Warning: SPOILERS for Superman & Lois Season 2, Episode 3 - "The Thing In The Mines"
The Arrowverse's Superman's imperfect doppelganger, Bizarro (also played by Tyler Hoechlin).
Superman (Brandon Routh) didn't fight any Kryptonian villains in Superman Returns, although the Man of Steel did rid the Earth of a Kryptonian continent created by Lex Luthor (Kevin Spacey). Bryan Singer's 2006 film was a quasi-sequel to Richard Donner's Superman: The Movie and Superman II, with Routh inheriting the Superman role originated by Christopher Reeve. However, Superman Returns introduced some new ideas into the movies' lore like Superman having a young son named Jason (Tristan Lake Leabu), which Superman & Lois expanded on with Lois and Clark's teenage sons, Jordan (Alex Garfin) and Jonathan (Jordan Elsass). But perhaps the best idea seen in Superman Returns was the Man of Steel using his Super Hearing to find people who need his help as he hovered over the Earth. After he heard the outcries from around the world, Superman zoomed into action and performed numerous global rescues and crimefighting feats.
The opening moments of Superman & Lois season 2, episode 3, "The Thing In The Mines", brought back the stunning visual of Superman floating above the world listening for cries of help. Unfortunately, Superman was hit with another headache as he flew towards the Shuster mines, which caused him to crashland. Still, the Arrowverse's Superman in orbit listening to the people of Earth was a great reminder of Brandon Routh's Man of Steel doing the same in Superman Returns. It's also fun that Hoechlin and Routh's caped wonders met (and even fought each other) during Crisis On Infinite Earths, and Superman Returns is officially part of the Arrowverse's Multiverse.
The sight of Superman hoving above the planet listening to the people of Earth wasn't seen in any of the movies or TV shows before Superman Returns. Traditionally, Superman found out who needed his help because of his day job as a reporter. The whole reason why Clark Kent worked for a major metropolitan newspaper is that for most of the 20th century, it was the ideal way for him to find out what crisis needed Superman's attention. In the 21st century, with most people getting their news from online sources and not traditional newspapers, Clark Kent's career as a reporter doesn't make as much sense. Indeed, Superman & Lois eliminated Clark as a reporter entirely and the Smallville native is now a high school football coach when he isn't saving the world.
Following Superman tradition, Clark was still a reporter for the Daily Planet in Superman Returns and Crisis On Infinite Earths revealed that the older Kent became Editor-in-Chief, succeeding the late Perry White (Frank Langella). In Superman Returns, Clark took to the skies to listen for people who needed his help in spite of his Daily Planet connections. More importantly, hovering above the world helped convey the movie's theme of Superman's loneliness and alienation.
But Superman using his Super Hearing while floating above the world makes even more sense in Superman & Lois because the Man of Steel and the Department of Defense had a falling out. Hoechlin's Superman used to work closely with the U.S. Military, who pointed him at crises that needed his attention. When Superman refused to declare his allegiance to America first, the DoD cast him out. Superman now has to rely on his Super Hearing to find out where his powers are needed most, and this has the benefit of Superman & Lois bringing one of Superman Returns' most striking visuals and best ideas into the Arrowverse series.
Superman & Lois airs Tuesdays @ 8pm on The CW.