Superman in movies

Superman, a superhero created by Joe Shuster and Jerry Siegel, appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics in June 1938, is one of the most iconic and enduring characters in movie history. He first appeared on screen in the 1948 animated shorts and has since been portrayed by various actors across multiple movies.

### _Superman_ (1948)

Portrayed by Kirk Alyn in his first live-action adaptation, it depicts the origins of the Man of Steel, with Krypton's destruction and his journey to Earth as an infant. Raised as Clark Kent by a farm couple, he moves to Metropolis, becomes a reporter at the _Daily Planet_, and uses his superpowers to fight crime as Superman. His main villain is the Spider Lady, who plots to use a ray machine for her criminal ends, unaware that a fragment of Kryptonite is her most valuable tool for defeating Superman.

### _Atom Man vs. Superman_ (1950)

In the movie, the villain Lex Luthor is imprisoned but uses a teleportation device to secretly operate as the masked criminal "Atom Man". He creates various futuristic weapons and a synthetic kryptonite to defeat Superman (Alyn), who must battle Atom Man's schemes while also protecting his colleagues at the _Daily Planet_.

### _Superman and the Mole Men_ (1951)

Superman is portrayed by George Reeves. In the movie, the reporters Lois Lane and Clark Kent go to Silsby to cover the inauguration of the world's deepest oil well. When the well's drill unexpectedly reaches the underground home of the Mole-Men, a race of small, furred, bald-headed beings, the creatures emerge at night, causing panic and fear in the town. An angry mob, led by Luke Benson, forms to kill the "monsters," forcing Superman to protect the Mole-Men from prejudice and violence.

### _Adventures of Superman_ (1952-1958)

The plot follows mild-mannered reporter Clark Kent / Superman (George Reeves) and his colleagues at the _Daily Planet_, editor Perry White and reporter Lois Lane, as they work together to solve crimes. The show features classic superhero elements like Superman's powers, his effort to maintain his secret identity, and his commitment to "truth, justice, and the American way".

### _Superman_ (1978)

Starring Christopher Reeve as Superman, this movie directed by Richard Donner is considered a classic and set the standard for superhero movies. It introduced audiences to Clark Kent, Superman’s origin, and his battle against Lex Luthor.

### _Superman II_ (1980)

Continued the story with Christopher Reeve returning as Superman, exploring his struggle with his powers and his love life.

### _Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut_ (2006)

A re-edited director's cut of 1980's _Superman II_, this alternate cut was edited by Michael Thau and was overseen and completed by Donner himself. It features a significant amount of discarded footage, alternative takes, and story elements not featured in the theatrical version.

### _Superman III_ (1983)

Featuring a more comedic tone, with Reeve reprising his role.

### _Supergirl_ (1984)

Reeve does not appear as Superman. In the movie, Kara Zor-El / Supergirl (Helen Slater), Superman's cousin from the surviving Kryptonian city of Argo City, follows a powerful artifact called the Omegahedron to Earth after it is lost. On Earth, she adopts the alias Linda Lee and must battle the evil witch Selena, who has found the Omegahedron and plans to use its power to take over the world. After being imprisoned in the Phantom Zone by Selena, Kara is helped by Zaltar, who sacrifices himself to free her, allowing her to regain her powers and defeat the witch.

### _Superman IV: The Quest for Peace_ (1987)

The last of the Reeve Superman movies, focusing on disarmament and peace.

## _Superman Returns_ (2006)

Starring Brandon Routh as Superman, _Superman Returns_ was directed by Bryan Singer and served as a homage to the original movies, picking up several years after _Superman II_.

Superman returns to Earth after a five-year search for his home planet, Krypton, which he doesn't find. He resumes his life as Clark Kent at the _Daily Planet_, but finds that Lois Lane has moved on with a husband and child. Meanwhile, Lex Luthor uses Kryptonian crystals to develop a new, devastating land-creating crystal, leading to a showdown with Superman.

### _Man of Steel_ (2013)

Set in the DC Extended Universe (DCEU), it rebooted the franchise with Henry Cavill as Superman, directed by Zack Snyder. It depicted Superman’s origins and his first battles in a modern setting.

### _Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice_ (2016)

It featured Henry Cavill facing off against Batman, played by Ben Affleck, and introduced the Justice League.

### _Justice League_ (2017)

It focused on Superman teaming up with other superheroes in order to save the world from the catastrophic threat of Steppenwolf and his army of Parademons.

### _Shazam!_ (2019)

In the movie, it features a stand-in of Superman, resembling Henry Cavill's likeness.

### _Zack Snyder's Justice League_ (2021)

A director's cut of 2017's _Justice League_, focused on Superman teaming up with other superheroes in order to stop the extradimensional New God Steppenwolf and his army of Parademons from conquering Earth for his overlord, Darkseid.

### _Black Adam_ (2022)

In a post-credits scene, Cavill reprises his role of Superman for the last time.

### _The Flash_ (2023)

It features CGI versions of Christopher Reeve, Henry Cavill and Nicolas Cage as Superman, including a de-aged Helen Slater as Supergirl.

### _Superman_ (2025)

Starring David Corenswet as Superman, the movie is set in the DC Universe (DCU). It centers on Clark Kent's early days, featuring a significantly altered origin where his Kryptonian parents send him to Earth with a message suggesting he could "lord over" humanity if necessary. The movie includes a subplot where Lex Luthor views Superman as a threat, comparing him to an "AI" that was not earned through hard work, while Superman grapples with a monstrous threat, showing a noble, albeit potentially overreaching, sense of justice. A pivotal video message from his parents impacts public perception of him on Earth, and a version of the 1978 movie's score is used.

### _Supergirl_ (2026)

Starring Milly Alcock as Kara Zor-El / Supergirl, Corensweet is reportedly set to reprise his role as Superman in the movie.

#### List indicators

This section includes characters who will appear or have appeared in multiple film series that featured Superman.

- An empty grey cell indicates the character was not in the film, or that the character's official presence has not yet been confirmed.
- <sup>A</sup> indicates an appearance through archival footage or audio.
- <sup>C</sup> indicates a cameo role.
- <sup>O</sup> indicates an older version of the character.
- <sup>P</sup> indicates an appearance in onscreen photographs.
- <sup>S</sup> indicates an appearance through use of special effects.
- <sup>U</sup> indicates an uncredited appearance.
- <sup>V</sup> indicates a voice-only role.
- <sup>Y</sup> indicates a younger version of the character.

|Character|Fleisher / Famous Studio animated shorts **<small>(1941–1943)</small>**|**Serial** **movies** **<small>(1948–1950)</small>**|_Superman and the Mole Men_ **<small>(1951)</small>**|1978 movie series **<small>(1978–1987)</small>**|_Superman Returns_ **<small>(2006)</small>**|DC Extended Universe **<small>(2013–2023)</small>**|DC Universe **<small>(2025–)</small>**||
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
|Bud Collyer<sup>V</sup>|Kirk Alyn|rowspan="4"|George Reeves|Christopher Reeve|rowspan="2"|Brandon Routh|Henry Cavill|David Corenswet|
|rowspan="3"|Sam Parker<sup>V</sup>|rowspan="3"|Mason Alan Dinehart<sup>Y</sup>|<small>Jeff East</small><sup>Y</sup>|<small>Dylan Sprayberry</small><sup>Y</sup>|rowspan="3"|<small>Oliver Diego Silva</small><sup>Y</sup>||
|rowspan="2"|<small>Aaron Smolinski</small><sup>Y</sup>|rowspan="2"|<small>Stephan Bender</small><sup>Y</sup>|George Reeves<sup>CS</sup>|||||
|Christopher Reeve<sup>CS</sup>|||||||||
|Joan Alexander<sup>V</sup>|Noel Neill|Phyllis Coates|Margot Kidder|Kate Bosworth|Amy Adams|Rachel Brosnahan|||
|Julian Noa<sup>V</sup>|Pierre Watkin||||||||
|Jackie Cooper|Frank Langella|Laurence Fishburne|Wendell Pierce||||||
|Jack Mercer<sup>V</sup>|Tommy Bond||||||||
|Marc McClure|Sam Huntington|Michael Cassidy<sup>C</sup>|Skyler Gisondo||||||
|Edward Cassidy|||||||||
|Glenn Ford|Glenn Ford<sup>P</sup>|Kevin Costner|Pruitt Taylor Vince||||||
|Virginia Caroll|||||||||
|Phyllis Thaxter|Eva Marie Saint|Diane Lane|Neva Howell||||||
|Nelson Leigh|||||||||
|Marlon Brando|Marlon Brando<sup>A</sup>|Russell Crowe|Bradley Cooper||||||
|Luana Walters|||||||||
|Susannah York|||||||||
|Ayelet Zurer|Angela Sarafyan||||||||
|Lyle Talbot|||||||||
|Gene Hackman|Kevin Spacey|Jesse Eisenberg|Nicholas Hoult||||||
|Valerie Perrine|||||||||
|Sara Sampaio|||||||||
|Ned Beatty|||||||||
|Terence Rosemore|||||||||
|rowspan="2"|Terence Stamp||||||||
|Michael Shannon|||||||||
|Greg Plitt<sup>S</sup>|||||||||
|Annette O'Toole|||||||||
|Jadin Gould|||||||||
|<small>Diane Sherry</small><sup>Y</sup>|<small>Emily Peterson</small><sup>O</sup>||||||||
|rowspan="2"|Helen Slater||||||||
|Sasha Calle|rowspan="2"|Milly Alcock|||||||
|Helen Slater<sup>CS</sup>|||||||||
|Simon Ward|||||||||
|David Krumholtz|||||||||
|Mia Farrow|||||||||
|Emily Beecham|||||||||
|Micheal Kelly|Beck Bennett||||||||

## Conclusion

Superman continues to be a central figure in DC Comics adaptations, with upcoming projects and reboots expected to keep his legacy alive on screen.