A great piece of fan art can allow us to peer into alternate cinematic outcomes, often with very interesting results. Well, this new piece of fan artwork depicts Thor: Ragnarok star and Marvel Cinematic Universe alumni Chris Hemsworth as the rival superhero, DC's Superman.
This artistic imagining dons Chris Hemsworth in the suit worn by actual Superman star Henry Cavill in the likes of Man of Steel and Justice League. Dying his hair black and tinting his eyes Superman's iconic icy blue, Hemsworth cuts a very heroic figure indeed. Sporting a comforting smile and confident pose, the Thor actor is unquestionably here to save day, rather than just smash things up with lightning and a magic hammer.
In fact, the image does make one wonder how well Hemsworth would have fared had he joined the DC side of things rather than Marvel. Standing a pretty towering 6 foot three inches, he matches the exact measurements of the Kryptonian comic book counterpart, and from the Thor movies it is clear he can easily achieve the superhero shape required to play the Man of Steel.
However, as Thor's character has developed in the MCU he has become more and more of a comedic presence, which is not really what Kal-El is all about. It sure would have been a shame to waste Chris Hemsworth's natural hilarity and comic timing, so perhaps things played out the right way after all.
Of course, both Thor and Superman have been mainstream superheroes for decades, with the Man of Steel dating all the way back to 1938 and introducing superheroes to the world of comics, with the God of Thunder making his debut over 20 years later. Hemsworth made his debut as Thor in the character's first solo movie back in 2011, going on to have a big role in the Marvel Cinematic Universe by becoming one of the six original Avengers, and is in fact one of the only surviving original members following the events of Avengers: Endgame.
DC's hero meanwhile has been a staple of cinema for many years, with Christopher Reeves' portrayal still considered by many to be the best. The most recent live-action take on the comic book icon as portrayed by The Witcher's Henry Cavill has been met with a lot of positivity, even if the movies surrounding his performance have not been. Cavill made his big-screen debut as The Man of Tomorrow in Zack Snyder's Man of Steel back in 2013. It's fair to say that the actor has had a rougher time in his superhero role compared to Hemsworth, with Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and Justice League both getting mixed to negative reviews, all whilst the MCU goes from strength to strength.
Currently, Cavill's time as Superman is rumored to be up, leaving us all to ponder who would be best to don the red cape and replace him as the Man of Steel. Had he not already become Thor, Hemsworth could have made a decent successor. This comes to us courtesy of the digital artist ApexForm's Instagram account.