Lois & Clark Forums Forums General Discussion Lois & Clark Ideal Superman Cast

Using everyone who has ever played the roles of Clark Kent/Superman, Lois Lane, Perry White, Jimmy Olsen and Lex Luthor over the years, create your ultimate cast. Must be mixed from a minimum of three series'.
Here's mine.

Clark Kent/Superman: Christopher Reeve. When watching him play the role, all others are forgotten....

Lois Lane: Teri Hatcher. No one will ever play Lois like she did. Perfect for the role. People always say no one will ever play Superman as well as Chris Reeve, and it's just as true with Teri as Lois. Anyone who thinks differently is just Kidding themselves.

Jimmy Olsen: Justin Whalin. Theres never been a better Jimmy. Enough said.

Perry White = Lane Smith. Need I say more?

Lex Luthor: That guy from Smallville but older.


Oh and feel free to add other characters to this.

Superman- Christopher Reeves,just because of the height
Clark Kent- Dean Cain, the best ever in putting to life this character.
Lois Lane- definitely Teri Hatcher
Jimmy Olsen- Justin Whalin
Perry White- Lane Smith

So, pretty much for me, it's a Lois & Clark line-up. No other show comes close to it, anyway.

I used to love the Chris Reeve movies (well, the first two anyway ). But after watching LNC, all bets were off, I'm afraid. So for me it would have to be Dean and Teri in their roles. No one comes close.

I was already a huge fan of Justin Whalen, thanks to a guest star role he did for one of my other all-time favourite shows, The Young Riders. So I tend to favour him for the role of Jimmy. I have nothing against Michael Landes, but for me S1 Jimmy was just too mature for the role as I'd always envisaged it. Too street-smart, not as naive as he should be. Justin and the way Jimmy as written for him was perfect.

Perry - I enjoyed the actor who played him in the Reeve movies, but Lane Smith, again, just had something that said Perry White to me.

Lex Luthor - I hadn't seen many incarnations of Lex, other than Gene Hackman in the Reeve movies and I always thought he was too over the top. John Shea on the other hand gave a wonderfully complex cast to the character and was devilishly handsome to boot. So guess who scores best of all there. I much prefer Shea's smoothly evil persona than Hackman's more comedic take.

LabRat

I'm actually not a big fan of Superman (comics movies, smallville) so I'm not sure I will even go see the new Superman movie. If they would get the cast of LnC back together of course then I'd be running to the theater. For me Dean IS Superman.

Jackie

See, this is exactly why I said a minimum of three series' cast mixed in. Yes, the Lois and Clark cast did a great job, I know that. But the whole point was to blend it up a little. I dunno why I bothered starting the thread now, no one seems to understand the concept of a pick 'n' mix....

Honestly next you'll all be saying Lord Nor was a better Evil Kryptonian than General Zod. Nah, who'd be that crazy?

I think it's less that we don't understand the concept of 'pick and mix' than that those who've replied actually do prefer the Lois and Clark actors. Personally, I can't watch the Superman movies any more; I find them embarrassing. Great actor though Christopher Reeve was, he can't compensate for Margot Kidder, and I don't like the version of the Superman mythos in which Clark is the disguise. Reeve's Clark makes me want to switch channels. I hated that aspect of Superman II (actually, I didn't like much at all in that film once we got past Clark giving up Superman's powers because Lois said she was in love with Superman... go figure. ), and I'm not a fan of the New Krypton arc in Lois and Clark.

Everyone's entitled to their own opinion, Jensguy, remember - and that's all this is: an opinion.


Wendy

Sorry I overreacted, but I did specifically say in my first post in this thread to mix the cast from a minimum of three series. The whole point of that was to encourage a little thinking outside the box.

I'm sorry if I came across as if opinions other than mine were irrelivant. That was 100% not my intention, as the whole point of this thread was to get people's opinions. And yes I agree with you about Margot Kidder (See my first post in this thread for evidence of that). No one believes more strongly than I do in freedom of expression. I just get carried away sometimes. Just like when I was 3 running round the room with a red blanket behind me and wearing out my Superman videos. lol. You've probabally already guessed this and don't like it, but I see Lois and Clark as ONE POSSIBLE INTERPRITATION of a constantly reinventable character. By no means am I so obsessed with, say Chris Reeve's portrayal, that I don't see how brilliant Dean Cain was in the role. No version will ever get it perfect, but give me the Lois and Clark TV series and the Reeve films and I'd be happy with those and Lois and Clark fanfic. Oh and a one off special of Lois and Clark to tie up the loose end(s?).

Sorry to rant on for so long people.

As for our opinions on the best actors to play roles in the Superverse, I hope we'll have reason to change our minds next year.....

Well, aside from the fact that I'm lurking more than anything else these days, there are a couple of problems that I have that make it difficult, if not impossible, for me to answer this. And this may apply to others as well.

1. You referred to creating the "ultimate cast". Which implies choosing the best/ideal person for each role. Now, I remain a big fan of the first 2 Superman movies, despite the fact that my distinct preference is for the non-dorky Clark Kent. In some ways I prefer Christopher's Superman to Dean's - perhaps because he is the "real" person, rather than the disguise. From the movies, I have no real quarrel with some of the other characters you mention, but for all of them I definitely prefer the L&C actors. So they're the ones I would want on my "best" list.

2. It's hard combining different shows/movies, because they represented different times. My understanding from the comics of the time of the movies is that Clark Kent was a dork, so Christopher's performance was certainly accurate. But obviously that wouldn't have worked on L&C, on so many levels. If there hadn't been the revamp where Clark was the "real" person, there wouldn't have been an L&C.
I had no objections to a totally over-the-top Lex Luthor in the movies, but then having seen an urbane, sophisticated yet truly evil Lex on L&C, that definitely wins hands down for me. Would that style of portrayal have worked as well in the movie - perhaps, perhaps not...

3. And having knocked out the movies, I have nowhere else to go. I know that I saw reruns of the George Reeves' show when I was young, but I don't remember enough about it to possibly place any of those actors on the "best" list. And as for Smallville, I love reading the reviews and comments that people post on the boards, but I've only seen 3-4 episodes. I do like Lex, but not better than John Shea, so he doesn't supplant him on the list either.
I've never watched the animated series. Are there any other choices?

I have a number of concerns about the new movie, and I'm certainly unhappy about the fact that since they've returned to movie continuity this means that Clark will be a dork once again. I'll definitely see it, but I think I can safely say in advance that L&C will remain my favorite incarnation.

Kathy

OK, fair enough. Some thoughts on your thoughts however.

1. OK, I should've been more careful with the words I chose.

2. You're right. Howeveroe thing you mention here I do disagree with. I think that neither Clark or Superman is the "real" person, but that both the cape and the glasses are disgiuses to hide the true man underneath.

3. Fair enough. I suppose there isn't as much out there as you'd think even after 70 odd years.

4. I have a few concerns about the movie too. Such as if they're using movie continuity, does that mean it's gonna be a pre-Crisis Superman?

5. Lois and Clark is probabally the best incarnation so far. However as I said before, no version will ever get it perfect, and Lois and Clark didn't (Hey, watch where you're throwing those tomatoes people!).

Now, finally son of Jor-El....

In the spirit of things...

Superman: Christopher Reeve.

Clark Kent: Dean Cain

Lois Lane: Teri Hatcher.

Jimmy Olsen: Michael Landes, hands down. Sorry Labby, but the very reasons you don't like him, I do! He reminded me more of the Jimmy Olsen of the comic books.

Perry White: Lane Smith, though the Elvis stuff was a shocker to get over, at first.

Lex Luthor: John Shea all the way.

Martha Kent: K Callan

Jonathan Kent: John Schneider.

Lana: Kristin Kreuk

Kryptonian villian: Zod! Nor was sooooo over the top!

Nice one.

Nice to see someone buying the variety mix.

"Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom"2 Corinthians 3:17
Yes, but not where the Pope is there isn't.....

I assume you're a ST:TNG fan mr_d8a?

Please be careful about responding inside a quote. I didn't even realize you had had other comments until I noticed that it looked a little different.

>>Superman: Christopher Reeve.

>>Clark Kent: Dean Cain

>Can't really see two actors splitting the role but agree it would be best in this case. Besides if The Hulk can do it.....

It's that Kryptionian muscle control...

>>Lex Luthor: John Shea all the way.

>Amen to that. Only thing I'd change is I'd have made him bald from the beginning. It's traditional.

Or at least bald with a really nice toupee...

>>Martha Kent: K Callan

>>Jonathan Kent: John Schneider.

>OK, too weird a couple......

Well, you'd have to do some time manipulation to get the right age for the two. Geez! Personnally, I'd make K younger as she could only get better. We don't know what John will look like as an old man...

>>Lana: Kristin Kreuk

>From Smallville?

Yes.

James

I can't really pick cast, since L&C is my main exposure, along with Justice League (Unlimited). And in JLU, there's a lot more than just Superman. Though I did like one episode where Clark/Superman (wearing the suit) and Lois had a picnic lunch on the top of some building. The conversation seemed like L&C to me.

Smallville: Don't watch it, never will. The reviews I've heard have just strengthened my resolve against it. I've seen one episode and I wasn't too impressed. Fandom factoid: the title Lex Go *SPLAT* came from a conversation between me and a friend who was watching Smallville and talking about Lex. I was insisting Lex was dead.

The movies: I didn't really like them before I saw L&C, and I'm still not a fan. Post-crisis Clark/Superman has become the way it *should* be to me.

And I've never seen the previous series.

Now, as far as the the new movie goes, yes, it looks like they're going pre-crisis. In fact, if you've seen the pictures of the new actor, he looks a <b>heck</b> a lot like Christopher Reeves. Which means I'm losing interest in the movie. Which is sad, since I like what Bryan Singer did with X-Men.

The Hulk has Krytonian muscle control? COOL!!!

Yeah, post-Crisis is infinitely better......

Mixing and matching is hard. Mostly because you're right -- the characters have evolved quite a bit over time. I love Chris Reeve's Superman (and the little details, like the way they tinted his hair blue when he was in the suit), but putting him with Teri just wouldn't work for me. I mean, can you imagine Silver Age Lois with Modern Age Clark? He's trying to deal with real problems and take a mature look at his crazy world while she's running around, obsessed with proving that he's Superman in disguise. She thinks she's Superman's girlfriend, but to Clark, she's supposed to be his wife. Meantime, somewhere in the background, Jimmy has mutated into a giant tentacled monster again and Golden Age Perry is sitting in his austere office, waiting for someone to come in and talk to him, prefably to explain the flimsy and very unusual typewriter which suddenly appeared on his desk.

Whatever you think of Smallville, mixing the teenaged characters with the adults from other versions would create all sorts of problems.

I keep trying to come up with a way around it, but it's still not fair. For example... Chris Reeve is the best Superman, but the Silver Age writing just doesn't cut it for me. Sometimes, it almost hurts to see bumbling Clark. Even just focusing on Superman, there's a lot of baggage. The plot holes. The random powers they decided to add (since when did Superman have telekinesis?).

Still...

Dean makes the best Clark. Not much question about that.

Lois is harder for me. I don't like Margot Kidder's version. I do love L&C, but I am not a fan of Teri's. I think I may have to go with the George Reeves version here, even if I don't remember the names of the cast.

I liked the George Reeves version of Jimmy, too. Silly, but classic.

Lane Smith carried over a lot of my favorite aspects of the George Reeves version of Perry, and he brought more depth to the character. Partly because L&C was a more modern show, with 1 hour episodes and better, more mature writing.

When Batman shows up for the crossover ep, I'm going to have to pick Kevin Conroy.

As for the movie, I haven't been paying too much attention. I'll wait till they have their stuff more together and we can see actual trailers and such. The only photos of the actor I've really seen were photoshopped images of his head on Chris Reeve's body. Besides, the whole thing's been through too many revisions to count.

Are you guys sure about continuity, though? I thought they were taking their cue from Batman and starting fresh. Okay, Superman IV wasn't as bad as Batman and Robin. At least the former is watchable and even has its moments. Still, you'd think, especially after all this time, that they'd be better off without that burden of pre-Crisis continuity.

Speaking of post-Crisis continuity... I agree that it's infinitely better than pre-Crisis, but what's going to happen post-Inifinite Crisis?

Oh, and one last thing... "Kneel before Zod!" indeed...

Paul

Lois Lane: Teri Hatcher. She has made the role hers for live action.

All other characters are irrelevant.

Tank (who is on record as not caring for the Margot Kidder portrayal... not caring at all)

That's like saying Bob Cratchet is the only relevent character in A Christmas Carol. Granted Lois is a bit more important (She's like Jacob Marley) but I don't think Teri in a one woman show acting as Lois would be that popular, unless of course she had hair down to her knees........

*sigh* I wish. Here's what Coming Soon has for the plot info:

That site, and Superhero Hype has pictures and other articles on the movie.

By the way, I meant the hair on her head before anyone accuses me of anything. Hey Tank, Herb says hi.

Superman: Hard to decide between Christopher Reeves and Dean Cain. The former has the height but the latter has the build. Still, if I had a gun to my head I'd probably scream, Christopher Reeves!! Just please pad the briefs. TMI, man."

Clark Kent: Defintely Dean Cain for excellent post-Crisis characterization. (As funny as it is watching Kal-El pretend to be Clark Kent I'm so much more intrigued by Clark Kent as himself.)

Lois Lane: Another hard one. Both Teri Hatcher and Erica Durance have that neurotic quality that I love in my Lois Lanes. Durance has that harder edge and Hatcher has humor and quirkiness. But I suppose it all depends on which Clark Kent you choose. I really couldn't see the Durance Lois Lane having all that much chemistry with Dean Cain's CK She's too hard and angry for him. So... Teri Hatcher.

Jimmy Olsen: Michael Landes - So eager and pathetic all at once. My favorite kind of Jimmy Olsen.

Perry White: Lane Smith - It's his southern tinged growl that gets me every time.

Lex Luthor: Michael Rosenbaum is hands down the best Lex Luthor I've seen or read in all the time I've been a fan of Superman. He's handsome and evil all at once. He's slick but has hiccups of madness. His evil side has this oddly humorous quality. In the Smallville episode "Aqua" Rosenbaum has this scene that had me snickering. Felt bad about it afterwards because, really, torture isn't supposed to be funny. Or sexy. And yet Rosenbaum makes it both.

Ma Kent: K Callan - I love how she teases her boy. She's just so much fun. Wise but not somber. She's so modern it's hilarious. Oh my god, it's the funniest thing in the world to think about Superman's mom embarassing him! I can totally see K Callan's character doing that.

Pa Kent: John Schneider - I just like how solidly he portrays both a father and a farmer. (Plus, I've been in love with him since my nanny let me watch Dukes of Hazzard when I was five.)

Well, I've babbled on long enough. I hear my brother waking up and I've gotta get to those leftovers before he does.

Happy Shopping Day!! (to those who do Shopping Day) Happy Friday!! (to those who don't)

Clark Kent/Superman: Josh Zwifler or Ethan Hienz
Lois Lane: Erika Jacobson or Whitney Fruidenburg
Lex Luthor: Chris Neal-Tripp or Ethan Hienz

Oh...you were talking about FAMOUS people who have already DONE the roles. sorry...but when you know the fabulious actors/actresses I knw it's kinda hard...Seriously...Ethan my verry well be the best actor I've ever met...and he has this freakishly awesome evil laugh that would make me TOTALLY think he'd be AWESOME as Lex...but you wanna talk powerfully evil? Chris played the ghost of Hamlet's father in "Hamlet" and scared EVERYBODY in the audence so bad..hehe. and Josh Zwifler...well...you know what Lois said "every woman in love thinks her man looks like Superman" but in his case...it's TRUE. 6'4, and REALLY good-looking (silently praying he dosen't read these boards...he's just my crush not my boyfriend or anything...) And Erika Jacobson...well...she's one of my best friends...but we do have a bit of a Lois/Jimmy type relationship...in the sence that she tells me what to do and, ususally under protest, I do it. But Whitney is the best leading lady actress EVER and...

yeah...this was a terrablly pointless rant.

Personally? I say L&C's cast but with John Shinider as Johnithen would be my ideal Superman cast from people who already have had the roles...

Maybe Steven Strait as Lex though.

I'm in complete agreement with Greenie's casting choices, except for Jimmy - I have to go with Justin Whalen.

Labrat wrote:
Oh, I loved that show!!! I still have the episode on tape where the Kid and Lou made love for the first time...I fast forward through the stupid A plot in that one to get to all of the scenes with them together. (The Kid in the shower stall...yum!)

I really liked John Shea's portrayal, and enjoyed the fact that he had hair (when he came back to life bald, I thought he looked stupid). But Michael Rosenbaum is just delicious! I can't take my eyes off him (in fact, the only time I truely pay attention to Smallville is when Lex is on screen). Mmmmm, sexy Lexy!

ROTFL! Yeah, that one was a keeper. /me tries to remember the aplot and fails. I was a huge K/L ship fan and any episode that concentrated on them was a favourite. Although, I was also a huge J/L ship fan and their episodes were favourites, too. So sue me - I was fickle.

Do you remember the episode with JW, Susan? The one where he played the young outlaw, who developed a crush on Lou and inadvertantly brought her and Kid together? The one where Kid proposed at the end? JW was marvellous in it.

<sigh> Now, that's a show that needs to be brought out on DVD. My tapes are wearing mighty thin.

LabRat

LOL...it had something to do with Cody and an old wilderness guy who was shooting at people with his shotgun.

J/L - blech! K/L all the way!

Sigh...yes, so sweet! I hadn't realized it was Justin until after L&C when I went back through my Young Riders tapes and saw that episode again. (I only kept the ones that focused on K/L!) Justin was great in that one.

No kidding! I would buy that series in a heartbeat! I taped every episode of both L&C and YR from the original broadcasts, but did it in extended play, so now they're all basically unwatchable (same with my Young Indiana Jones Chronicles collection).

There actually is already a trailer being played in theaters and on the movie's website. http://supermanreturns.warnerbros.com/trailer.html It *looks* okay so far, but I'm not holding my breath.