# Tyler Hoechlin
**Tyler Hoechlin** (full name Tyler Lee Hoechlin, born 1987) is an American actor known for playing Derek Hale on MTV's *Teen Wolf* and Clark Kent/Superman in [The CW](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-cw)'s Arrowverse series *Supergirl* and *Superman & Lois*. He began his career as a child actor, appearing opposite [Tom Hanks](https://www.edgepedia.org/tom-hanks) in [Sam Mendes](https://www.edgepedia.org/sam-mendes)'s crime drama *Road to Perdition* (2002), and balanced acting with competitive baseball into his college years.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0388382/) • [2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/tyler_hoechlin)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1987, Corona, California, USA[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/tyler_hoechlin) |
| Breakthrough role | Michael Sullivan Jr., son of Tom Hanks's mob enforcer, in *Road to Perdition* (2002), directed by Sam Mendes[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/tyler_hoechlin) |
| Early series role | Martin Brewer on the family drama *7th Heaven*, 2003–2007[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0388382/) |
| *Teen Wolf* | Derek Hale, 2011–2017, 63 episodes on MTV[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0388382/) |
| Superman | Cast in June 2016 for *Supergirl* season 2; later led *Superman & Lois* (2021–2024, 53 episodes)[3](https://time.com/4372102/cw-supergirl-superman-tyler-hoechlin/) • [1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0388382/) |
| Voice work | English voice of Sephiroth in the *Final Fantasy VII Remake* franchise[4](https://regionalreport.co.uk/features/tyler-hoechlin-biography-career/) |
| Rotten Tomatoes range | Highest-rated film *The Domestics* (2018) at 100% with critics; lowest-rated *Stratton* (2017) at 0%[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/tyler_hoechlin) |
## Baseball and early acting
Hoechlin's first commitment was baseball, which he began at age 7 and continued playing into college. He juggled the sport with acting through the start of his career, and played Division I baseball at UC Irvine before an injury shifted his focus entirely to acting.[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/tyler_hoechlin) • [5](https://lovemebio.com/blog/tyler-hoechlin-social-media-branding-analysis) In a later interview about training for *Superman & Lois*, he described his early years as focused primarily on baseball, which he played competitively all through school.[6](https://www.mensjournal.com/fitness/tyler-hoechlin-on-building-a-superman-worthy-physique-mens-journal)
His professional acting career began with a role in the film *Family Tree* (1999).[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/tyler_hoechlin) The breakthrough came at age 14 with *Road to Perdition* (2002), Sam Mendes's 1930s period crime drama, in which he played Michael Sullivan Jr., the son of mob enforcer Michael Sullivan, played by Tom Hanks.[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/tyler_hoechlin) The performance led directly to his addition to the main cast of the family drama *7th Heaven* as Martin Brewer in 2003, a role he held through 2007.[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/tyler_hoechlin) • [1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0388382/)
After *7th Heaven*, he guest-starred on television series including *CSI: Miami*, the sports comedy *My Boys*, and *Castle*, and appeared in films such as *Solstice* (2008) and the [Owen Wilson](https://www.edgepedia.org/owen-wilson) comedy *Hall Pass* (2011).[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/tyler_hoechlin)
## Teen Wolf
In 2011 Hoechlin returned to series television full time as Derek Hale on MTV's supernatural drama *Teen Wolf*, where much of the plot came to revolve around his character, the only other werewolf known to the show's teenage protagonist.[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/tyler_hoechlin) • [7](https://irishgothicjournal.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/television-reviews3.pdf) He played the role for 63 episodes across 2011–2017.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0388382/) He left the series in 2014, and weeks later was cast in [Richard Linklater](https://www.edgepedia.org/richard-linklater)'s college baseball comedy *Everybody Wants Some!!* (2016) as McReynolds, the confident team captain.[8](https://www.interviewmagazine.com/film/tyler-hoechlin) The role drew on his own athletic background; he told *Interview* magazine that he had wanted to be a professional ball player as a student until an injury forced a detour.[8](https://www.interviewmagazine.com/film/tyler-hoechlin)
He reprised Derek Hale in the 2023 reunion film *Teen Wolf: The Movie*, on which he also served as a producer.[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/tyler_hoechlin)
## Superman in the Arrowverse
In June 2016, The CW announced that Hoechlin would play Superman, also known as Clark Kent, opposite [Melissa Benoist](https://www.edgepedia.org/melissa-benoist)'s title character in the second season of *Supergirl*, which had moved from CBS to The CW.[3](https://time.com/4372102/cw-supergirl-superman-tyler-hoechlin/) Executive producer Andrew Kreisberg said he and [Greg Berlanti](https://www.edgepedia.org/greg-berlanti) had wanted to work with Hoechlin for ages, adding, "this worked out perfectly because Tyler is Superman."[3](https://time.com/4372102/cw-supergirl-superman-tyler-hoechlin/) Hoechlin said the role was written from the start as a supporting character for [Supergirl](https://www.edgepedia.org/supergirl): "It's always about her."[9](https://comicbook.com/dc/news/tyler-hoechlin-led-superman-show-could-happen-but-its-not-our-fo/) He described a formative early moment on set, when children he met while wearing the suit did not know his name; he said the experience of being, for ten minutes, simply Superman to them helped shape his view of the character as a symbol of hope.[10](https://www.pressherald.com/2016/10/17/tyler-hoechlin-suits-up-as-superman-for-the-cws-supergirl/)
He went on to play the character across the [Arrowverse](https://www.edgepedia.org/arrowverse), with appearances in *The Flash* (2018–2019), *Batwoman* (2019), and the crossover *Crisis on Infinite Earths* (2020), in addition to six episodes of *Supergirl* from 2016 to 2019.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0388382/) • [11](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/tyler-hoechlin/)
**Superman & Lois.** In 2021 Hoechlin took the lead as Clark Kent/Superman in *Superman & Lois*, opposite [Elizabeth Tulloch](https://www.edgepedia.org/elizabeth-tulloch), a series centered on the Kent family, with Clark and Lois returning to [Smallville](https://www.edgepedia.org/smallville) with their sons Jon and Jordan.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0388382/) • [12](https://elpais.com/cultura/2025-07-11/superman-el-superheroe-naif-vuelve-a-sus-origenes.html) The show ran for 53 episodes through 2024 and ended with its fourth season, its conclusion coinciding with the restart of the DC film universe under [James Gunn](https://www.edgepedia.org/james-gunn).[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0388382/) • [12](https://elpais.com/cultura/2025-07-11/superman-el-superheroe-naif-vuelve-a-sus-origenes.html) On IMDb, Hoechlin is credited on the series not only as Clark Kent and Superman but also as the variants Bizarro, Kal-El, and Doomsday.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0388382/)
## Film work and voice acting
Hoechlin's film credits in the 2010s and 2020s include the horror film *The Domestics* (2018) opposite [Kate Bosworth](https://www.edgepedia.org/kate-bosworth), the bodybuilding biopic *Bigger* (2018) as [Joe Weider](https://www.edgepedia.org/joe-weider), a role as Boyce Fox in *Fifty Shades Freed* (2018), the romantic comedy *Can You Keep a Secret?* (2019) opposite [Alexandra Daddario](https://www.edgepedia.org/alexandra-daddario), and the sci-fi series *Another Life* (2019).[13](https://www.cwtvpr.com/the-cw/talent/?view=tyler-hoechlin) • [1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0388382/) He played Abe in the well-received time-loop comedy *Palm Springs* (2020), which premiered at Sundance and holds a 95% critics score on Rotten Tomatoes.[13](https://www.cwtvpr.com/the-cw/talent/?view=tyler-hoechlin) • [2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/tyler_hoechlin)
He has also worked as a voice actor, voicing Sephiroth in the *Final Fantasy VII Remake* franchise, a role that placed him in one of gaming's most recognized series and added a video-game audience to his television and film following.[4](https://regionalreport.co.uk/features/tyler-hoechlin-biography-career/)
## Reception
Critical aggregation of his film work spans a wide range: *The Domestics* and *Palm Springs* sit at 100% and 95% with critics respectively, *Everybody Wants Some!!* at 87%, while *Stratton* (2017), in which he played Marty opposite Dominic Cooper, holds 0%.[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/tyler_hoechlin) • [13](https://www.cwtvpr.com/the-cw/talent/?view=tyler-hoechlin) His Superman portrayal has been noted for its emphasis on the Clark Kent half of the character; a 2025 retrospective in *El País* described the *Superman & Lois* take as developing the idea of a Kent family, and trade coverage has placed him among the line of television Supermen running from Tom Welling's *Smallville* onward.[12](https://elpais.com/cultura/2025-07-11/superman-el-superheroe-naif-vuelve-a-sus-origenes.html) • [14](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/herocomplex/la-et-hc-supergirl-superman-cw-20160616-snap-story.html)
## References
1. [Tyler Hoechlin, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0388382/)
2. [Tyler Hoechlin Movies & TV Shows List, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/tyler_hoechlin)
3. [The CW's 'Supergirl' Now Has Her Superman, TIME (June 16, 2016)](https://time.com/4372102/cw-supergirl-superman-tyler-hoechlin/)
4. [Tyler Hoechlin – Superman, Teen Wolf, and Sephiroth Roles, Regional Report](https://regionalreport.co.uk/features/tyler-hoechlin-biography-career/)
5. [Tyler Hoechlin Social Media Bio & Branding Analysis, LoveMeBio](https://lovemebio.com/blog/tyler-hoechlin-social-media-branding-analysis)
6. [Tyler Hoechlin on Building a Superman-Worthy Physique, Men's Journal](https://www.mensjournal.com/fitness/tyler-hoechlin-on-building-a-superman-worthy-physique-mens-journal)
7. [Television Reviews 8, Irish Gothic Journal (2018)](https://irishgothicjournal.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/television-reviews3.pdf)
8. [Tyler Hoechlin, Interview Magazine (March 26, 2016)](https://www.interviewmagazine.com/film/tyler-hoechlin)
9. [Tyler Hoechlin-Led Superman Show Could Happen, "But It's Not Our Focus," Says Supergirl EP, ComicBook.com (September 6, 2017)](https://comicbook.com/dc/news/tyler-hoechlin-led-superman-show-could-happen-but-its-not-our-fo/)
10. [Tyler Hoechlin suits up as Superman for The CW's 'Supergirl', Associated Press via Press Herald (October 17, 2016)](https://www.pressherald.com/2016/10/17/tyler-hoechlin-suits-up-as-superman-for-the-cws-supergirl/)
11. [Tyler Hoechlin – Actor, TV Insider](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/tyler-hoechlin/)
12. ['Superman', el superhéroe naif vuelve a sus orígenes, El País (July 11, 2025)](https://elpais.com/cultura/2025-07-11/superman-el-superheroe-naif-vuelve-a-sus-origenes.html)
13. [Tyler Hoechlin bio, The CW Press](https://www.cwtvpr.com/the-cw/talent/?view=tyler-hoechlin)
14. ['Supergirl' finds their Superman in actor Tyler Hoechlin, Los Angeles Times (June 16, 2016)](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/herocomplex/la-et-hc-supergirl-superman-cw-20160616-snap-story.html)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Screen people and creators › Screen actors of the Anglosphere and Europe › American actors: 2000s onward › Surnames He to Hs*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 20, 2026; Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 12, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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