10 Mind-Blowing Facts You Didn't Know About The DCEU

5. The Original Big-Screen Superman Cameos In Man Of Steel

Aaron Smolinski Man Of Steel
Warner Bros.

Like every other superhero series, the DCEU is stuffed full of easter eggs and references for fans to pick up on, and Man of Steel sure had its fair share of secrets. Aside from the LexCorp and Wayne Enterprises nods, one of its most interesting is a neat little cameo that most people probably missed, a reference that ties all the way back to the original Superman film from 1978.

That movie begins with an origin story we're all familiar with: an infant Kal-El being launched into space by his parents, destined for Earth. His ship crash-lands in the vicinity of Jonathan and Martha Kent, where Kal, now a young boy, emerges, and shocks the Kents when he manages to lift their truck.

The actor who played this role is called Aaron Smolinski, and he actually returned to the Superman franchise in Man of Steel for a quick cameo. Smolinski - who was almost 40 at the time - played the role of "Communications Officer", and can be seen standing next to Dr. Emil Hamilton (Richard Schiff) during the scene where Zod's lackey, Faora-Ul, arrives on Earth and takes Clark and Lois in her ship.

Not counting the baby version of Kal who is launched into space, Smolinski's role in Superman 1978 technically makes him the first actor to play the role in a big-budget film. Tenner bet he has used that line to pick up girls at least once.

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Danny has been with WhatCulture for over ten years, and is currently Doctor Who Editor and WhoCulture Channel Manager, overseeing all of WhatCulture's Whoniverse coverage. In 2022, he took charge of WhoCulture and has grown it into the biggest Doctor Who channel on YouTube, and one of the biggest Doctor Who communities on the web full-stop. He has been writing and video editing since his early teens, and first got a taste for content creation after making his own Doctor Who trailers, off the back of a burning obsession with the Matt Smith era of the show. Like many his age, he first got into Doctor Who with the 2005 revival, but has since gone back and fallen in love with the classic years too. If you need someone to recite every Doctor Who episode in order, or to give you a random factoid about the making of Gridlock, Danny is the person to ask!