It’s hard to imagine the Superman film series without Margot Kidder as Lois Lane. In the same way that Christopher Reeve so perfectly embodied the dual portrayal of Clark Kent and the Man of Steel throughout the film series, Kidder redefined the character of Lois Lane for the series. She helped make Lois a very successful reporter with a nose for news, at times misspelling her way through stories, while having her own no-nonsense attitude that she’s going to get her story her way.

Since her debut in Action Comics #1 in 1938, there have been many actresses who have portrayed Lois in radio, animation, television, and film. Joan Alexander. The first live-action portrayer, Noel Neill. Phyllis Coates. Teri Hatcher. Erica Durance. Kate Bosworth. Amy Adams. Elizabeth Tulloch. And, of course, Margot Kidder. But who else was up for the role?

From January to April 1977, at least six other actresses read for and/or screen tested for the role alongside Christopher Reeve in two sequences from the Superman films, the interview from Superman: The Movie, and Lois attempting to trick Clark into becoming the Man of Steel from Superman II. As shooting began on the two films, it was reminiscent of when filming on Gone With the Wind was underway without its Scarlett O’Hara. So let’s see who was up for the part.

Holly Palance

The daughter of acting legend Jack Palance, Holly Palance was best known for her role as the nanny in Richard Donner’s film The Omen. What we know is that she read opposite Christopher Reeve during his screen tests on February 1, 1977. Whether she had screen tested for Lois Lane is unknown, though it is very likely this is not the case. While certainly attractive enough for the role, and in the right age range, her reading comes off a bit dry.

Anne Archer

Anne Archer had built a name for herself as a reliable character actress in film and television since her debut in 1970 in the series Men at Law. Archer would shoot her screen test on March 10, 1977, shortly before the start of filming on Superman. Her presence was likable, and she would have made an effective Lois in my opinion. Archer would go on to have memorable roles in Fatal Attraction, Patriot Games, and Clear and Present Danger, among others.

Lesley Ann Warren

Of the actresses who auditioned for the role, Lesley Ann Warren was the only one who had experience in the part. Only two years earlier, she portrayed Lois Lane in the 1975 TV adaptation of the musical It’s a Bird, It’s a Plane, It’s Superman opposite David Wilson, which aired in a late night time slot. (If you’re brave enough to check out this sloppy video, knock yourself out.)

Warren’s screen test was filmed on March 22, 1977, also before the start of filming, and she brought her bubbly personality and smile to the screen test as she did in later movies. But her reading may have been a little over the top, if you ask me. According to David Michael Petrou in The Making of Superman: The Movie, it looked like Warren would be the choice. Good thing that Richard Donner and the Salkinds hesitated.

Deborah Raffin

Raffin made her acting debut in the TV drama Of Men and Women in 1973 and built up a steady stream of credentials in film and television, but she was still relatively unknown at the time of her screen test on April 16, 1977. There’s something about her screen test that just feels… off, in my opinion. I can’t put my finger on it. It’s possible that she didn’t have “the look” that would befit the character.

She would go on to a short-lived TV version of the film Foul Play, and in 1993 she would reunite with Christopher Reeve in the film Morning Glory.

Susan Blakely

Like Deborah Raffin and Anne Archer, Susan Blakely had also built up a steady stream of acting credentials during the 1970s, beginning with Savages in 1973 and followed over the next year and a half with appearances in The Way We Were, The Lords of Flatbush, and The Towering Inferno. In 1976 she appeared in the landmark miniseries Rich Man, Poor Man.

Blakely filmed her screen test on April 2, 1977, and later had lunch with Christopher Reeve, where, at one point, she stuck a wad of gum on Reeve’s shoe, much to his chagrin. In my opinion, her reading didn’t come off as inspiring. While she didn’t get the part, Blakely would continue her career with steady appearances on numerous films and television series over the next four decades.

Stockard Channing

This saucy actress, born Susan Stockard, got her start in 1970 in the short film Comforts of Home and made numerous appearances in films and television over the decade. She filmed her screen test on April 30, 1977, a week after Margot Kidder had filmed her screen tests. Her screen test was that good. She gave Lois Lane a tough, no-nonsense attitude that helped define the character, and as a result she was named one of the two finalists for the part, along with Kidder.

Ultimately it came down to a decision that likely involved Richard Donner, Ilya Salkind, and casting director Lynn Stalmaster, and Margot Kidder was selected. Stockard Channing would then go on to film her part in the role that would define her career, that of the tough talking Betty Rizzo, the leader of the Pink Ladies, in the film version of Grease.

Other names that were mentioned but were not considered included Barbra Streisand, Jessica Lange, Jill Clayburgh, Liza Minnelli, Shirley MacLaine, Natalie Wood, Christina Raines, and even Carrie Fisher. Could you have pictured any of them as Lois Lane?

But thank goodness for Margot Kidder and her screen tests on April 24, 1977. And the rest, as the saying goes, is history.