Increased pressure on the anti-gay campaigner Chris Sprouse, who is public critic of gay marriage, has lead him to step down from the Superman project, delaying the comic-book.

DC were heavily criticized for hiring Sprouse in the first place, given his views. "It took a lot of thought to come to this conclusion, but I've decided to step back as the artist on this story," Sprouse said in a statement released Tuesday. "The media surrounding this story reached the point where it took away from the actual work, and that's something I wasn't comfortable with. My relationship with DC Comics remains as strong as ever and I look forward to my next project with them." The comic-book world is moving towards equality and forward thinking. Judge Dredd’s sexuality was recently questioned, and the Green Lantern was rebooted as a proud homosexual. “We fully support, understand and respect Chris’s decision to step back from his Adventures of Superman assignment… Chris is a hugely talented artist, and we’re excited to work with him on his next DC Comics project. In the meantime, we will re-solicit the story at a later date when a new artist is hired,” said DC in a statement. 

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This all means the Orson Scott Card story - co-written with Aaron Johnston - will not appear in either the digital or print editions of Adventures of Superman, or the upcoming anthology series which is launching later this year. Instead, a story from the well-respected creators Jeff Parker and Chris Samnee will be featured.