Superman’s director just addressed the criticism that he “changed” the superhero

With the new Superman movie Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice slated to open next month, director Zack Snyder is once again facing flack for his portrayal of the comic book hero in the 2013 movie Man of Steel.

Superman fans were irked over Snyder’s depiction of the hero, starring Henry Cavill, claiming he acted out of character for the altruistic protagonist. Viewers took to the web expressing dismay over the ending sequence of Man of Steel, which shows villain Zod and Superman battling through a cityscape, knocking down skyscrapers filled with seemingly innocent people and office workers.

As Entertainment Weekly wrote, “the collateral damage was too extensive and too faceless for a hero such as Superman, went the line of thinking.” Now, Snyder is speaking out in advance of the March 25 release of the latest installment in the series, asserting that he was staying true to Superman’s comic book persona, even if that differed slightly from his popular film incarnation.

“People are always like ‘You changed Superman.’ If you’re a comic book fan, you know that I didn’t change Superman. If you know the true canon, you know that I didn’t change Superman. If you’re a fan of the old movies, yeah, I changed him a bit,” Snyder told Entertainment Weekly.

The tragedy in The Man of Steel movie was decidedly darker in nature then the Christopher Reeves era of Superman, which was more focused on protecting the civilian populace and adhering to a code of honor that appeared to be eschewed in the latest rendition.

Popular entertainment site CinemaBlend acknowledged that Snyder’s choices were in fact accurate, noting that the comic version of Superman killed Zod and other Krptonian criminals in a 1988 book and then in a 2001 version.

Either way, we’re looking forward to seeing Ben Affleck face off with Henry Cavill next month.