The Untold Truth Of Smallville

Today the Marvel Cinematic Universe is held up as the gold standard for the concept of live-action interconnected superhero stories. But while the oft-maligned DC cinematic universe has struggled to catch up with the MCU, the truth is DC Comics jumped on the trend much earlier with their television shows — specifically 2001's "Smallville."

The series follows the adventures of a young Clark Kent (Tom Welling) growing up in a small town in Kansas years before he becomes Superman. Along with dealing with his friends and enemies, Clark also copes with his secret heritage as an alien blessed with all sorts of amazing powers. Part superhero show, part teen drama, "Smallville" laid the groundwork for what would one day become the CW's "Arrowverse," a live-action television superhero universe based on DC Comics. 

With an impressive 10 seasons to its credit, "Smallville" was a trendsetter in a lot of ways, for both DC adapted media and for superhero television in general. The series is still regarded in a positive light by fans and considered a classic of its genre. Let's look at some lesser-known facts about the making of "Smallville" before the series reached its conclusion in 2011. 

On its face, the grounded, realistic approach that "Smallville" takes to telling a superhero story without any costumes or overt displays of superpowers seems better suited to a character like Batman. This is no coincidence, since the original intention was to make a series about a young Bruce Wayne's journey to becoming Batman. 

In 1999, the "Batman" franchise was under the weather after the wildly negative reaction to the 1997 movie "Batman and Robin." That was when scriptwriter Tim McCanlies pitched the idea of a television series focusing on a young Bruce Wayne in the years before he becomes the Dark Knight. The studio responded positively to the idea, and a script was created for the pilot of the series that sees Alfred Pennyworth narrating the events of the main plot involving Bruce investigating his father's company for possible ties to the Gotham underworld. 

But then Warner Bros. started putting plans together to create a new, more serious film about the Caped Crusader based on the classic "Batman: Year One" comic series. Since Warner Bros. didn't want the movie to compete with the show, the base concept for the latter was retooled into an origin story for Superman instead.  

Going into making "Smallville," newcomer actor Tom Welling was unburdened by the massive cultural heft of his new starring role. In fact, Welling cared so little about the momentous nature of playing Superman that he actually turned down the role when it he was initially asked to read for it. 

"[The chance to audition for] this show 'Smallville' came along, and they weren't releasing the script," Welling explained to The Hollywood Reporter. "They just wanted me to audition. My manager at the time says, 'That either means they don't have a script, or it's not very good.' We turned it down."

While the actor was unwilling to audition without a script, the showrunners thought he had the potential to play a really compelling Clark Kent. Finally, Welling was allowed to read the script after signing a nondisclosure agreement. That's when the actor realized that the show was not about a superhero "running around in tights," but a high school kid trying to discover himself. That's what convinced Welling to take on the role despite his initial misgivings.  

"Smallville" might have its critics among the DC fandom, but it's hard to argue against the series' iteration of Lex Luthor. Michael Rosenbaum played a very different version of the quintessential supervillain than the one typically seen in the comics. This Lex grows up with Clark in Smallville and considers the Last Son of Krypton his brother from another mother until discovering his secret. 

Witty, calculating, and effortlessly charismatic, Rosenbaum's Lex is one of the best depictions of the character in any live-action film or series. And it seems the actor did a little bit of method acting by embodying his character when the cameras weren't rolling.

"I went into the auditions and just took over," Rosenbaum recalls in an interview with Titan Magazines (via The Superman Homepage). "I felt really confident, because I had nothing to lose."

Rosenbaum recalled passing a message to the producers of the show asking what exactly they wanted the actor for Lex to bring to the table. Based on the studio notes, Rosenbaum circled out the parts of the audition script where he would be alternately funny, brooding, and menacing.  After the producers asked Rosenbaum to come back for another screen test, he unleashed Lex's classic arrogance and told the studio that he would not audition again because the first time went so spectacularly. The gambit worked, and Rosenbaum was soon hired to play Lex Luthor. 

When "Smallville" came onto the scene, the most famous depiction of Superman was without question that of the late Christopher Reeve. Therefore, it was inevitable that Tom Welling and "Smallville" by extension would be held up to the standard set by Reeve's "Superman" films. Fortunately, fans saw Reeve give his blessings to the show when he appeared on it in a brief supporting role as Virgil Swann, a scientist who helps Clark discover his alien heritage. "I was a little skeptical [about the show] until I saw a few episodes," Reeve said in an interview. "The writing and the special effects are remarkable."

Not only did Reeve give his seal of approval to "Smallville," but he was impressed enough with Welling's portrayal of Clark to express a wish to see the actor play Superman in a movie. "I remember [after filming our scene together, Reeve] says to me, 'I'm really glad they chose you to be the next Superman,'" Welling told Michael Rosenbaum (via CBR). "I was like, 'Well, they didn't.' That's when Brandon [Routh] had gotten the role [in the 2006 film 'Superman Returns']. And he said, 'Well they should have.'" 

In DC Comics, Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman are considered the main "Trinity" that all the other superheroes look up to. The members of the Trinity share a close bond. Unfortunately, that bond could not be explored on "Smallville." 

Even back in the early 2000s, Warner Bros. had plans to use Batman and Wonder Woman in their own movies and TV shows and forbade the makers of "Smallville" from using either of the characters. In fact, the closest "Smallville" ever gets to Wonder Woman is Lois Lane dressing up as an Amazon princess for a costume party. 

Nowadays, studios are much more willing to blur the lines between their franchises, and Tom Welling feels they missed an opportunity to add the other parts of the Trinity into the "Smallville" mythos, especially Batman. "I wish I would've pushed for Bruce Wayne to somehow cross through Smallville," the actor told TVLine. "Like, I really wish Clark could've gone into Lex's mansion, in his office, and Lex is like, 'Clark, how'd you get in? This is my friend, Bruce Wayne...'" 

While "Smallville" is rightly praised for its acting and providing a grounded story for the Man of Steel, the show was also a trendsetter when it came to special effects on the small screen. Until the late '90s, good special effects were considered the domain of big budget action movies, while TV special effects were generally considered cheap and cheesy. 

In order to make "Smallville" work, its creators had to pull off something much more complicated than simply using lots of CGI. Each of Clark Kent's superpowers needed to be shown in different ways, and the production had to figure out the logistics of making Clark run at superspeed, shoot heat vision from his eyes, use freeze breath, and perform any number of other spectacular feats.  

"At one point I was on the back of a Ford pickup truck that, in the back, had a treadmill that I was running on [to simulate super speed]," Welling told THR. "Obviously that was dangerous. That was how we did it at the beginning. Then heat vision, X-ray vision — we were figuring it out as we went." These lessons and techniques provided an early blueprint for how the Arrowverse would tackle similar issues when it came to superpowers on a television budget.

"Smallville" brings a number of comparatively obscure DC Comics characters to the small screen with slightly altered backstories. One such character was J'onn J'onzz, the Martian Manhunter, who debuted on "Smallville" played by actor Phil Morris. 

Morris plays John Jones, a seemingly ordinary human who is secretly a Martian superhero. John was a friend of Clark's biological father and promised to look after the young Clark Kent when he was still an infant. In the comics, the Martian Manhunter's main human alter ego had traditionally been depicted as white. But the makers of "Smallville" decided to cast Morris in the role.

"I think the [Smallville] writers in their infinite wisdom cast him as African-American because he really is a man on an island, as is Kal-El," Morris told If Magazine (via Buddy TV). "That's their one relating point is that they are both the last of their race stuck on another planet with these crazy humans." Morris' run as the Martian Manhunter ended up permanently impacting the comics; these days, J'onzz primarily takes the form of a Black man when he's in his civilian identity. Since "Smallville," other Black actors, including Harry Lennix and David Harewood, have played the part of the Manhunter from Mars.