Which actor looks the most like Superman to you?
- Thread starter JonnyQuest037
- Start date
Lots of actors have played Superman, but Christopher Reeve embodied Superman. Looks aside, no one else has ever captured how Superman should behave and carry himself quite so perfectly. He may not have been a perfect fit for the definitive Curt Swan Superman look of that era, but he superseded it and became an influence on how Superman has been depicted ever since (starting with Byrne).
Second place would be George Reeves, who was a very good fit to the stocky, square-jawed Superman of earlier decades.
Welling occasionally looks a bit like Superman -- his face reminds me of Jeff East from Superman: The Movie, which I suspect may have been a factor in his casting -- but in his general bearing and performance and mumbly delivery, he's usually very far from being right for the part. He's been getting better lately, but not by much.
As I've said before, Routh would get my vote for looking (and sounding) the least like Superman. Second-least would be Cain, who's just too soft-featured and high-voiced to resemble Superman that much. Cain also gets my vote for "worst job differentiating his two identities," aside from Welling, who's obviously out of the running in that category. Best job differentiating Clark and Superman is Reeve by a mile.
Second place would be George Reeves, who was a very good fit to the stocky, square-jawed Superman of earlier decades.
Welling occasionally looks a bit like Superman -- his face reminds me of Jeff East from Superman: The Movie, which I suspect may have been a factor in his casting -- but in his general bearing and performance and mumbly delivery, he's usually very far from being right for the part. He's been getting better lately, but not by much.
As I've said before, Routh would get my vote for looking (and sounding) the least like Superman. Second-least would be Cain, who's just too soft-featured and high-voiced to resemble Superman that much. Cain also gets my vote for "worst job differentiating his two identities," aside from Welling, who's obviously out of the running in that category. Best job differentiating Clark and Superman is Reeve by a mile.
Please, it really depends on what you identify Supes as. For the modern age (80's plus) Supes is portrayed as extremely well built. Chris Reeve while a good looking man, with a nice frame isn't defined to any real degree. He really doesn't look that much like the Superman of his day (body wise)
While going back to the 30-50's Superman had a body shape that Reeve's doesn't even come close to, as its far more bulky (though not heavily defined at all). And George really came very close to that body shape.
So I could never say Chris Reeve really fit the look of Superman for his time.
George Reeves actually is the closest (though I didn't like the material of the time to fit the body shape of the character of his time frame.
Routh though more defined then any Superman, lacks strong enough lines on his face, to pull that visual element off.
Now Reeves did really hit Clark portrayal of the 70's (I always hated clark of that period, really, really hated him). And if the question was who played the best Clark of his era, Chris Reeves would win my vote hands down.
Routh though more defined then any Superman, lacks strong enough lines on his face, to pull that visual element off.
Now Reeves did really hit Clark portrayal of the 70's (I always hated clark of that period, really, really hated him). And if the question was who played the best Clark of his era, Chris Reeves would win my vote hands down.
Looks like he's on his way to doing just that, Greg.
Reeve is definitely my choice, although I do picture George Reeves when I think of a "Golden Age" (or Earth-2) Superman.Sometimes I think Tom Welling could be a decent looking Superman, but he'd have to cut his hair, IMO. Superman should not ever have hair over his ears.
For my money, Dean Cain looks the least like Superman. Superman should always have that all-American look to him, and Cain always looked too Hawaiian for me to buy him as the Man of Steel (Liked his Clark a lot, though!)
The correct answer is Jon Hamm...
Superman (2012)
Honestly, I get much more of a Bruce Wayne vibe from him. When he was in his tux at the Emmys I thought he was a spitting image!
Dean Cain was born in Michigan and grew up in Malibu. His birth father was a half-Japanese man who served in the US Army. Otherwise, his ancestry is primarily Welsh, with some Irish and French Canadian thrown in.
I didn't even find out Dean Cain was part-Japanese until after Lois & Clark ended, so I never noticed any ethnic distinction. I just didn't think he looked or sounded that much like Superman. Of course, the people who cast him were more interested in Clark than Superman; their original idea was never to show Superman at all but focus solely on Clark, Lois, and the Planet. That's why Cain beat out Kevin Sorbo for the role. Sorbo definitely would've had the look for Superman if he'd dyed his hair black, but Cain made a better Clark.
Of all the actors who've played Clark Kent/Superman in live-action, who looks the most like the character to you? Please note that I'm not talking about acting here, I'm just talking about who best fits your mental image of the character.
Everybody but the guy in the T shirt, who, ironically is sandwiched between the best Superman on his right, and the worst on his left.
Didn't mean to imply that he was actually Hawaiian, just saying that that was how he looked to me.
Well, literal-minded sort that I am, I'm confused how "all-American" doesn't include Hawaii (so long as it's post-1959). Isn't that a contradiction in terms?
J
Jetfire
Guest
The correct answer is Jon Hamm...
Superman (2012)
Honestly, I get much more of a Bruce Wayne vibe from him. When he was in his tux at the Emmys I thought he was a spitting image!
I was making a joke at Shazam! From what he said in my "Casting Superman?" thread http://www.trekbbs.com/showpost.php?p=4211856&postcount=3
I actually don't think Jon Hamm looks like Supes.
Superman had shaggy long hair in the comics from 1993 to, uh, I dunno when it stopped, around 1999?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Black_Superman.jpg
Superman had shaggy long hair in the comics from 1993 to, uh, I dunno when it stopped, around 1999?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Black_Superman.jpg
Like I said...
Only if you're taking the term absolutely literally. All I meant was that Dean Cain's mixed heritage shows in his face. Consequently, he doesn't look like Superman to me.
Or if you think of America as an entity defined by its mix of heritages, so that if anything people of mixed heritage are more "all-American" than those of a single heritage.
Well, since Superman is, you know, from another planet, I don't think he should absolutely have to look Caucasian. Heck, it's enough of a stretch that he can even pass as human.
Though like I said, I never noticed that Cain was "ethnic" in appearance; even now, knowing that he's a quarter Japanese, I can barely see it. That sort of thing just doesn't stand out for me the way it does for some people. In retrospect, though, I like the idea of Superman having a subtly exotic appearance, something that doesn't exactly match any single human ethnic group. It's more universal that way.
I'd be fine with Superman having a more exotic appearance if we didn't have 70+ years of comics showing the contrary.
I'll be the first person to vote for Gerard Christopher (Superboy, 1989-1992) - never heard of the guy, but going strictly on looks, he's got a slightly exotic look that synchs well with the idea that Supes is, after all, an alien. Dean Cain and Tom Welling also come close.
I think of Supes as looking clean-cut, not "all American" as a euphemism for Anglo. He's an alien!!!
I think of Supes as looking clean-cut, not "all American" as a euphemism for Anglo. He's an alien!!!
Comic characters are vague enough that we can all fill in the details we like. To me, Supes is an alien and he should look it, at least a little bit. Cain may look too exotic, Welling too little, so I went with Christopher.
Agreed. I was twelve when the first movie came out and I remember thinking then "this guy doesn't look ANYTHING like Superman!" I still feel that way today. In fact I will not buy any of the Superman comics where he looks like Reeves until the other 40 year old fanboys get off their annoying nostalgia trip and start drawing him right again.
None of those guys look like Superman, and the only guy who might've come close for me would'a been Bruce Campell in his prime. Although his voice isn't very "superman" to me.
Similar threads
