Annette O’Toole graced the screen alongside Christopher Reeve in Superman III, and her first on-set encounter with the Man of Steel continues to produce an emotional response today. Reeve first assumed his most notable role as the legendary superhero in 1978's Superman. Considered the first large-budget superhero movie, it was such a success that it went on to spawn three direct sequels and serve as an influence for the many comic-based movies to come.
O’Toole did not join the popular franchise until the third installment. She played Lana Lang, Superman’s new love interest. Prior to her arrival, Superman was heavily involved with Lois Lane. However, the actor that portrayed Lois, Margot Kidder, allegedly had a dispute with the producers that led to her largely being written out of the script for Superman 3. These circumstances allowed O’Toole to be cast in the break-out role that would impact her for the remainder of her career.
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In a recent interview with Inside of You, O’Toole recounted that when shooting first began on Superman 3, she and Reeve only filmed shared scenes as Clark Kent and Lana. Although she had seen Reeve play Superman onscreen, she became used to personally associating the actor with Clark while filming. Weeks passed before she finally saw Reeve don the iconic red and blue costume. Read below to see how the moment unfolded and how it continues to leave an impression on O'Toole to this day.
So, the first time I go on the set I didn’t see him because they had a separate room for him when he was doing Superman because he had a lot of different makeup and a wig and that kind of stuff he had to put on…I’d
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