Checking in with TYLER HOECHLIN

It seems that just about everyone is well-versed in, and on, Superman ... except, perhaps, for the actor who’s currently playing him on weekly television. As a youngster, Tyler Hoechlin had other interests, but he got a quick education in the Man of Steel upon landing the coveted role on “Superman & Lois.” Now heading toward the end of its third season Tuesdays on The CW (and, in Canada, on CTV Sci-Fi Channel), the series has taken a very deep dive into the family life of the title characters — extending to how they’ve dealt with a family health crisis lately. That’s new material for the iconic figures, and that may have benefited Hoechlin in his not having a preconceived, long-held notion of Superman. “I really don’t have a history with the character,” the friendly “7th Heaven” alum confirms. “I played baseball and was acting at a young age, so all of my free time was taken up, and comic books weren’t really my thing ... but in what I think in a fortunate way, that lack of history is beneficial, in that I can approach (Superman) in a way that’s very honest and intuitive.” Indeed, Hoechlin believes the approach taken by “Superman & Lois” sets it apart from other incarnations of the saga that he’s now aware of. Noting that “the tone is very different,” he emphasizes, “We’ve never seen this before, and that’s a very freeing experience on the set.” Even then, Hoechlin wasn’t sure he wanted to take flight as Superman at the start. He was enjoying being a free agent with acting gigs, but he changed his mind just in time. He recalls the producers “were thinking this was something they might actually get done, and I was ready to commit to something long-term again. It just worked out for everybody.” Birthdate: Sept. 11, 1987 Birthplace: Corona, Calif. Current residence: Los Angeles Marital status: Single Other television work includes: “Legends of Tomorrow,” “Batwoman,” “Arrow,” “The Flash,” “Supergirl,” “Another Life,” “The Sticks,” “Match Game,” “Hollywood Game Night,” “Teen Wolf,” “Castle,” “My Boys,” “Lincoln Heights,” “Grizzly Rage,” “CSI: Miami,” “7th Heaven” Movie work includes: “Palm Springs,” “Can You Keep a Secret?,” “Then Came You,” “Bigger,” “The Domestics,” “Fifty Shades Freed,” “Stratton,” “Undrafted,” “Melvin Smarty,” “Charlie Brown: Blockhead’s Revenge,” “Hall Pass,” “Open Gate,” “Solstice,” “The Rapture of the Athlete Assumed Into Heaven,” “Road to Perdition,” “Train Quest,” “Family Tree” Favorite movie: “’Pirates of the Caribbean.’” Favorite TV show you’re not on: “‘Peaky Blinders.’ “