LOS ANGELES (AP) — Seems Warner Bros. has taken movie marketing to a whole new level — even
higher than a bird or a plane.Thestudio enlisted Christian-focused firm Grace Hill Media to promote
"Manof Steel" to faith-based groups by inviting them to early screeningsand creating trailers
that highlight the film’s religious themes. Theyalso enlisted Craig Detweiler, a Pepperdine University
professor andauthor of "Into the Dark: Seeing the Sacred in the Top Films of the 21stCentury,"
to create a Superman-centric sermon outline for pastorstitled "Jesus: The Original
Superhero.""Let’s consider howSuperman’s humble origins, his high calling and his
transformingsacrifice point us towards Jesus, the original superhero," the notesread.The tale of
Superman has long been associated with religiousallegories. "Man of Steel," which stars
British actor Henry Cavill inthe titular role, doesn’t shy away from that theme, including portrayingthe
character as 33 years old, having him seek counsel at a church in atime of crisis and forming a
cross-like pose while floating in space."Ijust felt like you could be cute with it and pretend like
it doesn’texist, but what that does is hold back the mythology of Superman," said"Man of
Steel" director Zack Snyder in an interview to promote the filmearlier this month.Snyder added,
"Comic books are our mythologynow. We don’t really have gods that we believe in that live up on
amountain. We barely believe in the gods that we have, and I just feellike Superman allows us to explain
the modern world."Hollywoodstudios frequently market movies to specific religious and
culturalgroups. Warner Bros. previously marketed films like "The Blind Side,"”The
Notebook," ”The Book of Eli" and the "Harry Potter" series — butnot "Green
Lantern" — to faith-based groups."Man of Steel" earned$116.6 million in its opening
weekend at the box office, giving it thebiggest all-time opening in June, as well as the second largest
openingof the year behind "Iron Man 3."___Online:http://manofsteelresources.comhttp://manofsteel.warnerbros.com___Follow
AP Entertainment Writer Derrik J. Lang on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/derrikjlang
.Copyright 2013 The Associated Press.