Widely regarded as one of the best superhero TV shows of all time, Smallville left a big hole in the hearts of viewers everywhere when it ended in 2011. Since then, there have been talks of reviving the series in various ways, including as an animated show that’s just been given a huge update by Tom Welling. Welling starred in Smallville as a young Clark Kent coming to grips with the breadth of his powers before donning the red cape of Superman. His arch nemesis, Lex Luthor, was portrayed by Michael Rosenbaum, who also appears to be the brainchild of the animated project.
Per Fandom Spotlite, Welling was on hand at Terrificon recently to discuss all things Smallville. When asked if there were any stories of Superman that he’d like to write in comic book form, it was then that Welling revealed his plans for an animated version of Smallville that he’s had brewing for a few years.
“We’ve been talking about this for a few years where Michael [Rosenbaum] and I, Kristin [Kreuk] and Erika [Durance] and Laura [Vandervoort] and John Glover…it was sort of Michael’s idea, but we want to do a Smallville comic book and animated series, and we would all voice the characters. We’ve already got an artist and we have a poster, and we haven’t been able to share it yet, but Lionel Luthor is looming over everybody, and it’s really cool. We can’t do anything without DC saying we can do it, and they haven’t given us the green light, but we’re ready. Al and Miles who wrote Smallville want to write it, but it’s not our property until they say we can do it.”
The fact that a Smallville animated series was Rosenbaum’s idea comes as somewhat of a surprise, given the fact that earlier this year the actor said that he rarely watched the show during its original run, and while he was “proud” of his time on The WB/CW hit, he was “glad it was over” by the time 2011 rolled around.
Will Smallville Work Today as an Animated Series?
For 10 years, audiences watched as the adventures of Clark, Lex, Lana, Lionel and others played out on the small screen in live-action form, so the possibility of reviving Smallville as an animated series begs the question: will it work today? There’s no doubt that die-hard Superman fans would tune in, but what about the rest of Smallville’s audience? The superhero series was undoubtedly responsible for turning a whole new generation of viewers onto the Man of Steel who otherwise might not have been interested, but have they been keeping up with him since then enough to want to see an animated story play out?
One only has to look to My Adventures with Superman to see that an animated version of Smallville could find success if done right. Given that Alfred Gough and Miles Miller are involved is enough to pique our interest, as they were responsible for the bulk of Smallville’s most memorable moments. As long as it’s not a retelling of the series with cartoon characters, and features new storylines that continue from where the series left off with Lex as president and Clark ripping open his shirt to reveal the famed S-Shield, it could bring in the series’ original audience, while at the same time drawing in new fans who would be eager to go back and explore its origins.
Regardless, we’re excited about more stories set in the universe of Smallville however we can get them, be it in a comic book or animated form. We’ll keep our fingers crossed that DC gives Welling and company the green light to move forward, and we’ll have more news on the project as it becomes available. Check out the full panel from Terrificon with Welling below.
