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The Superman suit is about as iconic as a costume can get. First seen on the cover of Action Comics #1 in 1938, the design has changed significantly throughout various incarnations in comics, film, and television. However, despite various versions of the suit being different, each variation has almost always retained enough of its original essence to be instantly recognizable.
In 2006 the suit was re-imagined by Louise Mingenbach and was worn by Brandon Routh as Superman in Superman Returns. In a 2010 Comic-Con panel, which you can see here, it was revealed that this suit would go on to be worn again in the CW television series Smallville, which traces the early origins of Clark Kent. The costume made a couple of appearances on the show as a prop before ultimately being worn by Tom Welling as Clark Kent in the last episode of the series. Welling only wore part of the suit – enough to do the famous “shirt reveal.” Other shots of Welling in the full suit are CGI, which accounts for any differences in the “look” of the Smallville suit versus the Superman Returns suit.
To read an excellent article on the Superman suit over the years, check out this piece over at ScreenRant.
What’s your favorite superhero costume? Tell us below!
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Have you ever watched a film and noticed a character walk by in a gown that you just know you’ve seen before? Recycled Movie Costumes is dedicated to documenting the life of a costume through its various appearances on film and television.
The Superman suit is about as iconic as a costume can get. First seen on the cover of Action Comics #1 in 1938, the design has changed significantly throughout various incarnations in comics, film, and television. However, despite various versions of the suit being different, each variation has almost always retained enough of its original essence to be instantly recognizable.
In 2006 the suit was re-imagined by Louise Mingenbach and was worn by Brandon Routh as Superman in Superman Returns. In a 2010 Comic-Con panel, which you can see here, it was revealed that this suit would go on to be worn again in the CW television series Smallville, which traces the early origins of Clark Kent. The costume made a couple of appearances on the show as a prop before ultimately being worn by Tom Welling as Clark Kent in the last episode of the series. Welling only wore part of the suit – enough to do the famous “shirt reveal.” Other shots of Welling in the full suit are CGI, which accounts for any differences in the “look” of the Smallville suit versus the Superman Returns suit.
To read an excellent article on the Superman suit over the years, check out this piece over at ScreenRant.
What’s your favorite superhero costume? Tell us below!
The Superman suit is about as iconic as a costume can get. First seen on the cover of Action Comics #1 in 1938, the design has changed significantly throughout various incarnations in comics, film, and television. However, despite various versions of the suit being different, each variation has almost always retained enough of its original essence to be instantly recognizable.
In 2006 the suit was re-imagined by Louise Mingenbach and was worn by Brandon Routh as Superman in Superman Returns. In a 2010 Comic-Con panel, which you can see here, it was revealed that this suit would go on to be worn again in the CW television series Smallville, which traces the early origins of Clark Kent. The costume made a couple of appearances on the show as a prop before ultimately being worn by Tom Welling as Clark Kent in the last episode of the series. Welling only wore part of the suit – enough to do the famous “shirt reveal.” Other shots of Welling in the full suit are CGI, which accounts for any differences in the “look” of the Smallville suit versus the Superman Returns suit.
To read an excellent article on the Superman suit over the years, check out this piece over at ScreenRant.
What’s your favorite superhero costume? Tell us below!
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Costume Commentary
While the Superman Returns suit was used throughout season 10 as a prop on the show, the shirt that Tom was wearing in the reveal is not actually the Brandon Routh suit. The Routh suit is incredibly snug and it didn’t fit Tom, who has a larger frame than Brandon. Production made a replica of the S shield and a new shirt for Tom to wear for that shot.
The Routh suit was worn by a photo double in the scene where you see Superman from behind, outside of Lois’ plane.
Hm, okay, thank you. I’ve read some conflicting information on this, so I appreciate your input and will look a bit further into this at some point.
I worked on Smallville and was there during this time. I can guarantee that it’s true, but seeing as how you have no reason to trust what I say beyond me saying “This is what happened”, I totally understand your wanting to verify it 🙂
No, that’s verification enough for me. I appreciate you letting me know that. Up until you let me know you worked on the show, I had several videos and articles telling me different things – but if you came straight from the source, I will accept that. I’ll get the info on this page changed hopefully in the next few weeks. I appreciate your input.
Cool, glad to be of help 🙂