All 12 Superman actors ranked from worst to best

8. Dean Cain

Appeared in: Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman

Superman might be a regular of the silver screen, but one thing about the Man of Steel is that he has enjoyed an even more successful run on television. One of the greatest examples of that is the classic ’90s TV series Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman.

What made the show different from previous iterations was how it balanced Clark’s personal and professional lives at the Daily Planet with his adventures as Superman, meaning that his relationship with Lois Lane was the most important part of the series. To say Dean Cain had to do something never seen on-screen before would be an understatement, but he pulled it off very well.

His performance as Clark Kent was charming, as was his Superman, but there was a subtle distinction between the two that really made the show work. And his chemistry with co-star Teri Hatcher was undoubtedly the best thing about the show.

After the iconic Superman movie franchise’s poor third and fourth offerings, the Man of Steel was on a big screen hiatus. Thankfully, it was time for a new generation-defining Superman to take over, and he made himself right at home on our TV screens for four super years. While not all of it has aged well, and we could have had a bit more super to that Superman, this outing was an important and pivotal part of the Man of Steel’s on-screen legacy.