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Superman (franchise)

The character Superman, first appearing American comic books in 1938, has appeared in many types of media since the 1940s. Superman has appeared in radio, television, movies, and video games each on multiple occasions, and his name, symbol, and image have appeared on products and merchandise.

Portrayals

Among the actors who have played Superman / Superboy (and/or his alter ego, Clark Kent) are:

Portrayed by

Voice only

Radio and audio

  • Superman appears in The Adventures of Superman (1940), voiced by Bud Collyer.
  • Superman appears in The Adventures of Superman (1966), voiced by Bob Holiday.
  • Superman appears in several vinyl albums released by Peter Pan Records during the 1970s and 1980s.
  • Superman appears in the BBC radio adaptation of ', voiced by Stuart Milligan.
  • Superman appears in the audio drama DC Comics Super Heroes – Attack of the Elementals, voiced by David Waterman.
  • Superman appears in the audio drama The Never-Ending Battle, voiced by James Konicek.

Film

Animated film

Live-action film

Canceled Superman live-action films

Television

Live-action

Animated television

Canceled Superman animated series

  • At one point, an untitled Superman animated project was in conceptual stage, with designs by James Tucker.
  • There were plans to make an animated series featuring Superman and Batman. It would have been an origin story.
  • Animator Genndy Tartakovsky was developing a Superman short for DC Nation back in 2013, but the block's cancellation in the following year resulted in this animated project getting cut. Early design work on the short was completed.
  • In May 2018, Vinton Heuck and Sean Galloway pitched a Superman Family animated series to Warner Bros. Animation, who rejected it in favor of Harley Quinn. The characters would have included Kong Kenan, Jon Kent, Damian Wayne, Mister Mxyzptlk, and Natasha Irons/Steel, among others.

Video games

Theatre and live performances

Literature and printed media

Newspaper

Superman was a daily newspaper comic strip which began on January 16, 1939, and a separate Sunday strip was added on November 5, 1939. These strips ran continuously until May 1966. In 1941, the McClure Syndicate had placed the strip in hundreds of newspapers. At its peak, the strip, featuring Superman, was in over 300 daily newspapers and 90 Sunday papers, with a readership of over 20 million.

Attractions and theme park rides

Art

Parodies

  • The cartoon Underdog in which Shoeshine Boy becomes "Underdog" with the help of an energy pill.
  • The cartoon series Groovy Goolies featured dimwitted Frankie as "Super Ghoul".
  • Walt Disney's Goofy did a parody of Superman with the help of "super goobers" {Peanuts} in which Goofy became "Super Goof" clothed in red underwear with "SG" and a blue cape and endowed with super ears, super sight, super strength, super voice and super flying. Goofy's crime fighting always interrupted his date with Clarabelle Cow.
  • Warner Brothers' Daffy Duck did a parody of Superman as Stupor Duck.
  • The 2019 superhero horror film Brightburn is a dark deconstruction of the Superman character.
  • Superman's image was used in an AIDS awareness campaign by French organization AIDES. Superman was depicted as emaciated and breathing from an oxygen tank, demonstrating that no-one is beyond the reach of the disease, and it can destroy the lives of everyone.

Merchandising

  • Sunnyland Refining Co., in 1981, marketed jars of creamy and crunchy peanut butter using the familiar image of Superman. In the 50th anniversary publication Fifty Who Made DC Great, it was noted that this was DC's first licensing deal for a brand of food. Soon he had his own hot cocoa mix in 1983.
  • A Superman pinball machine was produced by Atari in 1979.
  • Superman is part of the DC Deckbuilding Game by Cryptozoic Entertainment.

Casting tradition

There is a tradition of past Superman actors returning for new works in the franchise. The first instance in live action was Noel Niell, who played Lois Lane in the serial films, reprising the role in the first TV series. Niell is also one of three Lois actresses to have subsequently played Lois' mother Ella. Aside from reappearances by actors, Christopher Reeve's son Will Reeve appears in the 2025 film as a tribute to his father. Below is a table showing actors who have made appearances across multiple live-action works that feature unobscured Superman characters.

  • A indicates an appearance through archival footage or audio.
  • O indicates an older version of the character.
  • S indicates an appearance through use of special effects.
  • V indicates a voice-only role.
  • Y indicates a younger version of the character.

See also

Notes

References