Will Reeve Reflects on Dad’s Legacy, Cameo in New Film and David Corenswet Taking Up the Superman Mantle

Nearly 40 years after he last donned the signature cape and tights, it’s no question that the spirit of Christopher Reeve is alive and well as the latest iteration of Superman hits theaters — just ask his son Will.

The highly anticipated movie, starring David Corenswet as the Man of Steel, had a strong opening weekend, earning $122 million — a rousing success after a series of disappointments from DC Films.

Will Reeve, 33, a reporter with ABC News, has a cameo in James Gunn’s fresh take on the Man of Tomorrow as a Metropolis TV reporter trying to do his job while the city is under siege.

Reeve said he felt welcomed by Corenswet and Nicholas Hoult — who stars as the villainous Lex Luthor in the new film — when he visited the Atlanta set last year, telling the New York Post “it was a treat.”

“I felt so welcomed and included. And I did say to David in that moment where we met, I wanted him to know that I, my brother, and sister, and our whole family are just excited for them.”

Last week, Corenswet sat down with Reeve to talk about Superman and the legacy of his father.

“Is this weird for you?” Reeve said with a smile.

“I wouldn’t say weird,” Corenswet answered. It’s like, a little surreal in some way. I don’t know. It feels special.”

Corenswet admitted that Christopher Reeve played a role in his portrayal as the last son of Krypton.

“I think a lot of it is because of your dad, I mean it’s so rare you have a character so effectively portrayed on screen that makes the actor a global movie star and they become sort of inextricably linked,” Corenswet said. “And then to have a circumstance in life that puts them into a position where they have a chance to play that part in their lives but in a public way again, but in a way that feels separate from the film but not separate from the character and the spirit of the character.

Corenswet admitted that he drew inspiration from Reeve’s father, as well as his own, while playing the iconic character

“To think about my own dad, who I lost six years ago — I was very close with him — and moments like this you often think about, ‘he’s missing out on this, what would he think about this?’ I felt so lucky to think of your dad in the same way I think about my own dad, which was sort of not approving what we were doing but certainly encouraging us.”

Christopher Reeve last appeared as the Man of Steel in Superman IV: The Quest for Peace in 1987, but was featured in 2023’s The Flash, thanks to CGI.

Will Reeve was just 3 years old when his father suffered a devastating horseback-riding accident that left him paralyzed from the neck down in 1995.

Christopher Reeve died in 2004. Will’s mother, Dana Reeve, died of lung cancer about a year and a half later.

America got a first-hand look at the Reeve family bond with the release of Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story, a documentary about the elder Reeve’s life and impact, not just on Superman fans but on those suffering from spinal cord injuries.

Watch above via ABC News.