Smallville: why Tom Welling never wore the Superman costume

Many actors have played Superman, one of the most famous and charismatic superheroes of the DC Comics stable, on screen. First there was Kirk Alyn, the first to don the famous red cape in 1948, then the great and late Christopher Reeve, who would deliver a sweet and charismatic interpretation of his alter ego Clark Kent in four films between 1978 and 1987. If you grew up in the 90s, you will no doubt remember Californian actor Dean Cain, who made ABC’s heyday alongside Teri Hatcher with the series Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman until 1997. It is then Tom Welling who will play the Man of Steel on the small screen in Smallville (2001-2011), which marked the transition from a shy teenager to the world’s greatest superhero. But unlike the other actors – then there will be Brandon Routh, Henry Cavill and the latest Tyler Hoechlin – Welling has never worn the iconic Superman costume.

A question of economy and script coherence

Of all the superhero costumes, Superman’s is arguably the most iconic and recognizable. A red, blue and yellow leotard, tights and tight boots, a red cape and an “S” engraved on the chest on a yellow crest. However, we have to wait for the very last episode of Smallville to see the teenage version of Clark Kent, accustomed to plaid shirts, to finally see him wearing the famous suit. And again, we don’t see him wearing it entirely on screen. “It’s something we discussed before we even shot the pilot with creators Al Gough and Miles Millar. We literally sat down to talk about the show and I asked about the costume and the tights and flying and they were like, ‘No, no way’“, explained Tom Welling to Entertainment Weekly in 2017. “They wanted to focus on who this character was before that. And, at the time, with where the special effects, the visual effects and the stunts were, it would have been too expensive. That’s why they were saving mainly for movies, more or less”he added.

Clark Kent, a late-night superhero Smallville

In Smallville indeed, Clark Kent attempts to live the life of a normal human being and struggles to hide the secret of his extraterrestrial origins from his friends. At the beginning of the series, he is not yet aware of all his abilities, for example, his thermal vision and his super breath only develop during the second and sixth seasons. We therefore understand better why the costume only appears for the first and last time at the end of the series. “We went with the idea that at the end of the series, Clark becomes Superman and acts as such, but we can’t follow it. That’s what we wanted, and I think we achieved it. I liked the end of the series, because there is a sense of accomplishment. I hope the audience didn’t feel like we didn’t show them something they needed to see. I felt like we gave them the starting point for their imagination of what might happen.” concluded Tom Welling in the pages of the American magazine.

Article written in collaboration with 6Médias