Superman: Best and Worst Live Action Costumes

Superman has a very long history in live action with multiple different film franchises and tv shows, Superman is DC’s single most successful character when it comes to having both, we’re sure to get a new Superman costume by 2025 in Superman: Legacy but seeing as that’s not for another two years so this would be a good time to look at every live action Superman costume and rank them from worst to best.
-- Timestamps --
00:00 - Intro
1:56 - Number 18
2:49 - Number 17
3:36 - Number 16
4:09 - Number 15
4:39 - Number 14
5:10 - Number 13
6:08 - Number 12
6:59 - Number 11
7:35 - Number 10
8:10 - Number 9
8:56 - Number 8
9:33 - Number 7
10:26 - Number 6
11:03 - Number 5
11:46 - Number 4
12:43 - Number 3
13:38 - Number 2
15:09 - Number 1

[@BaithNa]

Brandon Routh really had the best and most comics accurate suits.

[@hmetv8619]

Which one? The return’s suit is probably the least comic accurate suit. Kingdom Come suit is as comic accurate as Tyler’s New 52 Suit

[@dynaguy3]

1. Routh Kingdom Come 2. Christopher Reeve 3. Hoechlin Fleischer I’m hoping Superman Legacy perfects the classic Superman design. It needs to bring back the yellow S on the cape

[@Mythowars]

I hope they keep it simple too and we get the smooth looking blue without a bunch of lines and a nice popping red.

[@The_Blue_Otaku]

@@MASTERKENOBI909 Yeah not gonna lie the Brandon Routh Kingdom Come suit would look amazing with the classic Christopher Reeve's bright red and yellow emblem

[@budgiecat9039]

Superman Legacy suit is horrible! Wtf is James Gunn thinking?

[@shreyanshsharma-bt3ll]

​@@budgiecat9039looks better than henry Cavill

[@budgiecat9039]

@@shreyanshsharma-bt3ll it's not healthy to be this drunk this early in the morning sir

[@j.p.6932]

5:30 Again, like the narrator said, it’s all a matter of opinion. The Henry Cavill suit is by far my favorite. The brick pattern gives it a texture others haven’t had, and the darker tones give it an updated and less comic book aesthetic.

[@GonzoTehGreat]

I (also) like Cavill's MoS suit the most, but I agree it's a matter of opinion. Still, I don't understand the top 3 choices in this video. 3 looks like something from the 1950s. 2 is nice, but doesn't belong in 2nd place, 1 is a single photo showing only part of the suit, which is supposed to be an improvement of 2.

[@councilmanbanks6528]

I wish you would have talked about the Black Adam suit because it basically was the Man of Steel suit with the brighter colors. It is probably my 2nd favorite suit, only behind Routh’s modern suits.

[@Prebuilt_Room901]

Superman and Lois has 3 of the best costumes and routh has some great costumes too but Superman and Lois’s current Superman suit is my favorite. He probably didn’t include the Black Adam Superman suit because it was only shown in darkness and I don’t think we saw the whole thing

[@_SoCalYellow_]

im happy he had the hair curl

[@sirdingle3842]

imo the black adam suit is amazing but the yellow just is not right

[@imafolklorestan]

Brandon Routh's Superman as a whole is so underrated, my favorite live action version of the character alongside Tyler's.

[@OptimusMaximusNero]

4:10 I really love the 1948 serial. It respected the Superman mythos and had a pretty decent production values, not to mention the animation in the flying scenes was pretty creative. Glad the actors who played Lois and Clark were remembered and even made a cameo in the 1978 film

[@sentient.studio]

The 1948 didnt respect the mythos because it essentially created the hallmarks of what defines Superman the same way the 1946 Batman serials did. Everyrhing after pays homage to those serials.

[@HeroEdits01]

Nice Ranking 🥇Crisis On Infinite Earths Brandon Ruth New Suit 🥈Crisis On Infinite Earths Brandon Ruth Suit 🥉Superman & Lois First Suit 4. Man Of Steel Suit 5. Superman & Lois Upgraded Suit 6. Superman & Lois Suit 7. Superman Returns Suit 8. Josstice League Suit 9. Christopher Reeves Suit 10. John Newton Superboy Suit 11. Gerad Christopher Superboy Suit 12. BVS Suit 13. Supergirl Superman Suit 14. Lois & Clark Suit 15. Superman Serial Suit 16. George Reeves Suit 17. Superboy Pilot Suit 18. Nicholas Cage Superman Suit

[@kadegetslaid634]

How tf is the justice leauge suit above the Chris reeve suit

[@HeroEdits01]

@@kadegetslaid634 It looks better than the CR suit

[@whoyoucallinpinhead883]

Superman’s suit can’t never look bad. You have to try to make it look bad.

[@abaddonlannister6573]

2 words : Nicolas Cage 😂

[@SuperCinematicUniverse]

@@abaddonlannister6573 imo even that suit ain't that bad

[@abaddonlannister6573]

@@SuperCinematicUniverse then I guess we'll have to agree to disagree 😆

[@endermaster78]

@@SuperCinematicUniverseikr

[@mohammedgulam2340]

​@@abaddonlannister6573that's not bad it just doesn't suit him

[@steevrawjers]

The George reeves suit is an all time classic

[@marcodabatman]

My TOP 5 ranking would def be: 1. Christopher Reeve suit - still my definitive Superman suit in live-action. The cape mechanism, the structure and proportions of the suit worked so well for Reeve's physique esp in the 3rd and 4th film and the shades of red, yellow and blue for the 1st and 2nd suit in particular is my favorite color scheme for his costume 2. Kingdom Come Routh - Apart from being a vast improvement on the Returns design, it is also a great adaptation of an (imo) iconic variation on the classic suit. I just love how well-made it looks without looking extravagant or expensive. 3. Fleischer Hoechlin - For me this is probably the best version of an "early years" Superman outfit. I like that it pretty much copies the animated suit with near 1:1 accuracy and tbh my only gripe was that we never saw it more and most likely never will 4. George Reeves - I am just a sucker for homemade suits and especially this one in particular because of how simple yet textured they look. I also like the cape hanging further down than the neckline of the suit itself. 5. MOS/Black Adam Cavill - Easily my favorite suit in the entire DCEU (which is filled with great costume designs btw). It just felt the most iconic of the bunch and while it is fairly similar to DCEU Supes' later costumes, the oval buckle and the bigger emblem gives this one an edge over that

[@driveasandwich6734]

You appreciated some really underrated Supersuits. The number 1 pick specially was really out-of-the-box but very much deserving! I would love to see your take on all the live-action Spider-Man suits presented in this same format.

[@marcusyates3044]

Which Wonder Woman costumed is better? Lynda Carter's or Gal Gadot's?

[@HeroEdits01]

Gal Gadot's

[@YusufAli-zy8ze]

who is lynda carter

[@shinnthant8179]

Gal Gadot of course

[@dynaguy3]

Can enjoy the plot better with Lynda’s

[@jaredgarcia8638]

Lynda, hands down. Much more classic

[@a.j.rivera8881]

You should do this with spider-man

[@douglaskroski3658]

The George reeves superman suit was shown in color when the show went to full color syndication.

[@ericchung3177]

Dean Cain's pilot suit was better than the actual show suit, the logo was a more traditional size.

[@daniellevy2272]

FINALLY, I've been praysing the yellow emblem Kingdome come suit ever since it first appeared

[@mydreaminorbit9297]

Some of these renders with Corenswet in the suit look awesome. If everything goes well he has the potential to be the best looking Superman yet.

[@hmetv8619]

1. S&L Season 1 Suit (New 52) 2. Crisis Brandon Routh (Kingdom Come) 3. S&L Season 3 Suit

[@noahknight4039]

I forgot how badass Brandon Routh looked in the Kingdom Come costume. He’s a big dude too.

[@matthewrosenthal753]

George Reeves had two suits one was brown and gray for two or 3 seasons then it was changed in season 4 to the red,blue, and yellow when they switched to color. It was made of wool and George hated it.

[@marionlawless]

Don't forget the David Wilson TV musical suit (I think from '74}...

[@corbinowens2437]

you always come up w/ such great video series ideas. Please continue these costume videos!

[@sansoot.]

Bro gave us a second list for free

[@ashleysmith5427]

I think the older Superman suits are just a sign of the times. It was the 50’s they probably thought it was great! 😂

[@BaithNa]

It's also closer to the source material. Superman doesn't have a Hollywood grade custom suit.

[@medafan53]

I think it's easier to do Clark's suit well in Live action than Bruce's; since Clark is invulnerable it's acceptable to keep him in comic accurate tights while Bruce, a mortal man, doesn't really work as well in tights in Live Action, because if you go up against thugs with assault rifles in tights you end up riddled with bullets, you end up dead, meaning that designers need to add armour to protect him, putting them at risk of overdesign.

[@BonJoviBeatlesLedZep]

Never thought of it like that but you're absolutely right. Even when cloth (BvS) and leather (The Batman) are used, there's significant armor either under or over it. It's sort of like Luke Cage and Jessica Jones vs. Daredevil costumes in The Defenders.

[@abaddonlannister6573]

I've got a few disagreements tbh but overall, nice list 🙂

[@natagu5794]

There was also an unreleased 2007 Justice League movie, and they already shared some of the costumes from that movie. Superman's costume from there looked very weird.

[@aericabison23]

Everyone’s costume looked super weird. I hate the costume designs for that film.

[@BreezyDylan]

Clarks black suit in smallvile was so cool to me. I like Orignal CW Clark's suit than I do Superman & Lois.

[@brandonspain12345]

I know opinions are opinions but I frankly felt the Superman Returns suit looked AWFUL. The "S" is too small, and the boots are too big. The awful anorak cape is too short and looked leathery, and the way it joins to the collar resembles a Halloween costume. The boots were overly designed, the millerskin cloth used for the bulk of the suit is clearly very restrictive, and combined with the fitting of the cape, the whole ensemble makes Rough oddly slender looking, despite the amount of muscle he packed on for the role. Topped off with the perfectly rounded hair curl and he ends up looking like someone dressing up as Superman rather than BEING Superman. As well the movie's photography making the suit's colors look more hideous with the blues looking more icy blue and the reds appear more brownish.

[@DrBabyCakes]

GOAT 🐐

[@feetpovlover]

There's not best and worst, every costume has it's charm but the most accurate is Reeve's costume.

[@joeypieper6384]

Chris or George?

[@feetpovlover]

@@joeypieper6384 Reeve so Chris of course. George was Reeves.

[@toontastickidz6293]

I think there was a Superman suit in the Smallville series finale. I haven’t watched it, but I’m pretty sure that show had superman suits. I liked the black costume looking suit the show had. It looked pretty cool.

[@antonissamp6654]

The suit Tom Welling donned in the finale is Brandon Routh's from SR, they literally borrowed it

[@toontastickidz6293]

Wow, I never knew that.

[@solastranded1744]

Lol that arrowverse suit is still way too padded.

[@Chris-qo4rt]

I always liked the black suit more, especially in the Snyder cut! That looks great!

[@bighan2563]

larger symbols on Superman suits >>>>

[@runekrol]

You forgot the Ben Affleck superman suit😂

[@billkelly6292]

Nick Cage Superman looks like he is wearing a red jock strap.

[@Kamcrosscomics]

Kingdom Come suit from CW Crisis on Infinite Earths is the best in my opinion

[@thealexoo833]

Brandon Routh is a goat superman He is the real SuperGoat Everyone is talking abt Henry because he does a good role but he left dceu so everyone is moaning ABT him but brandon Routh is actual SuperGoat He is the real superman

[@TheBlond49]

BvS suit > MoS suit

[@TheRealBatToast]

I really don't like the Superman and Lois suit. Dull colors, looks like corduroy. I think the throwback suit he wore in the opening of the show was better than anything he wore after. The suit he wore in Supergirl was even worse. I don't even like the Snyder Blue and Red suit. Too over the top, the cape too long, but I like the Black suit for some reason. I love Christopher Reeve's suit, as well as both Brandon Routh (Returns/Kingdom Come) suits. The Nick Cage suit is modern and classic at the same time, nice. The Superboy suits were great too. I hope the new LEGACY suit says SUPERMAN. The "S" on the cape is a must!!

[@hmetv8619]

People are taking this “budget cut” too seriously, the show even with the budget cuts will have a bigger budget than other arrowverse shows, berlanti productions confirmed it won’t be 1 million per episode nor around that range, but it just won’t be the 7 million an episode from the first 3 seasons, so I’m guessing around 4 million. And with the show’s setting probably moving to a big city, they don’t have to lease properties like the Farm and Main Street in Toronto. That and them cutting all the supporting cast will make the budget higher, maybe even the biggest budget of all the seasons. If the Flash, Supergirl, Arrow, and Black Lighting could get a new suit every season with a far smaller budget than S&L, so can Superman.

[@balakay9141]

What abt the one from black Adam

[@Incepted]

That’s just the man of steel suit with a shitty color grading on it

[@BrothersWebOfficial]

10:54 Dude, this suit's colors are stupid and doesn't give off hope vibes at all! - Luke

[@nicoolio_gp]

Who’s Nicholas Cage? I thought Nicolas Cage’s Superman in The Flash looked badass, and that whole “muscle suit” aesthetic Burton had going on goes hard 🔥

[@BATARANGMOBILE]

I like the S symbol of the red and black color mark cause that's my favorite classic childhood costume ever to see so yeah in this time double thumbs up.

[@thesmellofadventure5370]

1: Hoechlin Classic Suit 2: Cavill Man of Steel Suit 3: Cavill Black Suit 4: Hoechlin Season 3 Suit 5: Routh Kingdom Come Suit 6: Hoechlin Season 1/2 Suit 7: Hoechlin Black Suit 8: Cavill BvS Suit 9: Christopher Reeve Suit 10: Brandon Routh Suit 11: OG Hoechlin Supergirl Suit 12: Gerald Christopher Superboy Suit 13: George Reeves Suit 14: Kirk Alyn Suit 15: Lois and Clark Suit 16: Nicholas Cage Suit (Lol)

[@arc4859]

Honestly I think the BVS suit is the best. The colors are brighter than in Man of Steel, but still not too bright like the Josstice League suit. The belt is also fixed and made more prominent, which does a lot to make him look less naked like he was in Man of Steel. I’m also a fan of the tweaks to the logo

[@K3Ddesignstudio]

Same here. Love the touches especially the Kryptonian text through the S 🔥

[@cuachogaidh]

The Superman Returns suits did have padding, they show it in the special features on the dvd

[@thomasezzy]

Aw George Reeves is one of my favs, I prefer it when the trunks are taller

[@Yeeyee8009]

I legit cannot picture superman with long hair

[@SuperCeleste007]

Also, something that I think is going to for sure be out on the DCU Superman suit Is the yellow S on the back of the Cape just so we can send out any more recognizable

[@j.p.6932]

3:56 I’m pretty sure I remember reading a good deal of the George Reeves suit was wool, because I remember how impractical and uncomfortable it would be. Spandex wasn’t even around until 1959.

[@cuachogaidh]

Gotta disagree about color. I love that rich, deep blue of Dean Cain's suit. It's a good shade without going dark. My only problem with Tyler Hoechlin's suit is the dull colors, it looks dirty, the screen printed shield just looks flat and unimpressive and the muscle suit is too much. Tyler's in fantastic shape and didn't need so much padding, the air-brushed muscle highlights don't line up with the padding when he moves and gives it an uncanny valley effect. Ditch the pads and the air brushed muscles, clean up the dull colors and his suit would be near top tier.

[@user-zd7id9rx3f]

Why did they keep changing the suit used in the DCEU from the one first used in Man of Steel? It seems like unnecessary expense.

[@midsectionmark8956]

That’s wild lol 😂! You actually said that Superman’s suits overall weee better than Batman’s I’m live action 😅. Crazy because the way I see it they both got equally great and bad costumes. I think the best 3 Superman suits are BVS, Superman Returns , and Original Superman Christopher reeves.

[@omaridaniels8427]

It's tragic that we didn't get any sort of Kingdom Come HBO Max Superman series with Brandon Routh after Crisis. Talk about a hell of a Superman comeback for him.

[@joseimyelcaminante6879]

But we got Superman & Lois, which is an amazing show

[@unova8903]

For me the black suit in zack snyder justice league is the best suit ever

[@dumpy5266]

Coming back again 5 months later in 2024. If you plan on updating this with Corenswet's Superman suit, you should also include the Superman suits from Shazam and Black Adam.

[@an4rchy72]

Man of Steel at 4 is crazy. I hate that suit so much

[@coreyvisser7004]

I have completely different tastes. I prefer larger logos. I loved the Dean Cain suit and wished the superman returns logo and CW Suit was bigger

[@Visitor7474]

I don't have a problem with bright outfit but Batman is getting darker and darker so it don't fit in with batman. Unless he brings out the blue batman like the 60's haha

[@Iwillone]

Tyler’s new suits lack the proper neckline from his first one and takes from Returns style but Brandon got the perfect designs in the Arrowverse.

[@logan2b]

I think I’d put the Superman returns suit at 1 if the red wasn’t so brown, so probably routh’s crisis suit at 1 for me

[@dumpy5266]

Idk about you man, but I’d swap the BvS and Josstice League’s suits’ spots + put Hoechlin’s S2 suit above Routh’s first one. S2 specifically because it pretty much fixes my issues from the one before and after it, they should’ve kept it

[@DiegoTorres-ls8wh]

For me It's: 1. Brandon Routh's Superman Returns 2. Christohper Reeves 3. Superman and Lois' First appereance suit

[@jamesanderson6373]

*Reeve

[@mckenanbundy3578]

Love your list even if I would have rearranged a few here and there!

[@Jakethehitman73]

Just to clarify: none of the live action Superboys wore fake muscles. But Routh in Superman Returns IS wearing fake muscles.

[@DevilMaster]

I disagree on the shade of blue on Nicolas Cage's and Dean Cain's costumes being too dark. I like that color, it makes the blue stand out more. About the Nicolas Cage costume, the only thing I hate about it is the nipples. Instead, I do like that it looks more like an armored suit like Batman's, because, even though Superman doesn't need armor when he's near a yellow sun, his suit is Kryptonian in origin, and Kryptonians didn't have powers on Krypton, so it makes sense that they would make an armored suit.

[@DiamondBatToons]

You lost me at spot 1, that spot should go to Cavill's suit. It's very simple, it's accurate, and it looks perfectly practical. The only problem is the lack of a gold belt. Give it a Gold belt, it's the perfect Superman suit!

[@flamingknight1356]

I Never understood this but why does superman need a belt. Like he’s not Batman who has stuff in his belt.

[@clonedavenger]

Ngl I love the Cage Suit tbh. The only Superman movie costume I don't really like is Brandon Routh's.

[@aegisring]

Shows what you know, George Reeves suit was actually Brown and Grey when the show was in black and white. It only until the series went to color which was when it got the classic superman color scheme

[@manricobianchini5276]

I never liked how the cape emerges from around the neck. Should be attached to the costume on the shoulders. The man of Steel costume is my favorite, though. The last costume of Brandon's is good too.

[@alibeknorbekov5963]

Nice Video And i agree with this Ranking of those Suits I didn't know that Superman's suit became worse in Justice League Imagine now Post Crisis Kingdom come Yellow instead of Black suit, and with More Accurate Logo on The chest, and Henry Cavill Wearing it That's perfect Combination (on my opinion)

[@mahishdwarka8984]

13:59 bro predicted the new movie lmao

[@overloadezking2934]

I feel like he should do this for wonder woman despite her not having many in live action so he would have to add in different types of suits she wore in the universe and i dont mean regular outfits

[@Icevolcano-pr1wq]

1. Christopher Reeve Superman suit is the best Superman ever. 2. All Tyler Hoechlin Superman suit. 3. Brandon Routh Superman Suit and Superman Kingdom come 4. All Tom Welling suit 5. Dean Cain Superman suit. Nicholas Cage and Henry Cavil Superman suit are both tried as the worst Superman suit ever

[@numerousncomicsandlegos6780]

Jostlstice league movie sucks, but his suit in that was pretty solid

[@sith29]

Tylers suit are good in superman and lios but he isnt that top built . His black suit from arrowverse is better than his normal one . Brandon kingdom come is the best one ouy of all supermen. He looks more superman now than he did back then .

[@christianmanka3884]

I kinda liked the wackiness of all the Nic Cage superman suits

[@Gerald22222]

10:03 “the abs look real” they look like ones on one of those shity Halloween costumes 😂😂😂😂

[@Gerald22222]

11:20 they look like my dads pants

[@Gerald22222]

13:41 that is the most ugly supperman suits I’ve ever seen

[@Gerald22222]

15:25 but that takes the cake of the most ugly super man suits I’ve ever seen

[@forcecaptainoverlordsuprem2964]

​@@Gerald22222you're clearly mentally defective if you think the kingdom come suit is ugly.

[@joshh.2159]

Christopher Reeves is still the best honestly

[@jamesanderson6373]

*Reeve

[@SuperCeleste007]

Although, if the DCU would do The Death of Superman and do the black suit at some point down the line, I personally believe they will do The Death of Superman in a justice league movie like say the third one, and that’s the one that has Darkseid as the villain and someone like him, or the Legion of Doom will create Doomsday, to kill the Justice League and Superman will sacrifice himself and He will kill Superman and then in the fourth Justice League movie, he will be resurrected and wearing the black suit and if the students just like the comic version or maybe just a black version of the suit that Superman Will where in Superman: Legacy. Basically the classic suit just with embossing but instead now black. It would probably be the best one, although I’m more hoping for something more comic accurate and less of just Superman costume now in black

[@BaithNa]

People know that the trunks was inspired by strong men and wrestlers from the early 20th century but what people don't know is that they wore it to better conceal their junk.

[@anthonyfreire7251]

You know this is gonna be a very weird complaint but i think the thing that bugs me about Brandon Rouths return as Superman is the length of his hair. I think its too long. If you look at kingdom come or any alex ross painting (using that as a baseline because thats the clear inspiration for the new Routh appearance) Superman has a pretty neat hair cut. Pretty clean cut and short. Idk call me crazy or stupid but thats how i feel lol does anyone agree?

[@FingerBreakerWu]

Dean Cain’s costume straight up looked like pajamas.

[@sadiquddin7611]

Do you still use Patreon?

[@SuperCeleste007]

Generally speaking, I also don’t know when they will do Shazam. I couldn’t see him in chapter 2 are 3 although I don’t know if they’ll have him post the initial slate, or near the very end.

[@GalaxyOceanYT]

Personally Tyler’s updated suit is my favorite

[@hmetv8619]

It’s nice but I like the new 52 season 1 suit more, mostly because of the belt

[@IAmVortex-edits]

Now you should do Spider-Man suits

[@Cornyboa]

joss whedons jl superman suit is my favorite cause of the vibrant colors

[@j.p.6932]

1:01 Boo. I actually think the black suit is pretty cool - particularly the Henry Cavil one; especially since it’s revealed to be Kryptonian battle dress/armor and not a superhero costume he or the Kents made.

[@joaniekeyser4036]

Regeneration suit, actually. Black draws more of the sun's rays, which in turn helped Supes regenerate fully after his resurrection much faster, as did going up out of Earth's atmosphere so he would get unfiltered sunlight.

[@j.p.6932]

@@joaniekeyser4036 Good point. Never thought of that. But the battle suit comment was in reference to the one he finds on the ship, I think it’s there they explain what it is. Other movies make it just seem like a fashion statement

[@squarebiz90]

You forgot Tom Welling’s suit in the smallville finale

[@Shorai_3]

It's just the Returns suit.

[@SSmith-eu9vw]

The season 3 Superman and lowest costume is perfect. If all the red matched it would be better but it's still the best live-action costume I personally have ever seen. Sorry Cavill.

[@pizzatime4204]

The bvs suit isn't actually that dark, it just looks that way due to the color grading. If you see the suit anywhere else it's not that dark

[@VirtualVisionStudiosOfficial]

From what I remember on behind on the scenes, I think the blue is actually a lot more richer and vibrant compared to MoS. Its just yeah: the color grading

[@andyjoelharper3448]

Please…the darker or lighter red. Push posh! Superman looks great in all versions. Time to move away from wearing red trunks on the outside 😅

[@ahmadstewasamlrt2202]

How would you rewrite Marvel phase 4.😮

[@BaithNa]

I've seen plenty of great ideas from small tweaks to large sweeping changes and honestly, I like them all more than what we actually got from Marvel.

[@vincentsolis5149]

Welling should've been Kingdom Come Superman. Reeves still holds the best costume.

[@user-we8pb5lv3d]

What if marvel made a universe like the dcamu were marvel had animated moives and stuff