AceShowbiz -

The follow-up to "Man of Steel" officially includes Batman. Warner Bros. announced the big news at San Diego Comic-Con on Saturday, July 20 and revealed who would be involved in the ambitious project. Zack Synder will serve as director and reunite with his "Man of Steel" stars including Henry Cavill, Amy Adams, Laurence Fishburne and Diane Lane.

"I'm so excited to begin working again with Henry Cavill in the world we created, and I can't wait to expand the DC Universe in this next chapter," Snyder, who was a surprise guest at the pop culture convention, said in a statement. "Let's face it, it's beyond mythological to have Superman and our new Batman facing off, since they are the greatest Super Heroes in the world." 

Snyder will also reteam with David S. Goyer who will provide him with the screenplay. Christopher Nolan, who produced "Man of Steel" and directed "The Dark Knight" trilogy, will executive produce the pic, to be released in 2015, alongside Emma Thomas, Benjamin Melniker and Michael E. Uslan.

"Superman and Batman together on the big screen is a dream come true for DC fans everywhere. All of us at DC Entertainment could not be more excited for Zack's continuing vision for the DC Universe," said DC Entertainment president Diane Nelson in a statement.

It is, however, still unknown who will be tapped to play Batman. Recently, "Spartacus" star Liam McIntyre expressed his interest to replace Christian Bale who revealed that "The Dark Knight Rises" would be his last film as Bruce Wayne earlier this month.

"Oh my god. So there's going to be a new Batman. It's time to dream big," McIntyre tweeted. "In the world in my head where I do get cast, my main concern for @ZackSnyder is that Batman and Superman would be playing WoW all day."

Fans will first see both heroes joining forces in Warner Bros.' animated film "The Lego Movie" on February 7, 2014. The Hollywood Reporter adds that the studio plans to launch a Flash pic in 2016 and "Justice League" in 2017.