Former Superman Actor Officially Confirmed To Return As New DC Hero In The Man Of Steel's Next Appearance
By Published May 11, 2026, 5:17 PM EDT Felipe Rangel is a Movie and TV Journalist ScreenRant. He has been writing about movies and TV since 2026. Felipe joined ScreenRant in 2026, working across different teams, covering everything from breaking news to features to reviews and more.
Felipe is a writer who is an avid film and TV fan, with superhero movies and series being his biggest passion. He graduated from college in 2019, having studied Journalism. Before college, he spent a month studying at the Oxford English Centre. His superhero knowledge expands to the comics, with his undergraduate thesis being "Politics Reflected In American Comics." Summary Generate a summary of this story follow Follow followed Followed Like Like 13 Log in Here is a fact-based summary of the story contents: Try something different: Show me the facts Explain it like I’m 5 Give me a lighthearted recap
A former is flying again, but there is a twist.
has a long history of adaptations, leading to several across a wide variety of projects. In live-action, names like Christopher Reeve, Brandon Routh, Tyler Hoechlin, Henry Cavill, and more added to the character's legacy before David Corenswet got to join the as its version of the Man of Steel. In animation, the hero has had just as important of a legacy, with Clark Kent appearing in a slew of animated movies and TV shows. The latter is how the DC hero returns, and it will include a surprise casting.
[SITEURL] | Fortress Files Interactive Quiz ScreenRant/ DC/ Superman/ Trivia Metropolis · Daily Planet Edition Superman
Trivia Challenge 🌏OriginsLast son ☠VillainsKneel! ⚡PowersInvincible 🎥FilmsBelieve 💫LegacyHope UP, UP AND AWAY! → QUESTION 1 / 8ORIGINS 01 Before he was Clark Kent, Superman was born Kal-El on a distant planet doomed to destruction. His parents Jor-El and Lara placed him in a rocket ship as an infant, sending him across the cosmos to Earth. What is the name of Superman’s home planet? AThanagar BKrypton CApokolips DOa ✓ Correct! Krypton was a scientifically advanced planet that exploded due to its unstable core. Jor-El, Superman’s father, was the only scientist who foresaw the catastrophe and managed to save his son by launching him toward Earth in a small spacecraft. ✗ Not faster than a speeding bullet on that one! The answer is Krypton. Thanagar is Hawkman’s homeworld, Apokolips is Darkseid’s domain, and Oa is the headquarters of the Green Lantern Corps. Krypton’s destruction is the defining event of Superman’s origin story. NEXT → QUESTION 2 / 8ALLIES 02 Superman’s greatest love is a fearless, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist who works alongside Clark Kent at the Daily Planet. She’s known for her relentless pursuit of the truth and for being one of the few people who sees both the hero and the man. Who is she? ADiana Prince BLana Lang CLois Lane DCat Grant ✓ Correct! Lois Lane has been Superman’s primary love interest since her debut in Action Comics #1 in 1938. A brilliant investigative reporter, she’s as iconic as Superman himself — tough, smart, and unafraid to chase the biggest stories in Metropolis. ✗ Not faster than a speeding bullet on that one! The answer is Lois Lane. Diana Prince is Wonder Woman, Lana Lang is Clark’s high school sweetheart from Smallville, and Cat Grant is a gossip columnist at the Daily Planet. Lois Lane is Superman’s iconic partner. NEXT → QUESTION 3 / 8WEAKNESS 03 Despite being nearly invulnerable under Earth’s yellow sun, Superman has one famous weakness — a radioactive mineral from the remnants of his destroyed homeworld. Exposure to it drains his powers and can even kill him. What is this substance called? AKryptonite BVibranium CNth Metal DRed Sun Ore ✓ Correct! Kryptonite is the irradiated remnants of planet Krypton. Green Kryptonite is the most common and deadly variety, but there are many other types — Red Kryptonite causes unpredictable behavior, Gold Kryptonite can permanently strip his powers, and Blue Kryptonite affects Bizarro. ✗ Not faster than a speeding bullet on that one! The answer is Kryptonite. Vibranium is from Marvel’s Black Panther universe, Nth Metal is tied to Hawkman, and Red Sun Ore isn’t a real DC substance. Kryptonite is the iconic green-glowing mineral that is Superman’s ultimate weakness. NEXT → QUESTION 4 / 8FILMS 04 In 1978, a then-unknown actor donned the cape and made the world believe a man could fly. His portrayal of Superman became the gold standard for superhero films and he starred in four Superman movies. Who is this legendary actor? AHenry Cavill BBrandon Routh CTom Welling DChristopher Reeve ✓ Correct! Christopher Reeve’s portrayal in Superman: The Movie (1978) is widely regarded as the definitive live-action Superman. His performance perfectly balanced the heroic confidence of Superman with the endearing clumsiness of Clark Kent, setting the template every Superman actor has followed since. ✗ Not faster than a speeding bullet on that one! The answer is Christopher Reeve. Henry Cavill played Superman in the DCEU starting with Man of Steel (2013), Brandon Routh starred in Superman Returns (2006), and Tom Welling played young Clark in TV’s Smallville. Reeve was the original big-screen Superman. NEXT → QUESTION 5 / 8VILLAINS 05 Superman’s greatest enemy isn’t a superpowered alien — he’s a brilliant, ruthless human billionaire who believes Superman is a threat to humanity’s potential. This bald-headed genius has been Superman’s archenemy for over 80 years. Who is he? ABrainiac BLex Luthor CDarkseid DDoomsday ✓ Correct! Lex Luthor is the ultimate foil to Superman — where Superman represents hope and selflessness, Luthor represents ambition and ego. Despite having no superpowers, his genius-level intellect and vast resources make him Superman’s most persistent and dangerous adversary. ✗ Not faster than a speeding bullet on that one! The answer is Lex Luthor. Brainiac is an alien android who collects cities, Darkseid is the god-like ruler of Apokolips, and Doomsday is the monster who famously killed Superman. But Lex Luthor is the definitive archenemy — Superman’s dark mirror. NEXT → QUESTION 6 / 8ORIGINS 06 After crash-landing on Earth as a baby, Kal-El was found and adopted by Jonathan and Martha Kent, a kind farming couple. They raised him with strong moral values in a small rural town. Where did Clark Kent grow up? AGotham City BMetropolis CSmallville, Kansas DCoast City ✓ Correct! Smallville, Kansas is the quintessential American small town where Jonathan and Martha Kent raised Clark with heartland values of honesty, compassion, and humility. It’s the foundation of who Superman is — not the powers from Krypton, but the character instilled by his Kansas parents. ✗ Not faster than a speeding bullet on that one! The answer is Smallville, Kansas. Gotham is Batman’s city, Metropolis is where Clark moves as an adult to work at the Daily Planet, and Coast City is Green Lantern’s home. Smallville is where the Kents raised Clark on their farm. NEXT → QUESTION 7 / 8IDENTITY 07 As Clark Kent, Superman disguises himself as a mild-mannered reporter working at Metropolis’s most famous newspaper, alongside Lois Lane and photographer Jimmy Olsen. Their editor-in-chief Perry White runs the newsroom. What is the name of this newspaper? ADaily Planet BDaily Bugle CMetropolis Star DGotham Gazette ✓ Correct! The Daily Planet, with its iconic globe on the rooftop, is one of the most recognizable fictional newspapers in pop culture. Working there gives Clark Kent both a cover identity and a way to stay informed about threats to the city and the world. ✗ Not faster than a speeding bullet on that one! The answer is the Daily Planet. The Daily Bugle is Spider-Man’s Marvel universe newspaper, the Metropolis Star and Gotham Gazette are lesser DC publications. The Daily Planet — with its spinning globe — is Superman’s journalistic home. NEXT → QUESTION 8 / 8VILLAINS 08 This Kryptonian military commander was banished to the Phantom Zone for treason before Krypton’s destruction. He escaped and came to Earth seeking vengeance, famously demanding that others “Kneel before” him. His iconic portrayal by Terence Stamp cemented him in pop culture. Who is this villain? ABizarro BParasite CMetallo DGeneral Zod ✓ Correct! General Zod is one of Superman’s most terrifying foes because he has all of Superman’s powers but none of his morality. Terence Stamp’s portrayal in Superman II (1980) made “Kneel before Zod” one of the most quoted villain lines in film history. Michael Shannon later reimagined the role in Man of Steel (2013). ✗ Not faster than a speeding bullet on that one! The answer is General Zod. Bizarro is a flawed clone of Superman, Parasite drains powers through touch, and Metallo is a cyborg with a Kryptonite heart. General Zod is the Kryptonian military leader whose cry of “Kneel before Zod!” echoes through decades of Superman stories. REVEAL MY SCORE → Mission Complete Your Kryptonian Record / 8 Are you the Man of Steel — or still stuck in a phone booth? ↻ FLY AGAIN
has revealed that Darren Criss will play Conner Kent, aka Superboy, in season 3. It had been previously announced that the character would debut in the , which stars The Boys' Jack Quaid as Superman. Season 3 is set to adapt the iconic "Reign of the Supermen" arc from DC Comics, which saw multiple replacements for the Man of Steel emerge after Superman died fighting Doomsday. While the animated series will not kill Superman to see the replacements rise, Superboy, Steel, and more will still appear. Criss' casting is surprising for one reason.
Check out a new look at Darren Criss' Superboy in My Adventures with Superman season 3 from Collider below:
Criss is one of the actors who have voiced Superman in the Man of Steel's long history, and it was not that long ago. The Glee alum first played the DC hero in 2026's Man of Tomorrow, going on to reprise the role in several animated movies in the Tomorrowverse franchise. Criss' latest appearance as Superman landed on July 16, 2026, before Gunn's DCU released its first project, Creature Commandos, that December. That movie, Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths — Part Three, served as the finale of the Tomorrowverse, wiping the slate clean for something new to come after it.
As such, Criss is going from Superman to Superboy only a couple of years later, which is an interesting casting choice for My Adventures with Superman season 3. Speaking to , showrunner Jake Wyatt claimed that Superboy "was the writers' and the artists' favorite character for the season." With Criss' casting as the DC hero, that statement becomes even more relevant, as the former Superman actor will play an exciting and key role in the returning series.
Superboy's suit looks similar to that of Quaid's Superman, with a few changes that include red fingerless gloves, red on the sides of his suit, and no cape. Superboy's My Adventures with Superman season 3 debut comes after season 2 introduced Kiana Madeira's Supergirl, who was crucial to the show's Brainiac arc. Kara Zor-El will also return in season 3, now trying to get used to her new life on Earth. It stands to be seen how Superman and Supergirl get along with Superboy.
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My Adventures with Superman holds a rare perfect 100% critics' score on Rotten Tomatoes, with a high 80% audience score. Criss, Quaid, and Madeira will be joined by returning stars that include Alice Lee as Lois Lane, Ishmel Sahid as Jimmy Olsen, and more. My Adventures with Superman season 3's Superboy casting raises excitement for the DC series' next season.
My Adventures with Superman season 3 will debut on June 13 on Adult Swim's Toonami anime/action block at midnight ET/PT and on HBO Max on June 14.
Cast
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Clark Kent / Superman (voice) -
Lois Lane (voice)
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