Superman candidate Tom Brittney breaks silence after losing out on iconic role ... trends now

KIRK ALYN: 1948-1950

The very first actor to sport the iconic Superman emblem in a live-action movie was Kirk Alyn in 1948's Superman.

He also returned to play the DC Comics character for a second time in the 1950 sequel Atom Man vs. Superman. 

Kirk, who died in March 1999, starred opposite the late Noel Neill, who played the first ever Lois Lane on-screen.

As is common for stars connected to the Superman universe, Kirk also made a cameo appearance years later - playing Lois Lane's father alongside Noel as her mother in 1978's Superman, starring Christopher Reeve.

Kirk was hired by Columbia Pictures because he resembled Clark Kent but later blamed his success as the character and his superhero alter-ego for ruining his acting career.

However, he benefited from a wave of nostalgia for the franchise in the 1970s, which saw him grace comic book conventions to meet eager fans.

According to reports, he said in 1972: 'Playing Superman ruined my acting career and I've been bitter for many years about the whole thing. But now, it's finally starting to pay off.'

GEORGE REEVES: 1951 -1958

George Reeves then took over as the Son of Krypton in 1951's independent film Superman and the Mole Men.

He reprised his role for the first Superman TV series, Adventures of Superman, which premiered in 1952 and ran for six series until 1958, producing a total of 104 episodes.

As well as his Superman role, he was a skilled amateur boxer and musician and previously starred as an actor in 1939's Gone With The Wind and So Proudly We Hail! in 1943.

But his war service then interrupted his career after he was drafted in early 1943 and was assigned to the US Army Air Forces, before being transferred to Army Air Forces' First Motion Picture Unit, where he made training films.

It was after his wartime service that he found success on TV in the Adventures of Superman, where he starred alongside Noel Neill as Lois Lane, before she was replaced by Phyllis Coates in the first season.

In June 1959, George as found dead in his bedroom from a single gunshot wound to the head, with the police concluding his death was suicide.

CHRISTOPHER REEVE: 1978-1987

Next to wear the iconic red cape was Christopher Reeve, who took on the role in Richard Donner's iconic 1978 movie, titled Superman: The Movie.

He arguably became the best-known and most-loved version of the famous superhero during his string of iconic movie appearances as the character from 1978 until 1987.

Christopher reprised his role in 1980's Superman 2, 1983's Superman 3, and 1987's Superman 4: The Quest for Peace and became the face associated with the iconic franchise for many years.

However, Christopher was tragically paralysed from the neck down after a riding accident in 1995 and then stepped away from acting, becoming a campaigner for the disabled.

He set up the Christopher Reeve Foundation and raised more than £25million for research and £5million in grants to patients, while he also worked hard appealing for research into spinal injuries.

By 2000, he had regained some movement and sensation in his body and could feel when his wife Dana or his children - William, Alexandra and Matthew - embraced him.

He welcomed his two eldest children, William and Alexandra, during his ten-year relationship with Gae Exton before they split in 1987. He shared his youngest son William with his wife Dana, who died from cancer in March 2006.

Christopher survived ten years of near total immobility after his accident but died of complications in October 2004, shortly after his 52nd birthday.

JOHN NEWTON: 1988

John Haymes Newton landed his first ever on-screen role as Superboy, which ran for four series and 26 episodes from 1988 until 1991.

However, American actor John only appeared as Clark Kent in the show's first season before he was replaced by Gerard Christopher.

It was reported producers weren't happy with John's performance as the younger version of the beloved superhero and decided to recast him after he tried to negotiate his salary.

His replacement Gerard later also served as a producer and writer on the show and auditioned for Superman in Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman after Superboy's cancellation.

Although he was chosen by the casting director, when producers discovered he had played a version of the character before, he was dismissed. 

DEAN CAIN: 1993-1997

So it was Dean Cain who ended up taking on the role of Superman in Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman.

He played the role of Clark Kent and his alter-ego Superman alongside Teri Hatcher, who played Lois Lane, in the show, which ran from 1993 until 1997.

Much to the annoyance of longtime fans, the show was cancelled before one unresolved plot thread could be tied up.

Dean, now 56, rejoined the DC universe between 2015 and 2017 on Supergirl, where he played Kara Danvers/Supergirl's father Jeremiah Danvers.

Dean has previously said he looks back on his time as Superman with 'extremely fond memories' and believes it was an amazing start to his career.

He said: 'When I get associated with the character now, I'm still happy as a clam because what would you want to be called, if you were ever going to be called the same character for life, I think Superman pretty much takes the cake.'

In 2018, Dean took a slight career change as he became a reserve officer and was sworn in in the US state of Idaho.

TOM WELLING: 2001-2011

Tom Welling spent ten years playing a teenage Clark Kent on Smallville, which ran for ten series and 217 episodes from 2001 until 2011.

The actor, now

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