When it comes to the best Superman, DC fans usually only have one answer in mind. Christopher Reeve’s portrayal of the Man of Steel helped create the superhero movie genre as we know it in 1978’s Superman movie and his performance set the bar for how to turn a comic book hero into a three-dimensional character. Of course, Henry Cavill has earned himself his own legion of fans in more recent years and apparently he has enough to knock Reeve from the top spot.
At least, in this specific poll. Cosmic Book News ran a survey on their Facebook page asking fans to vote between Reeve and Cavill as their favorite Superman. Over 5,000 people took part and the result was that the DCEU actor got a clear victory, as Cavill nabbed 62% of the votes compared to Reeve’s 38%.
That’s a surprising result for an actor whose take on Superman has traditionally been viewed as very controversial, ever since he snapped Zod’s neck at the end of 2013’s Man of Steel. Maybe absence makes the heart grow fonder, though, as it’s widely believed that the British star has donned the cape and tights for the final time.
After 2017’s Justice League flopped hard, it looks like Warner Bros. is keen to brush Cavill’s Supes under the carpet and reboot the Kryptonian in the DCEU. In fact, We Got This Covered has heard that the upcoming Supergirl movie will sow the seeds for a new version of the Big Blue Boy Scout to come later down the line.
For now, however, Cavill hasn’t yet been officially let go and polls like this show that there’s an ever-growing fanbase for his Superman. As such, it would certainly be tragic if we never saw him in the part again.