Actor Axed as Superman Due to His Sexuality, Report Says

The actor previously cast as Superman has claimed that he was removed from the role after revealing his sexuality.

As far as superheroes go, they don’t get much bigger than Superman. Over the decades, multiple actors have stepped into the role of the Man of Steel, to varying degrees of success.

The original actor to play Superman (and his human alter-ego, Clark Kent) was Kirk Alyn, who starred in serial Superman films in the late 1940s. After Alyn came George Reeves in Superman and the Mole Men (1951), and then Christopher Reeve, whose performance in Superman (1978) and its three sequels is still considered by many to be the superior take on the character.

In the 21st century, we’ve had two cinematic Supermen to date: Brandon Routh in Superman Returns (2006) (which technically acts as a sequel to Reeve’s films) and Henry Cavill in Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel (2013) and the rest of the DC Extended Universe, until he was unexpectedly removed from the role in 2022.

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During this timeframe, several other Superman films came close to hitting production but failed. One of those was an early 2000s project written by J.J. Abrams, thought to be called Superman: Flyby.

While this never actually hit theaters, it did have its very own Clark Kent at one point. Matt Bomer – best known for starring as con artist Neal Caffrey in the USA Network series White Collar – revealed during an appearance on The Hollywood Reporter podcast Awards Chatter that he was cast as Superman for the film and actually signed on for three installments.

“This is a very early iteration of Superman written by J.J. Abrams, called Superman: Flyby, I think is what it was called, and it never came to light,” he explained. “It looked like I was the director’s choice for the role… I signed a three-picture deal at Warner Bros.”

However, Bomer added that he believes he lost the role for a pretty shocking reason: his sexuality.

“Yeah, that’s my understanding…” Bomer said when asked if this was the case. “That was a time in the industry when something like that could still really be weaponized against you. How, and why, and who, I don’t know, but yeah, that’s my understanding.”

Bomer – who is now 47 – publicly came out as gay in 2012 after thanking his partner, publicist Simon Halls, and their children during an acceptance speech for his Steve Chase Humanitarian Award.

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As Bomer also notes, Superman: Flyby never ended up happening. However, it’s unclear at what point he was dropped from the film and how much this had to do with the film never coming to fruition.

Interestingly, Bomer has long been noted for his similarities to Henry Cavill, who ultimately did play Superman. Bomer did voice Superman in the animated film Superman: Unbound (2013).

While we may have lost Bomer (and Cavill) as Superman, we’ll have another Man of Steel soon enough. With Guardians of the Galaxy alumnus James Gunn having jumped ship from Marvel Studios to DC, we’ll see the release of Superman – originally pegged to be named Superman: Legacy, but since renamed simply Superman – later this summer.

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This new Superman movie will see David Corenswet step into the role of Krypton’s greatest hero. Corenswet will be joined by Rachel Brosnahan as Lois Lane, Nicholas Hoult as Lex Luthor, Isabela Merced as Hawkgirl, Milly Alcock as Superman’s cousin, Supergirl, and Nathan Fillion as Guy Gardner, AKA Green Lantern.

Once it hits theaters, Superman will launch the brand-new DC Universe, which replaces the DC Extended Universe. Gunn claims that it isn’t an origin story and that it will instead follow Superman’s journey to reconcile his alien heritage with his adopted human family.

Who’s your favorite Superman actor?