Henry Cavill now has a nemesis. Warner Bros announced today that Oscar nominee Michael Shannon will play iconic Superman villain General Zod in Zack Snyder’s reboot of the franchise, “Superman: Man of Steel”. Shannon joins Cavill as the Man of Steel, Amy Adams as Lois Lane and Diane Lane and Kevin Costner as Ma and Pa Kent. Zod is a Kryptonian general who led its armed forces.

“Zod is not only one of Superman’s most formidable enemies, but one of the most significant because he has insights into Superman that others don’t. Michael is a powerful actor who can project both the intelligence and the malice of the character, making him perfect for the role,” Snyder said via press release. Recently Viggo Mortensen had also been linked to the role.

Shannon, who has been acting since the early 90s, had his breakout moment in 2008′s “Revolutionary Road” opposite Leonard DiCaprio and Kate Winslet, playing a mentally disturbed neighbor which garnered him his first Academy Award nomination. He was most recently seen on HBO’s critically acclaimed “Boardwalk Empire” and will next film “The Iceman”, playing notorious serial killer Richard Kuklinski.