Superman in film
' Superman, created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster in June 1938, has featured in various films. The character debuted in cinemas in a series of animated shorts beginning in 1941 and was the protagonist of two movie serials in 1948 and 1950. An independent studio, Lippert Pictures, released the first Superman feature film, Superman and the Mole Men, starring George Reeves, in 1951. In 1973, the film rights to the Superman character were purchased by Ilya Salkind, Alexander Salkind, and Pierre Spengler. After multiple scripts and several years in development, Richard Donner was hired as director, and he shot two films, Superman , and Superman II, at the same time, both starring Christopher Reeve. Donner had filmed 75 percent of Superman II before it was decided to suspend shooting on the first film. The Salkinds fired Donner after Superman was released and commissioned Richard Lester as the director to finish Superman II. Lester returned to direct Superman III. The Salkinds also produced the spin-off Supergirl. They then sold the rights to Cannon Films, which produced the poorly reviewed Superman IV: The Quest for Peace. Ilya Salkind commissioned a fifth Superman script before Warner Bros. acquired the rights in 1993.
Over the course of 11 years, Warner Bros. developed and canceled three projects: Tim Burton's Superman Lives, which would have starred Nicolas Cage; Wolfgang Petersen's Batman vs. Superman; and the J. J. Abrams-scripted Superman: Flyby which went between directors Joseph "McG" Nichols and Brett Ratner. In 2004, the studio hired Bryan Singer and released Superman Returns in 2006, starring Brandon Routh. Donner's director's cut for Superman II was also released that year. Despite positive reviews, Warner Bros. was disappointed with the financial performance of Superman Returns, and canceled a sequel, which would have been released in 2009. The studio nearly started production of a Justice League film with George Miller directing and D. J. Cotrona as Superman for a 2009 release, but it was shelved in 2008.
The film series was rebooted in 2013 with Man of Steel, directed by Zack Snyder with Henry Cavill starring as Superman. Man of Steel launched what became known as the DC Extended Universe. Cavill next appeared as Superman in the DCEU films Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and Justice League , and in the director's cut of Justice League, Zack Snyder's Justice League ; he then made a cameo appearance in the mid-credits scene of Black Adam. The Flash featured Superman cameos portrayed by Henry Cavill, Nicolas Cage, George Reeves, and Christopher Reeve. Sasha Calle, along with Helen Slater, appeared as Supergirl in the film.
The series was once again rebooted with Superman, with David Corenswet as Superman. The film was written and directed by James Gunn and is the first film of the DC Universe. Milly Alcock portrayed Supergirl in the film, and is set to reprise the role in the upcoming Supergirl.
List of films
Direct-to-video, cameos, and others
- 1954: Stamp Day for Superman — a short film produced for the U.S. Treasury to promote "Stamp Day", featuring George Reeves as Superman and Noel Neill as Lois Lane.
- 1992: Tiny Toon Adventures: How I Spent My Vacation – direct-to-video, featuring Jonathan Winters as Superman.
- 2006: Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut — the director's cut of Superman II, featuring around 80% new footage originally shot by director Richard Donner, including material featuring Marlon Brando.
- 2006: Superman: Brainiac Attacks — direct-to-video film utilizing character designs from Superman: The Animated Series; starring Tim Daly and Dana Delany.
- 2017: DC Super Heroes vs. Eagle Talon — animated film in which Superman is voiced by Kenichi Suzumura.
- 2018: Teen Titans Go! To the Movies — animated film in which Superman is voiced by Nicolas Cage.
- 2019: Shazam! — part of the DC Extended Universe in which Superman cameos, portrayed using Ryan Hadley as a stand-in for Henry Cavill. Superman was also seen controlling a crowd of fans who wanted to have their pictures taken with Aquaman and arm-wrestling with Shazam in the film's animated end credits sequence.
- 2020: Superman: Red Son , where he lands in Ukraine and accepts Soviet values.
- 2022: DC League of Super-Pets — animated film in which Superman is voiced by John Krasinski.
- 2022: Batman and Superman: Battle of the Super Sons – direct-to-video film in which Superman is voiced by Travis Willingham.
- 2022: Black Adam — part of the DC Extended Universe in which Superman cameos, played by Henry Cavill.
- 2023: The Flash — Superman cameos are portrayed by Henry Cavill, Nicolas Cage, Christopher Reeve and George Reeves. Sasha Calle stars as Supergirl along with a cameo by Helen Slater.
Lego DC Comics films
- 2013: Lego Batman: The Movie - DC Super Heroes Unite — Superman is voiced by Travis Willingham.
- 2014: The Lego Movie — Superman appears brieftly, voiced by Channing Tatum.
- 2014: Lego DC Comics Super Heroes: Batman Be-Leaguered — TV special featuring Nolan North as Superman.
- 2015: Lego DC Comics Super Heroes: Justice League vs. Bizarro League — direct-to-video with Superman voiced by Nolan North.
- 2015: Lego DC Comics Super Heroes: Justice League: Attack of the Legion of Doom — direct-to-video with Nolan North reprising his role as Superman.
- 2016: Lego DC Comics Super Heroes: Justice League: Cosmic Clash – direct-to-video with Nolan North reprising his role.
- 2017: The Lego Batman Movie — animated film featuring Superman with Channing Tatum reprising his role.
- 2019: The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part — animated film featuring Superman with Channing Tatum reprising his role.
Unofficial adaptations and parodies
- 1960: Return of Mr. Superman — Indian Hindi-language retelling of Superman, with the title role played by Paidi Jairaj.
- 1979: The Return of Superman — a Turkish adaptation directed by Kunt Tulgar and starring Tayfun Demir as Superman.
- 1980: Superman — Indian Telugu-language film starring N. T. Rama Rao as Superman.
- 1987: Superman — Indian Hindi-language film with Puneet Issar as Superman.
- 2011: The Death and Return of Superman — short film released on YouTube by writer Max Landis.
Animated Original Movies universe
| Title | Release date | Voice actor | Notes |
| 2007 | Superman: Doomsday | Adam Baldwin | |
| 2008 | Justice League: The New Frontier | Kyle MacLachlan | |
| 2009 | Superman/Batman: Public Enemies | Tim Daly | |
| 2010 | Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths | Mark Harmon | |
| 2010 | Superman/Batman: Apocalypse | Tim Daly | |
| 2010 | Batman: Under the Red Hood | N/A | Superman is only referenced through Amazo. |
| 2010 | Superman/Shazam!: The Return of Black Adam | George Newbern | short film |
| 2011 | All-Star Superman | James Denton | |
| 2012 | Justice League: Doom | Tim Daly | |
| 2012 | Superman vs. The Elite | George Newbern | |
| 2013 | Batman: The Dark Knight Returns | Mark Valley | Superman only appears in the second part of this two-part adaptation of the graphic novel. |
| 2013 | Superman: Unbound | Matt Bomer | |
| 2013 | Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox | Sam Daly | Sam Daly is the son of Tim Daly. |
| 2014 | JLA Adventures: Trapped in Time | Peter Jessop | |
| 2014 | Justice League: War | Alan Tudyk | |
| 2015 | Justice League: Throne of Atlantis | Jerry O'Connell | |
| 2015 | Justice League: Gods and Monsters | Benjamin Bratt | Features a reimagined version of Superman who is the son of General Zod. |
| 2015 | Justice League vs. Teen Titans | Jerry O'Connell | |
| 2017 | Justice League Dark | Jerry O'Connell | |
| 2018 | The Death of Superman | Jerry O'Connell | |
| 2019 | Reign of the Supermen | Jerry O'Connell | |
| 2019 | Batman: Hush | Jerry O'Connell | |
| 2019 | Justice League vs. the Fatal Five | George Newbern | |
| 2020 | Superman: Red Son | Jason Isaacs | |
| 2020 | Justice League Dark: Apokolips War | Jerry O'Connell | |
| 2020 | Superman: Man of Tomorrow | Darren Criss | |
| 2021 | Justice Society: World War II | Darren Criss | Criss portrays the same character from Man of Tomorrow and a parallel reality version nicknamed as 'Shakespeare'. |
| 2021 | Injustice | Justin Hartley | Hartley also portrays the Earth-1 version of the character. |
| 2022 | Batman and Superman: Battle of the Super Sons | Travis Willingham | |
| 2023 | Legion of Super Heroes | Darren Criss | |
| 2023 | Justice League: Warworld | Darren Criss | |
| 2024 | Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths | Darren Criss | Criss also portrays the Earth-2 version of the character. |