E!News : IN DECEMBER 2012, a new Superman will soar on to the big screen, with Christopher Nolan producing and his brother Jonathan Nolan teaming up with David Goyer to write the screenplay.

At one point it was said Chris Columbus (Harry Potter 1 & 2, Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief) was offered the chance to direct but that proved to be a baseless rumour. Instead, it's been claimed that Jonathan Nolan is in line to helm the feature in what would be his directing debut.

The one major missing ingredient is who will be playing the new Clark Kent/Superman.

But that hasn't stopped the speculation. Here we take a look at the candidates and give you the chance to vote on your favourite.

Chuck star Zachary Levi was said to have auditioned for the role, but he later dismissed the reports, telling IGN: "It's complete fiction. I start getting these text messages from my friends, saying 'What is going on? You didn't tell us any of this!' And I'm asking, 'What are you talking about?'"

Although most fans online didn't seem too keen on the 29-year-old as Superman, he says he is definitely interested: "I go and read all these comments and even comments on IMDB. The vast majority are like 'He couldn't be Superman!' And I'm like 'All right! I get it!'. I guess one of the things that I fear is that people pigeonhole me in the nerd role, because a lot them say 'I can see him as Clark Kent, but not as Supes'. I'm an actor! Just give me six months and a gym. Give me something."

Friday Night Lights star Scott Porter, 31, and True Blood actor Joe Manganiello, 33, have also been campaigning for the role.

Manganiello (pictured right) has gone on record saying he'd love to put on the cape and tights. He said: "I'm from Pittsburgh so the Man of Steel - it's the City of Steel, so that would go a long way back home." Fans have started a Facebook page to try to land him the part.

Another name was thrown into the mix when Think McFly Think reported that Mad Men star Jon Hamm was among those being considered by Warner Bros. The only possible drawback is that he's 39 - and he'd be older when the new Superman film is filmed and released - but, on the other hand, age hasn't stopped 45-year-old Robert Downey Jr playing Iron Man.

Meanwhile, Brandon Routh, who starred in Bryan Singer's 2006 release Superman Returns, has made no secret of the fact he's keen to reprise the role. He told Cinema Blend: "I certainly would [love to play Superman again]. As much as I say I'm working to shake that off or shake it up, I certainly don't want to extinguish or get rid of it because it was a great honour and I would love to be able to return as that character.

"I think the brothers Nolan are both very talented and so that makes it a different kind of film than Bryan's vision, which I think was a very nice film that I'm very proud of."

There have also been campaigns and petitions online for Smallville actor Tom Welling to play Superman on the big screen.

Welling, who finally dons the character's iconic costume in the next season of the long-running TV show, addressed the issue at San Diego Comic-Con, telling The Flick Cast: "I've always been open to the idea but it's not as simple as everybody would like to think. It's not as simple as me wanting to do it or not wanting to do it.

"I know that a lot of people jump on me or jump on Warner Bros - it's just not that simple and so there's a lot of elements that have to come together. I've always been open to it." (blogs.coventrytelegraph.net)