard Donner Cut from 2006. And I just have to say that if it weren’t for Alexander and Ilya Salkind restoring them for television, we wouldn’t even have these scenes in the first place.

The producers’ intention of restoring the deleted scenes back into the first three Superman films was to pad the film out for television and therefore bring in additional advertisers, which in turn would bring in more money for the producers. These extended cuts were done without the involvement or approval of directors Richard Donner and Richard Lester, as it was similarly indicated at the start of the 2017 extended TV cut of Superman: The Movie on Blu-ray.

So if you’ve not seen the extended TV cut of Superman II, or the Restored International Cut, or if it’s been a long time since you’ve seen it and may have forgotten about it, here is a breakdown of all the scenes and bits and pieces that were added to the film for its telecasts on ABC in 1984, 1985, and 1987, as well as on TV in various overseas countries including (but not limited to) Canada, Denmark, and Australia.

(Please note that all time codes in this breakdown are referenced solely from the Restored International Cut of the film issued in 2004 and may not accurately reflect the actual running time of the extended TV version of the film.)

ADDED FOOTAGE FEATURING CHRISTOPHER REEVE

0:15:36 – 0:16:03 – Superman flying past the Concorde (Donner footage). Portions of this sequence were filmed in July 1978 for Superman: The Movie with Reeve, Michael Berh, and John Rees for a three-part sequence that was intended for the middle of the film.

0:21:01 – 0:21:07 – Lois telling Clark, “Nobody knows it, that’s all, especially not you.” (Lester footage)

0:21:19 – 0:21:29 – Clark asks Lois about getting an electric orange juice squeezer (Lester footage)

0:43:13 – 0:43:25 – Clark Kent at the hot dog stand (Lester footage). In the theatrical version, the scene shows Clark picking up two hot dogs and walking off, implying that he has stolen them. For the extended TV cut, this has been replaced with a longer version of Clark picking up the hot dogs and leaving money for them.

0:43:56 – 0:44:01 – Lois and Clark walk off after he asks, “No orange juice?” (Lester footage).

1:00:51 – 1:01:17 – Superman and Lois flying together (Donner footage). This clip was cribbed by the Salkinds from Superman: The Movie to pad out the extended TV cut of Superman II.

1:15:43 – 1:16:18 – Superman’s soufflé (Lester footage). This added scene was originally intended for the 122-minute Donner Cut but was later removed from the film. It also appears as the sole deleted scene on the Superman II special edition DVD from 2006.

1:33:12 – 1:33:34 – Clark walking through the mountains (Lester footage). The closeup of Clark’s feet was used in the Donner Cut.

1:44:01 – 1:44:08 – dialogue between Zod and Superman; “Somehow I just can’t hear you, Zod!” (Lester footage). For the extended TV cut, when Ursa flies by, Zod speaks an additional line, “Possibly not.” The clip of Zod saying, “It is extremely likely you are merely a fool. Like father, like son,” appears in the Donner Cut.

2:00:19 – 2:00:30 – Zod to Superman: “Accept your destiny, Kal-El! As your father once condemned us, so now do we condemn his misbegotten brat!” (Lester footage)

2:00:43 – 2:00:48 – Zod to Ursa: “We must combine our energy.” (Lester footage). This clip is an alternate version of the shot that appears in the theatrical release of Zod saying, “We must combine our strength.”

2:02:40 – 2:02:47 – additional footage of Zod’s demands: “I sense the presence of Jor-El here. Destroy this place.” (Lester footage)

2:02:52 – 2:03:00 – Luthor pointing at Superman and Non pointing at Luthor: “Him?” (Donner footage)

2:03:26 – 2:03:39 – Luthor: “I don’t know what to think anymore. You know, it’s not like the old days, Superman, when it was just you and me…” (Donner footage).

2:03:45 – 2:04:06 – Luthor tries to convince Superman that he’s changed; “Well, perhaps there is some good in you after all, Lex Luthor… I’m just going to have to take that chance.” (Donner footage)

2:04:31 – 2:04:46 – Superman tries to go after Zod but Non stops him (Donner footage). This scene was used in the Donner Cut but with some shots rearranged for tighter pacing.

2:08:05 – 2:09:46 – Arctic Patrol arrests Luthor and the villains (Donner footage). This scene was heavily edited in the ABC broadcasts for time, yet appears completely intact in the foreign broadcasts and as a deleted scene on the Donner Cut DVD and Blu-ray (under the title “He’s All Yours, Boys”). Let’s address its editing for the ABC broadcasts.

The first five seconds, where we clearly see the Arctic Patrol officers bringing the Kryptonian villains out of the Fortress, was cut from all of the ABC broadcasts. This shot specifically clarifies that Superman has not killed the villains or left Luthor stranded at the Fortress, that they are indeed alive at the end of the film.

At 2:08:45 we have a brief clip of Luthor saying to Superman, “Let’s negotiate… five percent!” This shot was cut from the ABC airings in 1984 and 1985, but for its final airing in 1987 it was mysteriously restored.

Then at 2:09:20 there is a shot of Superman and Lois preparing to take off from the Fortress. As with the previously mentioned clip, this was cut from the ABC broadcasts in 1984 and 1985 but was restored for its final airing in 1987.

2:09:46 – 2:12:00 – Superman destroys the Fortress, talks with Lois (Donner footage). As with the previous sequence, this too was heavily edited in the first two ABC broadcasts in 1984 and 1985 but appears completely unedited in the final broadcast in 1987. Some people have alleged that this sequence aired intact in 1984, but audio recordings of that first telecast confirm that it was in fact edited for time constraints. Let’s address the editing first.

For the first two ABC broadcasts, a slightly longer closeup angle of Superman and Lois looking back at the Fortress is used. In the Donner Cut, once they land, the shot switches to the more distant angle of them looking back before Superman walks away.

The footage runs from 2:09:46 to 2:10:20, ending with the Fortress exploding, before abruptly jumping to a shot at the 2:11:54 mark of Superman and Lois embracing. This is how the sequence played out in the first two ABC broadcasts, but not in the third and final broadcast in 1987. For the final broadcast, all of the dialogue between Superman and Lois is shown intact.

Much of this sequence appears in the Donner Cut with added visual effects of Superman’s heat vision (referenced in the script as x-ray vision) and the melting away of the Fortress, but two pieces of dialogue from Margot Kidder from the extended TV cut were not utilized. The following pieces were removed from the Donner Cut:

“I mean, I’d be buying my little rainbow at the expense of all those people, ‘Go help, come quick…. I mean, it’s the old eternal triangle. Only in this case, I have all of humanity waiting in the next room.”

2:12:21 – 2:13:21 – Superman returns Lois to her apartment (Donner footage). This clip was included in the Donner Cut, but with one alternate take used. In the TV cut, Lois says, “You don’t have to worry. Your secret’s safe with me, I’m not going to tell anyone who you really are.” For the Donner Cut, she says, “You don’t have to worry. Your secret’s safe with me.”

2:18:42 – 2:19:32 – Clark, Jimmy, and the bald bully (Donner footage). This shot appears as a deleted scene on the DVD and Blu-Ray of the Donner Cut.

OTHER ADDED SCENES

Next is a list of additional scenes and segments that were included in the extended TV cut.

0:23:20 – 0:23:31 – Luthor to Otis: “Your brain defies every known scientific law in its infinite capacity to deteriorate.” (Donner footage) The next clip, a closeup of Otis, is inserted over Luthor’s line, “Some, like you, Otis, have more than one.” The extended TV cut is the only instance where this added footage and the alternate insert, occurs.

0:23:49 – 0:24:15 – Luthor discusses how the black box works (Donner footage). This is one of three takes of this particular clip. The key is Gene Hackman’s line, “That little black box goes beyond any known conventional radar.” He also goes on to ask, “I could’ve said it tracked pasta e fagoli, couldn’t I?”

In the theatrical version Hackman delivers the line this way, “That little black box goes beyond any conventional radar.” There is no mention of the pasta e fagoli reference in this take.

In the Richard Donner Cut he delivers the line this way: “That little black box goes beyond any normal conventional radar.”

0:24:15 – 0:24:49 – Luthor: “…and when I have his secret, I’ll have Superman.” (Donner footage) This alternate take also includes him saying, “Slasher Fogelstein’s a bedwetter.” This clip appears in its entirety in the Donner Cut.

In the theatrical version, Hackman delivers the line this way: “…and his secret will give me Superman.” The clip ends, and there is no reference to Slasher Fogelstein.

0:29:21 – 0:29:32 – NASA controllers: “You’re looking old for your age.” (Lester footage) The last six seconds, of the static on screen and John Ratzenberger asking, “Which one of you guys is using the hair dryer?” appear in the Donner Cut.

0:30:12 – 0:30:21 – Ursa: “Men… to kill!” (Donner footage) This added exchange between Zod and Ursa appears only in the extended TV cut. Zod tells her that she will have everything she wants, “…and I will lead!”

0:31:46 – 0:32:40 – added dialogue between Luthor and Otis along the prison walls (Donner footage). This clip was included in the Donner Cut in its entirety.

0:33:54 – 0:34:03 – added footage of Otis pulling down the getaway balloon (Donner footage). For the Donner Cut only the added closeup of Ned Beatty was included. The rest of this footage appears only in the TV cut.

0:34:19 – 0:34:24 – birds’ eye view of guards catching Otis (Donner footage). This clip also appears in the Donner Cut.

0:34:28 – 0:34:33 – final shot of Otis: “I think I hurt myself.” (Donner footage)

0:34:57 – 0:35:18 – tourists at Honeymoon Haven (Lester footage). This montage was featured in overseas telecasts of the TV cut, including Canada, Denmark, and Australia, and not in the United States.

0:38:37 – 0:38:55 – added dialogue between Luthor and Miss Teschmacher in the balloon (Donner footage). An alternate version of this dialogue appears in the Donner Cut after the prison escape.

0:39:19 – 0:39:45 – Niagara Falls: photographer rips film out of his camera (Lester footage). This shot, along with the existing footage of Niagara Falls and actor Hadley Kay, was cut from the ABC telecast for time constraints, but it appears in the foreign broadcasts of the film in its entirety. For the ABC broadcast, once the balloon sequence ends, the film jumps to Lois asking, “Where’s Jimmy Olsen when I need him?”

0:44:26 – 0:46:39 – Luthor and Miss Teschmacher arrive at the Fortress of Solitude (Donner footage). This requires a bit of explaining.

For the ABC telecasts, only 21 seconds of the footage of Luthor and Miss Teschmacher arriving at the outskirts of the Fortress – from 0:44:26 to 0:44:47 – was featured in the film, as this sequence was heavily edited on ABC for time constraints.

In addition, the introduction to the sequence, of Luthor and Miss Teschmacher traveling north through the Arctic mountains, at 0:44:01 to 0:44:26, was also removed from the ABC telecasts for time. When it was used in the theatrical release, additional voices were used as Miss Teschmacher asks, “Ice and snow, is this your idea of a good time?”

This is followed by a voice double for Gene Hackman, who did not return to finish work on Superman II, who says, “A good time? Is that all you care about?” These two lines would be removed from the extended TV cut (though oddly enough they were preserved for the Restored International Cut).

The sequence would not be seen in its entirety until the Canadian, Danish, and Australian telecasts.

For the Donner Cut, a portion of the footage from 0:44:26 to 0:44:32, followed by footage from 0:44:56 to 0:45:08, and footage from 0:45:47 to 0:46:39, would be used in the film itself.

The first part of this sequence, from 0:44:26 to 0:45:20, would also be included as one of the deleted scenes on the DVD and Blu-ray of the Donner Cut.

0:47:34 – 0:47:44 – Miss Teschmacher finds the Fortress boring (Donner footage). This added clip would also appear in the Donner Cut.

0:50:09 – 0:50:58 – Luthor muses (Donner footage). This is an alternate version of the sequence that was filmed with closeups of Gene Hackman’s face. The version that appears in the Donner Cut features a variation on the line, “It’s too true to be good.” The version that appears in the theatrical release ends with Luthor saying, “All three with the same power that he has…”

0:50:58 – 0:52:29 – Luthor and Miss Teschmacher leave the Fortress and head south (Donner footage). This clip also appears as a deleted scene on the DVD and Blu-ray of the Donner Cut. It would also be removed from the ABC telecasts for time, while appearing in its entirety in the Canadian, Danish, and Australian broadcasts.

1:03:26 – 1:03:28 – alternate version of Deputy Dwayne reacting to Zod firing the shotgun on himself (Lester footage). This clip is an alternate take of the shot which appears in the theatrical version and the final version of the Donner Cut in which Dwayne says a clearly audible line of profanity.

This alternate take, which was used in the extended TV cut, features the same closeup but without any line said in the shot. It was also used in the original 122-minute version of the Donner Cut, but was substituted in the final version with the profanity-laced shot.

1:04:10 – 1:04:22 – Dwayne and Ursa (Lester footage)

1:07:57 – 1:08:38 – Non kills the boy (Lester footage). This scene also appears in the original 122-minute version of the Donner Cut with a couple of dialogue lines relooped, but it was cut from the final version, along with the entire first sequence in East Houston. This scene was also included in the 2006 documentary “You Will Believe: The Cinematic Saga of Superman”, though it was divided into two parts.

1:11:48 – 1:11:59 – Zod to Non: “Very well, you may try.” (Lester footage)

1:12:55 – 1:13:39 – various reactions to the villains’ attacks (Lester footage). These clips were cut from the ABC broadcasts for time constraints, though they appeared in the Danish and Australian broadcasts unedited.

1:14:00 – 1:14:03 – Army officers firing on Non (Lester footage)

1:14:06 – 1:14:17 – Army officers ordering Deputy Dwayne to clear out so they can fire on Non (Lester footage)

1:17:58 – 1:18:14 – Lois looks for a place to change her clothes (Lester footage). This brief snippet was cut from the ABC telecasts for time constraints but appeared in the Canadian, Danish, and Australian broadcasts uncut.

1:24:16 – 1:24:21 – “Everything’s under control. Nobody’s going to get in here!” (Donner footage)

1:24:34 – 1:24:42 – Zod fires on the Secret Service agents (Donner footage). The first three seconds of this footage appeared in the ABC broadcasts, while the rest of the footage was trimmed for time constraints. The footage appeared intact in the Danish and Australian broadcasts.

An alternate version of Zod firing on the agents was used in the Donner Cut. The difference is in Terence Stamp’s face. In the take used for the Donner Cut he is smiling, while in the take that appears in the TV cut he is not smiling.

1:24:49 – 1:24:54 – Non growls at the attack dog (Donner footage)

1:26:11 – 1:26:23 – Ursa: “What a backwards planet this must be where the men wear the ribbons and the jewelry.” (Donner footage). This snippet also appears in the Donner Cut in its entirety.

1:27:06 – 1:27:37 – establishing shots of Lois and Clark driving through the mountains (Donner footage – second unit?). The first 19 seconds of this clip were included in the Donner Cut in 2006. The second shot, a longer pullback of the mountains, was edited from the ABC broadcast for time constraints, but it would be seen in the Danish and Australian broadcasts in its entirety.

1:37:02 – 1:37:18 – additional dialogue between Zod and Luthor in the White House (Donner footage). This added bit was included in the Donner Cut.

1:38:07 – 1:38:09 – Ursa: “Praying…” / Zod: “Yes, to me!” (Donner footage)

1:38:21 – 1:38:33 – Luthor picks up a cigar and lights it up (Donner footage)

1:40:52 – 1:41:08 – Non crushes Jimmy Olsen’s camera (Donner footage). Most of this footage appears in the Donner Cut…

1:41:32 – 1:41:39 – Non picks up Jimmy by the collar (Donner footage). This clip would be used in the Donner Cut. The extended TV cut used a closeup of Zod saying, “This is the son of Jor-El?” But the Donner Cut uses an alternate angle, a two-shot of Zod and Luthor.

1:42:22 – 1:42:30 – added Luthor dialogue (Donner footage). The last part of Gene Hackman’s line when he says, “I can turn over a new leaf, a tree, a whole forest…” would be relooped by a voice double and used at the end of the theatrical release over the shot of Superman and Lois flying away from the Fortress.

1:43:29 – 1:43:35 – Daily Planet onlookers; Jimmy to Perry: “You okay?” (Donner footage)

1:44:42 – 1:44:52 – Jimmy fetches Perry a cup of coffee (Donner footage). This clip was edited from the ABC telecasts for time constraints.

1:45:24 – 1:45:46 – added footage of Non pursuing Superman through the streets of Metropolis (Lester footage). Two brief model shots of Non pursuing Superman were included in the Donner Cut. These added shots, along with the theatrical footage of their flight across the harbor, were cut from the ABC telecasts for time constraints.

1:46:14 – 1:46:22 – Luthor grabs the coffee (Donner footage). The first six seconds of this clip appear in the Donner Cut, but not Jimmy’s retort, “I should’ve spiked it.” This shot was also taken out of the ABC telecasts for time.

1:55:58 – 1:56:08 – villains return to the Daily Planet (Donner footage). The birdseye angle of the Daily Planet exterior appears in the Donner Cut, while the shot of the villains in flight is exclusive to the TV cut.

1:56:23 – 1:56:31 – villains banter with Luthor and Lois (Donner footage). The TV cut uses an alternate closeup angle of Luthor, which abruptly cuts out when Zod says, “He fled in fear of us!”

In the Donner Cut, an alternate longer shot is used, and we hear his complete line, “You heard him. Three against one, he should have taken two ears and a tail.”

The added shot of Lois saying, “He’ll be back! As long as he’s alive, he’s going to try again,” also appears in the Donner Cut.

1:57:06 – 1:57:21 – Luthor demands Cuba for the location of the Fortress of Solitude (Lester and Donner footage). The shots of Zod are Lester reshoots of the original Donner clips. The shot of Luthor saying, “A small incentive, O Fullest One, a mere bauble to jog the memory…” was used in the Donner Cut, while Luthor’s request of Cuba is a closeup in the TV cut. The Donner Cut uses an alternate longer shot.

1:57:46 – 1:57:57 – flying to the Fortress (Lester footage). This clip appears in the Donner Cut, but with a voice replacement for Terence Stamp.

1:58:27 – 1:59:40 – villains arrive and break into the Fortress (Donner footage). While the final shot of the Fortress is used in the context of the Donner Cut, the entire scene appears as a deleted scene on the DVD and Blu-ray.

2:03:03 – 2:03:09 – Luthor: “General, I helped you through all the tough times, remember? I filled your inside straight!” (Donner footage). The Donner Cut uses an alternate version of this clip.

At the end of the extended TV cut, some of the title cards are arranged differently. First, the title card “Special thanks to Howard R. Schuster and D.P. Associates” is removed from the film. Next, the following title cards are not present:

Additional Optical Sequences—Cinema Research Corporation

Howard A. Anderson Co.

Process Photography by Zoptic

I want to say that these credits were not included in the initial theatrical release of the film, though they appear in all versions of the film on video, from VHS to laserdisc to DVD, Blu-ray, and 4K UHD, so I cannot be sure. For some reason this is how I remember seeing the movie when it was initially released, but I could be mistaken. Time genuinely does that.

Additional title cards appear at the end of the extended TV cut. First is the following:

The producers acknowledge with thanks the cooperation of:

Mothercare Limited

Timex Corporation

J.V.C. (U.K.) Unlimited

Essex Motor Sports

(indecipherable) Gucci (sp?) (Eric Shea at Designs Unlimited)

Kentucky Fried Chicken (Great Britain) Limited

The final title card reads “Music Editor TV Version – Michael Clifford”.

MISCELLANEOUS

In two places of the extended broadcasts there are occurrences of dialogue replacement. During the scene of the sheriff’s encounter with the Phantom Zone villains, at the 1:02:35 mark, he says, “Did that son of a gun give me an order?” This replaces the profanity in the theatrical version, in which Clifton James says, “Did that son of a bitch give me an order?”

A few seconds later, once the sheriff hands his deputy the shotgun, at the 1:02:40 mark he says, “You gotta learn to kick hard if you want to be a peacemaker.” This replaces the profanity in the theatrical version in which he says, “You gotta learn to kick ass if you want to be a peacemaker.” Interestingly enough, both lines can be heard in the Restored International Cut with the profanity intact.

In the ABC broadcasts, after Ursa slams the trucker through the table, a second of footage of General Zod sighing is briefly edited from the film for time constraints.

During the villains’ attack on the White House, once Non throws the broken pillar, causing the Army officer to fire on the chandelier, the closeup of the injured officer is not present in the ABC broadcasts, edited either for time constraints or for violent content.

For the ABC telecasts only, during the first scene at Don’s Diner, the line spoken by Rocky (actor Pepper Martin) is briefly edited to where he says, “I don’t like you anyway,” as opposed to the original line, “I don’t like your meat anyway.” This brief edit was made to remove any potential sexual connotations towards Lois, though the line appears intact in the international telecasts of the extended TV cut (and the Restored International Cut).

In the Canadian telecast, during the scene of the villains’ rampage in the Daily Planet, once Luthor says, “You just hold onto that little lady, and he’ll be along,” the scene ends. The rest of the sequence was edited from the broadcast to fit the film into a three-hour time slot.

Finally, there is an alternate insert that was included only in the ABC telecasts of the film. During the opening credits montage, at the 4:34 mark, an added insert of Jonathan and Martha Kent is included to cover up the full frontal nudity of the infant Kal-El as he emerges from the remains of his starship. This insert runs two seconds long and ends at the 4:36 mark.

As I bring this to a close, I have to ask the big question: are all of these added scenes worth it? Some clearly are, as they were used in the Donner Cut. Some shots, particularly a number of the Lester scenes, are clearly comic padding and add very little to almost no material value to the story other than what the Salkinds had intended: to pad the film out and bring in more advertising dollars. And some of the additional Lester clips are definitely worth keeping.

Some fans have created their own fan recuts of Superman II, using the best of the Donner and Lester scenes to create a more comprehensive story. Others, like the anonymous editor of the Restored International Cut, for example, sought to restore the extended cut to as best a version as possible to give Warner Bros. an incentive to release the full Richard Donner cut and the extended TV cut on disc in an official capacity.

If this doesn’t give you more motivation to contact Warner Home Video and politely ask them to release the extended TV cut of Superman II on Blu-ray as part of the Warner Archive Collection, I don’t know what will! It’s in their vaults, and like the Blu-ray releases of the extended TV cut of Superman and the international version of Supergirl, it would be a huge seller for Superman fans everywhere.

And here’s a little bonus for you: in the shot of Superman hurling a powerless Zod across the Fortress, pay attention to Lex Luthor. That is clearly not Gene Hackman, but in fact a stunt double! How can you tell? Look at the stunt double’s hairpiece. That is clearly different from Hackman’s own hair. See for yourself:

(Some of the photographs and screenshots in this blog are used courtesy of CapedWonder.com.)