10 Actors Who Were Rumored To Play Superman In The 1978 Movie

Look up in the sky, it’s a bird, it’s a plane, it’s … Neil Diamond? Admittedly, “Sweet Lois Lane” (bum, bum, bum) does have a nice ring to it (so good, so good). But sorry, I just don’t see the singer behind “Solitary Man” playing Superman. Yet according to Pierre Spengler, one of the producers of “Superman: The Movie,” quoted in “Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story,” Diamond’s name was one of many thrown thrown around, albeit briefly. Diamond’s bizarre inclusion just goes to show — everybody was being considered to play Superman.

No, I don’t actually think Neil Diamond was seriously being considered, but plenty of other serious actors were. Before the filmmakers landed on the unknown yet incomparable Christopher Reeve to sport the “S,” some of the biggest names in Hollywood were being pursued to wear the red, yellow, and blue. Some of them I can kinda support, while others would have suffered the effects of career kryptonite.

Let me be clear: These are rumors. Some are based on the filmmaker’s recollections (producers are notoriously full of you-know-what), while some are from Warner Bros.’ “wish list,” not necessarily people the filmmaker’s actively considered. Still, it’s fun to think what might have been, though I can confidently say that none of these rumored actors would have played Superman as well as Christopher Reeve. “You’ll believe a man can fly,” boasted the movies’ poster, but you won’t believe the 10 actors who were rumored to play Superman in the 1978 movie.

Al Pacino is on the list for one of the greatest actors ever, and he was apparently also on WB’s shortlist to star as Superman. According to “Superman” producer Ilya Salkind on the commentary track for the 40th anniversary of the film, “One of the conditions with DC Comics was I had to make a list of actors to play Superman that they had to approve.” One of the names DC apparently approved was Pacino. So yes, Superman could have been played by a man who’d need a step stool to reach Big Blue’s 6′ 3″ frame. Not to height-shame here, but that’s a level of movie magic that would have stretched most viewers’ suspension of disbelief.

But was Al Pacino seriously being pursued? I have my doubts. While DC Comics have not always been the best stewards of their properties, I suspect they got stars in their eyes thinking that one of the New Hollywood’s biggest talents would be in their movie. But if Pacino were cast as Superman, it would have reunited him with his “Scarecrow” costar Gene Hackman (Lex Luthor), while he once again would have played the son to his big-screen dad from “The Godfather,” Marlon Brando (Jor-El). Even though they wouldn’t have appeared together on screen (turns out Brando didn’t want to be on-screen at all), it would have felt “been there, done that.” Still, Superman going “say hello to my little friend” before belting a bad guy could have been fun.

Dustin Hoffman became a star in 1967’s “The Graduate” playing Benjamin Braddock, a fish-out-of-water who tries to meet his parents’ expectations and fit into a world he doesn’t fully understand. A decade later Hoffman was being considered to play the ultimate outsider, an extraterrestrial refugee who also tries to honor his parent’s wishes by fitting into a strange new world. Sure, Braddock began a torrid affair with his girlfriend’s mother, Mrs. Robinson, while Superman selflessly fought the forces of evil … but otherwise they were pretty similar, right? I just wish Simon & Garfunkel also sang tunes for “Superman.”

According to “Superman” producer Ilya Salkind, Hoffman was approved for DC’s shortlist of potential stars. Salkind noted that DC, while protective of Superman’s image, wasn’t “super” realistic about who should play him. As Salkind put it on the “Superman” commentary,  “As much as Dustin Hoffman is a fantastic actor, I don’t think he would have been a great Superman.” Same. 

Hoffman would have been absolutely absurd as the Man of Steel, but would have been a fantastic choice for the other part he was apparently being considered for: Lex Luthor. Salkind says the filmmakers even went so far as to meet Hoffman at Cannes for dinner to discuss the part. For whatever reason, the deal fell through. While Hoffman would get his chance to play a scenery chewing villain 13 years later in Steven Spielberg’s “Hook,” the part of Lex Luthor went to Hoffman’s old roommate, Gene Hackman.

Who better to play the all-American icon, Superman, than the embodiment of the American Dream, Sylvester Stallone? Sure, his northeastern accent might’ve needed tweaking (“Hey yo, Lois!”), but he’d have been in superhero shape. In 1976, Stallone wrote and played “Rocky,” the ultimate underdog, and hebecame one himself, as “Rocky” punched its way to number one at the box office and won Best Picture at the Oscars. By 1978, Stallone was the talk of the town, as everybody wanted to work with Stallone … except for “Superman” producers. 

While they admired Stallone’s work in “Rocky,” they didn’t think he was right for the part, a sentiment I share. However, Stallone was included on a shortlist of potential stars sent to DC Comics for approval, and apparently really wanted the part. According to other rumorsStallone even did a screen test for “Superman,” but was deemed “too ethnic” by decision makers, a strange criticism for a literal space alien. 

Still, other rumors suggest Marlon Brando didn’t want to share the screen with the rising star, perhaps jealous that critics like Roger Ebert said Stallone reminded them of a “young Brando.” The other potential X-factor was Stallone’s insistence on writing his movies during this era, which would have been one cook too many in an already crowded kitchen. While Stallone eventually played a convincing superhero in the gritty “Samaritan,” his screen persona wouldn’t have worked for Supes, so I’m glad he stuck to boxing shorts and not red capes.

Could the Austrian Oak have played the Man of Steel? He certainly wanted to, as “Superman” producer Pierre Spengler revealed in the documentary “Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story,” claiming the future “Running Man” was “running after” the role. Schwarzenegger certainly had the physique (honestly, he might have been too big), but not the credentials. By this point Schwarzenegger’s movie career was hit-or-miss, added emphasis on the “miss.” 

He won a Golden Globe for Best New Star of the Year in the well-received “Stay Hungry” in 1976, opposite Jeff Bridges and Sally Field, but he was also in the downright dreadful “The Villain” with Kirk Douglas and Ann Margaret in 1979. Let’s not forget the “what the hell did I just watch?” movie “Hercules In New York” in 1969, where he was billed as “Arnold Strong,” and his voice was dubbed. His best “role” was playing himself in the 1977 documentary “Pumping Iron,” which he pretty much wound up doing the rest of his career anyway.

Schwarzenegger proved he had the charisma to play a larger-than-life hero just a few years later in 1982’s “Conan The Barbarian,” but I imagine the only person seriously considering Schwarzenegger for the part was Schwarzenegger. Perhaps Arnold uttering “I stand for truth, justice, and the American way” would join the ranks of his most famous one-liners, but it’s more likely Schwarzenegger would have killed his career and Superman’s big-screen potential, not unlike he almost did 19 years later in the “Batman” franchise.

During an era when “everyman” New Hollywood actors like Al Pacino, Dustin Hoffman, Jack Nicholson, and Robert De Niro thrived, the blonde-haired, blue-eyed, classically handsome Robert Redford was a throwback to the old-school style of Hollywood movie stardom. Redford had been a bankable leading man for nearly a decade when he was considered for “Superman,” and by the late-1970s at the peak of his powers as Hollywood’s “golden boy.” So at first, the idea of the all-American Redford playing Superman sounds believable … until you remember the goal was to make sure moviegoers would believe that a man could fly. 

That was “Superman” director Richard Donner’s issue when he was presented with Redford as a potential Kal-El, telling his producers,  “I have to create a man who flies. Even if you saw Paul Newman or Robert Redford in that costume, no one is going to believe them.” While Donner didn’t want Redford for the part and preferred an unknown, some sources say Redford was offered the part, but he asked for too much money and was perturbed by the lack of a finished script. Even though he had just played a reporter in “All The President’s Men,” at 42 years old, Redford was a bit too long in the tooth and way too famous to play Clark Kent. No matter how great the special effects may have been, you would only believe that Robert Redford was playing dress up. 

Charles Bronson had been a successful journeyman actor before hitting it big in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Thanks to a string of hits, he was Hollywood’s highest-paid actor for a time, commanding a paycheck between $1 million and $3 million per film (between $8 million and $24 million in today’s dollars). Not bad for a dude in his fifties who’d been acting for almost two decades by that point. 

Bronson’s most famous role, and the part that defined the rest of his career, was “Death Wish,” the controversial 1974 film where he played a middle-aged, middle-class architect in Manhattan who becomes a gun-toting vigilante after his wife and daughter are assaulted by robbers. Just screams “Big Blue Boy Scout” to you, doesn’t it? Well, given Bronson’s massive 1970s star power, he was naturally one of the many movie stars semi-considered to play another vigilante, “Superman.”

Given Marlon Brando was paid north of $3 million for his part as Superman’s dad Jor-El, Bronson’s salary to play Kal-El would have completely broken the bank. Besides, there was also the minor fact that Bronson would have been 67 by the time of the film’s release (three years older than Brando). Alas, those apparently weren’t producers’ reasons for crossing Bronson’s name off the list. Rather, it was because Bronson was deemed “too Earthy.” As opposed to what, “too Kryptony?” Bronson would’ve been a bad choice to play Superman, but as an aging Frank “The Punisher” Castle? Let’s go!

Sheryl Crow once sang that all Steve McQueen needed was a fast machine, but had he played Superman he wouldn’t have even needed that. But could the King of Cool have been a believable Man of Steel? Probably not. Like many of the other names on this list, McQueen was far too famous for the part, and seeing him don the red and blue would have just made moviegoers giggle. While McQueen may have done plenty of stupid things in his personal life, one thing he made sure to never do was look stupid on screen, which he certainly would have if he wore Superman’s signature red underwear.

Besides, McQueen wasn’t long for this world in 1978, and made just three movies around that time (“Enemy of the People,” “Tom Horn,” and “The Hunter”) before his premature death in 1980 at just 50 years old. There is no way the “Superman” producers knew that McQueen had cancer (he wasn’t diagnosed until 1979), but they apparently rejected him for another, more superficial reason: he was “too fat.” Good thing Brando wasn’t up for Superman. McQueen certainly packed on the pounds in his later years, but it was nothing a few gym sessions couldn’t fix (Christopher Reeve certainly had to bulk up to play Superman). Thing is, I doubt he’d want to, and the producers didn’t want him in any event. Just as well, as McQueen was way cooler when driving fast machines than he would have been flying anyway.

You don’t have to be a film historian to know that movie stars care about their on-screen image and always have. Vanity plays a part, certainly, but nobody wants to look stupid in front of millions of people (even if they’re getting paid millions to do it). Besides, all it takes is one really bad role, and an actor may be trading their table at Spago for a spot in the unemployment line. So it’s not surprising that the late, great James Caan turned down the part of Superman because he didn’t want to get in that “silly suit” (via People). To be honest, I can’t say I blame him, especially given Caan’s screen persona was that of a no-nonsense tough guy.

Most well-known today as the older brother from “The Godfather,” the writer from “Misery,” and the dad from “Elf” (all among his best films), Caan was a highly sought-after actor in the 1970s, so he was naturally was approached to play Superman. According to Caan, in an interview with Howard Stern, Mario Puzo’s original script was more tongue-in-cheek (apparently akin to Adam West’s “Batman” TV show). While Caan found the script funny, he wasn’t interested in committing to two films and really didn’t want to wear the costume. After turning down producers, Caan said he got a call from his old man from “Godfather” (and his potential “Superman” father) Marlon Brando, encouraging him to do the part. Alas, Caan still turned “Superman” down, as Brando clearly didn’t make him an offer he couldn’t refuse.

Clint Eastwood became a movie star playing “The Man With No Name” in 1964, and he became a mega star playing “Dirty Harry” in 1971. These two characters, and many more, established Eastwood’s screen persona as a morally ambiguous antihero who walks softly and carries a big gun (a .44 Magnum, to be specific). While Eastwood’s typical character usually has nerves of steel, he would have been totally wrong for the Man of Steel, especially since he was pushing 50 years old in 1978. But given he was among the biggest and most bankable movie stars in the world, (and has had a multi-decade relationship with “Superman” studio Warner Bros.), the producers gave it a shot and reportedly approached him for the part.

Eastwood turned them down, saying he was “too busy,” but that’s usually the polite way of saying “absolutely freaking not.” Still, there’s no denying that Eastwood was very busy at the time. He made 16 movies in the 1970s and directed six of them. Even if Eastwood thought he was right for the part (doubtful), he probably wouldn’t have wanted to commit to two “Superman” films. So instead of starring in “Superman” in 1978 and “Superman II” in 1981, he decided to work with an orangutan in “Every Which Way But Loose” and “Any Which Way You Can.” Don’t roll your eyes, as “Every Which Way But Loose” was almost as big of a hit as “Superman.” 

Muhammad Ali could fly like a butterfly and sting like a bee, but could he run faster than a speeding bullet or leap tall buildings in a single bound? The decision makers at DC Comics seemed to think so. Ali was on the shortlist that “Superman” filmmakers sent to DC Comics for approval according to producer Ilya Salkind, and surprisingly Ali got a thumbs up. The king of KO got the OK, but would he have even been interested? Ali’s was busy boxing during the mid-1970s, following his “Super Fight” with Joe Frazier and the “Rumble In The Jungle” against George Foreman, both in 1974, as well as the “Thrilla in Manilla” against Frazier in 1975. 

While Ali was probably tired of being punched for a living, the title role in “Superman” would have kept him from training for his 1978 rematch against Leon Spinks in September, three months before “Superman” was released that December. Ali officially retired from boxing in 1981, but by the late 1970s, he was already taking acting roles playing himself in the TV series “Vega$” and “Diff’rent Strokes,” before playing the lead role of slave-turned-senator Gideon Jackson in the 1979 TV movie “Freedom Road” opposite Kris Kristofferson. Had Ali played “Superman,” he would have been the first black Superman decades before Michael B. Jordan was considered for the part, though it wasn’t meant to be. Ali could take solace though, as he pwned a de-powered Superman in a comic book released in 1978.