Inspired casting for one of the hottest roles in Hollywood...

In what may be the soundest casting choice yet for Zack Snyder’s Superman reboot, actress Amy Adams has been chosen for the iconic role of reporter and love interest Lois Lane. She joins Henry Cavill, Diane Lane, and Kevin Costner as the latest to join the project. According to director Snyder, "There was a big, giant search for Lois. For us it was a big thing and obviously a really important role. We did a lot of auditioning but we had this meeting with Amy Adams and after that I just felt she was perfect for it."

But can Adams fill such big shoes? The character of Lois Lane goes back to the beginning of the comic book, where she was merely a co-worker who despised Clark for his timid nature and had a penchant for getting into bad situations that Superman had to rescue her from. Over the years, she warmed to Clark as a respected co-worker, finally giving in and dating him, discovering his identity, and eventually marrying him.

She’s been a constant faithful companion to the hero, as well as a point of much teasing at the hands of Batman (as was used beautifully in Jeph Loeb’s run on Superman/Batman). She’s an intelligent woman, full of self-confidence, and probably one of the first examples of a strong female role model for young girls, as well as a symbol for women’s rights.

In film and television, she has had ups and downs. In the Fleischer animated shorts (and in the animated series of the sixties) she was voiced by Joan Alexander, where she was typically a device for getting Superman into action. Headstrong and confident, Lois usually ran right into the face of danger, only to be saved at the last second by our hero. Noel Neill took the reins for the film serials and television series starring George Reeves (with the exception of Superman and the Mole-Men, where she was portrayed by Phyllis Coates). Here, Lois was still the self-assured reporter, but less of a damsel-in-distress. Neill gave brilliant performances and showed strength in the character, making her an icon.

Perhaps the best known face for Lois Lane came in 1978 with Richard Donner’s Superman, with Margot Kidder taking on the role. Here, Lois was not only intelligent, but a smart ass, who could hold her own with any man but still exude femininity. The only times in the film where she isn’t her usual strong self is when she’s around Superman. She was a Lois Lane for a modern audience, which resonated with women. Kidder would go on to play Lois in all four movies, albeit in smaller roles in the third and fourth outings. After her came Teri Hatcher in the television series Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman. The series focused more on the personal relationship between the two characters than on super villains, and served more as a lighter look at the comic characters. Dana Delany voiced her for the WB’s Superman: The Animated Series as well as in the following Justice League, which brought back the feisty, quick-mouthed Lois we all know and love. In recent years, Erica Durance has breathed new life into the character on the CW’s Smallville, showing a strong side and quick wit, never backing down from a fight, but also – as evidenced by this last season – having a more vulnerable side, allowing young girls to see that they can be both strong and tender all at the same time.

The biggest misstep would be Bryan Singer’s casting of Kate Bosworth in 2006’s Superman Returns. Instead of a Lois who is self-assured and strong, we get someone who looks like they just came out of journalism class, fumbling through the entire movie. It was a giant step back character-wise. At no point did I ever believe that she was a Pulitzer Prize winning writer, much less a respected reporter.

But Amy Adams is no slouch. Adams, 36, has many film and television credits to her name – including Enchanted, Julie & Julia, and the Oscar-nominated Doubt – as well as award nominations and wins of her own. She has been nominated three times for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, most recently this last year for her role in The Fighter. She has also been in an episode of Smallville, which gives her a little comic realm credit, and is set to appear in the upcoming family film The Muppets, as well as appearing as iconic sixties singer Janis Joplin in the biopic Janis Joplin: Get it While You Can. I have to believe that this is inspired casting, and apart from Diane Lane, about the best news I’ve heard so far from the Snyder camp about the new film. I have no doubt she will do a fantastic job, but I don’t know that she can help a project that seems to be straying far from the source. I certainly hope I’m proven wrong by this film, and maybe the casting of Miss Adams is what is needed.

See also:

Costner cast in Superman

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