The many adaptations of Superman in film and TV have seen certain characters be changed to be practically unrecognizable. Even long before the movies of the DCEU, Superman was DC’s most famous movie character. As perhaps the most iconic superhero in pop culture, the Man of Steel has been adapted to the screen many times, in film and TV and in both live-action and animation. This has seen many different takes on the hero and his supporting characters.
So many different actors who’ve played Superman have put their own spin on the character, and similarly, many varied approaches to adapting his world have taken place over the years. This has seen many Superman characters be changed almost beyond recognition in some adaptations, with creative license being applied in the process of translating the DC story from page to screen. With that in mind, here are the 10 Superman characters that the movies and shows changed the most.
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My Adventures With Superman’s Braniac
First appearance: My Adventures With Superman, season 1, episode 10, “Hearts of the Fathers”
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Brainiac has long been one of Superman’s most formidable foes, and his adaptable nature has made him one of the most versatile figures in movies and TV shows following Superman. My Adventures With Superman put an interesting new spin on many of its DC characters, taking its animated nature as a cue to update the stories of several supporting figures. One such character was Brainiac, whose backstory was changed considerably for the show.
My Adventures With Superman’s Brainiac was rewritten to be an AI solely responsible for the destruction of Krypton. Brainiac having been the one to almost eradicate all Kryptonians and destroy their home world is a shift from many of the most common Superman origin stories, and it saw My Adventures With Superman offer a very different take on the villain. Though he was still recognizable in some aspects, My Adventures With Superman’s Brainiac was still considerably different from more traditional depictions.
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Superman & Lois’ Superman
First appearance: Superman & Lois, season 1, episode 1, “Pilot”
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As the titular hero of the Superman & Lois cast, Tyler Hoechlin’s Clark Kent stands out as a subtly unique take on the iconic hero. Though much of the show’s story is in line with the more traditional depictions of Superman, Hoechlin’s Superman story starts much later than many others, following his family life with Lois Lane rather than his younger years as a hero. This led to one key change just ahead of the show’s finale.
The ending of Superman & Lois, season 4, episode 7 saw Hoechlin’s Superman announce his secret identity to the world. Though this has happened in some Superman stories over the years, it actually played a key part in his narrative arc that remained permanent. This – and the way the show’s ending handled Clark’s aging – sets him apart somewhat from other iterations, particularly those from his film and TV history.
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Jesse Eisenberg’s Lex Luthor
First appearance: Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016)
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Over the years, many actors have played Lex Luthor in live-action, each of them bringing something slightly different to the role. However, the DCEU’s Lex Luthor, played by Jesse Eisenberg, put a unique spin on the iconic villain that was considered divisive, to say the least. Eisenberg’s Luthor not only started his time in the DCEU looking very unlike the more traditional version of the character, but his behavior and mannerisms were also far from other iterations.
Eisenberg brought a frenetic energy to his version of Lex Luthor that has never been considered typical of the character. His energetic performance made his Luthor seem incredibly different, something which was only furthered by the character’s full head of long hair. Seeing such a different take on Luthor was jarring, even though by the end of Batman v Superman he had taken on a more recognizable appearance.
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My Adventures With Superman’s Mr. Mxyzptlk
First appearance: My Adventures with Superman, season 1, episode 7, “Kiss Kiss Fall in Portal”
Mister Mxyzptlk is one of Superman’s stranger antagonists, with his reality-warping abilities making him an especially versatile and outlandish character. Though many Superman shows have adapted the character, not all of them have strayed too far from his typical comic book depiction. However, My Adventures With Superman took a slightly different approach to the character that saw him changed considerably from his comic book counterpart.
My Adventures With Superman’s Mister Mxyzptlk is a multiversal imp, and a self-proclaimed chaos god. He is decidedly less human in appearance than most other incarnations, and his personality is also significantly changed for the show. Furthermore, he’s an enemy of the League of Lois Lanes, who were able to lessen his power levels. Though many of these changes are relatively small, when combined they add up to a version of the character that is quite different from his usual self.
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Smallville’s Jimmy Olsen
First appearance: Smallville, season 6, episode 1, “Zod”
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For decades, Jimmy Olsen has been one of Superman’s most consistent supporting characters. Serving for a time as the hero’s sidekick of sorts, Jimmy Olsen works alongside Clark Kent at the Daily Planet as a photographer. When Smallville first introduced its own take on the character, he seemed relatively in line with other versions, but it’s where the show took his story that set him apart so substantially.
Jimmy was introduced at the start of Smallville season 6, and swiftly became a regular before being upgraded to the show’s main cast. He was then shockingly killed, and the show revealed that he wasn’t the real Jimmy Olsen after all, but his older brother with the same name. It was a strange choice for Smallville to have made, as it added practically nothing to the character other than to make him unexpectedly expendable.
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Smallville’s Martha Kent
First appearance: Smallville, season 1, episode 1, “Pilot”
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Smallville took many liberties with the stories of its characters. Expanding Superman’s younger years into a ten-year run was no mean feat, and it required a significant amount of creative license to be taken with some elements of the hero’s origins. These changes saw many characters change considerably over the show’s run, with few becoming as drastically different as Martha Kent, Clark’s adoptive mother.
In the beginning of the show, she’s the kind-hearted farmer’s wife she’s typically written to be. Over the course of its 10 seasons, she gradually also becomes a US Senator, and finds herself being privy to state secrets and getting involved in numerous political schemes in order to protect Clark. It’s easy to see why Smallville felt the need to give her a grander role, but it also meant that the show’s Martha Kent was very different from in the comics.
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Superman & Lois’ Brainiac
First appearance: Superman & Lois, season 4, episode 8, “Sharp Dressed Man”
Though the specifics of Brainiac’s story are sometimes changed for new depictions, Superman & Lois’ version of the villain was decidedly different to most other iterations of the character. Introduced in season 4 of the show, Superman & Lois’ Brainiac was not a Kryptonian or Coluan AI or scientist at all, but a relatively average human being. Despite being nicknamed Brainiac and being known as the villain’s occasional alias, he shared very little resemblance to the character from the comics, appearing to draw more from the human performer named Milton Fine whose mind was taken over by Brainiac in the comics.
In the show, Milton Fine is simply a hacker who supports Lex Luthor in his crusade of vengeance against Superman. He helps to build various pieces of equipment and technology to facilitate Luthor’s plans to fight and kill Superman, including the villain’s armor. His role in the show is a necessary and logical one, though it’s hard to express just how different a character he truly is from his original DC Comics namesake.
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Smallville’s Clark Kent
First appearance: Smallville, season 1, episode 1, “Pilot”
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As Superman’s human alter ego, Clark Kent is the hero’s true persona. Smallville follows Clark’s younger years, before he ever adopted the iconic mantle of Superman. One of the show’s core tenets was “no tights, no flights”, meaning that it never intended to show Superman in his iconic costume or taking to the skies in flight. However, over its 10-season run, the rule became difficult, and Clark’s character was changed in order to keep the show’s story fresh.
Smallville’s Clark Kent embarked on many more adventures than Superman traditionally did in the comics during his younger years. He also developed various hero personas and made superhero contacts long before he ever became Superman, all of which were privy to his secret identity. In many ways, this makes Smallville’s Clark Kent completely different from the average portrayal of Superman, as so many elements of his origins were changed in order to keep the show running.
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The DCEU’s Jimmy Olsen
First appearance: Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016)
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Introduced early in the DCEU’s movie timeline, the franchise’s Jimmy Olsen shared very little resemblance to his comic book counterpart. Instead of the lovable bumbling sidekick, the DCEU’s Jimmy Olsen was a tall and confident character who commanded the attention and respect of those around him. At least, he appeared to be in his brief appearance in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, as he only lasted a few minutes before being unceremoniously killed.
The DCEU’s Jimmy Olsen was an undercover agent for the CIA who was investigating the same criminal as Lois Lane. What initially appears to be the set-up for the pair’s friendship and DCEU future turns out to be nothing more than a fake out, making Olsen’s character incredibly different from the comics. Not only is the character not traditionally an undercover agent, but he also doesn’t usually die moments after his introduction.
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Superman & Lois’ Doomsday
First appearance: Superman & Lois, season 4, episode 9, “To Live and Die Again”
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When it comes to Superman characters being changed for movies and TV shows, Superman & Lois’ Doomsday is by far the most drastic example. First introduced as the villain Bizarro, the show’s story about the villain to several unexpected turns. While he started out as a version of Superman from an alternate reality, he changed over the course of the show to become the villain Doomsday after being experimented on by Lex Luthor.
Combining two distinct Superman villains into a single character was a bold creative move. Combining Bizarro’s story with Doomsday by having the former become the latter was innovative and unexpected, offering an entirely new backstory to the villain traditionally responsible for Superman’s death. As a result, Superman & Lois’ Doomsday is by far the most changed character in the history of Superman movies and TV shows.
Upcoming DC Movie Releases
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Superman
Release Date
July 11, 2025
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Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow
Release Date
June 26, 2026
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The Batman Part II
Release Date
October 1, 2027
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