Tom Welling’s 6 Year Old Superman Comments Perfectly Justify A Modern Smallville Revival

Smallville star Tom Welling already explained why a new season of the DC series could be released nowadays. A decade before the MCU and the DCEU started the golden age of superhero cinematic universes, Smallville built a prototypical live-action DC franchise filled with superheroes, supervillains, and vigilantes. Not only was this an impressive feat because Smallville broke new ground in the superhero genre in an era when it was only beginning to explode, but also because of the show’s limited options when tackling a character as iconic and powerful as Superman.

Following a young Clark Kent, Smallville covered a great part of DC Comics’ lore, including Smallville‘s version of the Justice League, the Legion of Super-Heroes, and even Superboy. Clark Kent also developed all his powers and faced many of his famous villains, including Lex Luthor, Brainiac, Doomsday, and Darkseid — all before Tom Welling’s Clark Kent first donned the full Superman suit. However, Smallville‘s main focus always remained on Clark Kent’s personal issues as a teenager and a young adult, with his relationships and inner conflict taking center stage over his world-saving adventures.

Smallville Avoided Superman In Part Because Of Budget Concerns

A live-action DC series starring Superman in his prime can’t avoid VFX-heavy sequences, but a young Clark Kent prequel has the perfect justification for less bombastic action. In 2001, VFX technology wasn’t advanced enough to abound throughout entire episodes of multi-season sci-fi shows, and it was still rare for a high-concept TV series to receive a big budget for VFX, let alone retain it for ten consecutive seasons. Therefore, before Smallville shot a single episode, Smallville series creators Alfred Gough and Miles Millar decided to base Smallville‘s premise around Clark Kent’s early years. In an interview with EW, Smallville star Tom Welling explains,

“We literally had a sit down where we talked about the show and I asked about the suit and the tights and the flying, and they said, ‘No, absolutely not.’ (…) At the time, because of where visual effects and special effects and stunts were, it would be too expensive. That’s mainly why they save that for movies, more or less.”

With Superman’s full range of superpowers and abilities being an unlikely option for a smaller-scale show, Smallville‘ more restrained approach to Superman meant that the plot would be more intimate, which provided the opportunity to explore the character’s inner conflict without VFX-heavy action sequences stealing all the attention. Of course, Smallville‘s plot increased in scope with every new season, but the focus remained on Clark Kent as a person, not as an invincible superhero. In the same EW interview, Tom Welling continues to explain why Smallville didn’t double down on Clark Kent’s superhero career, saying,

Part of the reason being is that show is about a teenager trying to figure out who he is. They felt that once Clark put on the cape and the suit, life became too easy, in a sense. They wanted to focus on who this character was before that.

Why The Time Is Right For A Smallville Revival

In the two decades after Smallville‘s premiere, TV budgets have increased and VFX technology has advanced at an astounding pace. The idea of a live-action Superman show that features his battles in all their glory isn’t ludicrous anymore. In fact, Superman & Lois already accomplished exactly that. Despite not having as much budget or production time as a feature-length film, Superman & Lois managed to tackle plots and action sequences on the same scale as movies like Man of Steel and Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice without falling short on the visual side.

With the technical aspects already secured, it would only be a matter of interest in a Smallville revival for another season to revisit Tom Welling’s Clark Kent, now Superman, during the height of his superhero career. If it were to be made, a Smallville sequel starring Tom Welling’s grown-up Superman could finally feature a full-fledged Man of Steel. Anything longer than a one-off Smallville revival is unlikely given how Superman TV shows have come to an end, at least temporarily. Still, at least one big-budget Smallville episode would do the show justice.

How Smallville’s Story Has Already Lived On After The Show Ended

While the aftermath of Smallville‘s series finale has never been shown in live-action, Tom Welling’s Superman journey has continued in other formats. First, the Smallville Season 11 comic books picked up where Smallville season 10 left off, with a suited-up Clark Kent showcasing his full range of superpowers, meeting Batman and Wonder Woman, and even joining the Green Lantern Corps. However, the Arrowverse’s Crisis on Infinite Earths crossover event revisited Tom Welling’s live-action portrayal of Clark Kent, which revealed that he gave up his powers and chose a peaceful life with Lois Lane. Which of these takes on Tom Welling’s Superman future after Smallville is up to fans’ discretion.