Six actors have played Superman since Christopher Reeve’s Superman in 1978, and they all came together to pay him tribute at the recent MegaCon event in Orlando, Florida. They discussed his legacy, which still stands two decades after his passing at 52.
The Superman stars present were Tyler Hoechlin from Superman & Lois, Brandon Routh from Superman Returns, Lois & Clark’s Dean Cain, Tim Daly of Superman: The Animated Series, and George Newbern from the Justice League animated series, and Tom Welling from Smallville. They all sat on stage during the panel, recalling their experience meeting and working with Reeve, who died of heart failure.
MegaCon attendees pay tribute to Christopher Reeve
Tom had a rethink about his life and career after working with Reeve during a season two episode of Smallville. While Tom played Clark Kent, Reeve was scientist Virgil Swann in the series. Reeve never wanted to leave the set, even when he was done filming, and it took his nurse and attorney threatening to call the cops to get him to go home.
Routh felt like he had a huge task ahead of him when he was asked to play Superman in 2006. He recalled trying to play Reeve, noting that no one could replace him when it comes to playing the beloved superhero. This reunion of Superman stars comes ahead of a Superman reboot by James Gunn featuring a cameo appearance of Reeve’s son Will.
Christopher Reeve’s inspiring Hollywood career
After gaining fame and acclaim with 1978 Superman, Reeve reprised his role in three more sequels throughout the ‘80s, the last being Superman IV: The Quest For Peace. Despite battling with a series of health issues, Reeve continued to show up in front of the camera for more productions; however, an accident left him paralyzed from the neck down in 1995.
Regardless, Reeve continued to make an impact as a director and, much later, an author. He also became an activist for children with disability and paraplegics and pushed for the funding of stem cell research. He is survived by his three children, Matthew, Alexandra, and Will.