Spielberg/Lucas to Direct Spider-Man/Superman?!

Spielberg/Lucas to Direct Spider-Man/Superman?

Does anyone know if Spielberg and/or Lucas are fans of any really well know comic book characters like Spider-Man or Superman or the X-Men.. etc etc.. and if so why haven't they attempted directing these films?

I heard Lucas was a comic fan and read a lot of comics preparing for Star Wars but it seemed like he was more into pulp kind of fiction or cliffhanger type stories.. I haven't ever heard of him wanting to tackle modern well known comic characters..

Well, Spielberg is apparently a fan of Tin Tin, if you consider those comics. He's going to direct one Tin Tin film for Dreamworks, and Peter Jackson is going to direct another.

Otherwise, I've never heard of Spielberg or Lucas particularly being fans of comics. I think they might be a little too old to have been young and impressionable in the golden age of comics, but that's just speculation on my part. They are both obviously way more obviously fans of old movies than comics, and the influence of B-movies and cinematic masterpieces can be seen in their work.

Frankly, neither of them need to direct a comic book movie. The best ones have already been taken, and they are probably not interested in tackling the obsessive fan perspectives or studio demands.

Lucas is better off not directing anything, really - the Star Wars prequels amply demonstrated he shouldn't be allowed to write or direct anything ever again. He managed, in the 1970s, to tap into the zeitgeist in an unbelievable way and hasn't replicated that ever again.

Spielberg has retained his ability to craft popular money-making movies while at the same time being unable to find a satisfactory non-cheesy emotionally manipulative pointless ending to a film since, like, E.T.