The ‘Smallville’ Cast: Catch Up with the Stars of the Road-to-Superman Drama

There have been hundreds of interpretations of Superman in comics, films and TV shows since the character’s introduction 86 years ago. But one thing that the hit CW series Smallville and its cast did differently was to reveal an entirely new side of the Man of Steel… through his coming of age story.

The show, which ran from 2001 to 2011, was a success from the start and it was one of the first superhero television dramas to enjoy such popularity and longevity, starting the surge of more series like it and introducing the Superman legend to millions of new fans.

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What is Smallville about?

Based on the DC comics character, Superman, Smallville is aptly named for the town in which the hero grew up and follows the early life of Clark Kent as he is coming to grips with his burgeoning superpowers and learning to hide them from loved ones and enemies alike.

The Smallville cast allowed us to see actors like Tom Welling, Michael Rosenbaum and Kristin Kreuk rise to stardom. Here, we catch up with the cast to see what they’ve been doing in the last 13 years and what they thought of their time on the show.

Tom Welling: Smallville cast

Character Played: Clark Kent

Born: April 26, 1977 in Putnam Valley, New York

Best Known For: Films such as Cheaper By the Dozen (2003), Cheaper By the Dozen 2 (2005) The Fog (2005), The Choice (2016) and Lucifer (2017-2018).

Personal: Currently married to Jessica Rose Lee and has two children

Thoughts on Smallville: “It’s a family show, and people watch it with their parents and their kids, and now years later, they’re showing it to their kids. It’s a multi-generational experience, and you don’t get that from a lot of other shows.”

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Michael Rosenbaum: Smallville cast

Character Played: Lex Luthor

Born: July 11, 1972, in Oceanside, New York

Best Known For: Big screen flicks including Urban Legend (1998), Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017) and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (2023).

Personal: The actor is unmarried and does not have children

Thoughts on Smallville: “For me, the first time that I ever felt like [a project that I was working on] is going to be a hit was Smallville.”

Kristin Kreuk

Character Played: Lana Lang

Born: December 30, 1982 in Vancouver, Canada

Best Known For: Series such as Edgemont (2001-2005), Beauty and the Beast (2012-2016) and Burden of Truth (2018-2021). Also known for the film EuroTrip (2004).

Personal: She is unmarried and does not have children.

Thoughts on Smallville: “I like that she got to have her independence and got to find the path forward for herself that was tied to what she believed in, her moral compass, her values. I like that she got to separate herself from these men.”

John Glover: Smallville cast

Character Played: Lionel Luther

Born: 1944 in Salisbury, Maryland

Best Known For: Movies like Scrooged (1988), Payback (1999) and Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990).

Personal: Partner to Adam Kurtzman

Thoughts on Smallville: “They [roles like Lionel Luther] were offered to me, they looked like fun and I did it. I was never a fan of comic books. Just stuff that has come my way and looked like fun.”

Allison Mack

Character Played: Chloe Sullivan

Born: July 29, 1982 in Germany

Best Known For: Films like Honey, We Shrunk Ourselves (1997), No Dessert, Dad, Till You Mow the Lawn (1994) and The Ant Bully (2006).

Personal: Previously married to Nicki Clyne

Fact: Mack served two years in prison after being convicted of racketeering conspiracy charges and recruiting women to the cultlike group Nxivm. She assisted prosecutors in convicting its leader of trafficking and other crimes.

Erica Durance

Character Played: Lois Lane

Born: June 21, 1978 in Calgary, Canada

Best Known For: The series Saving Hope (2012-2017) as well as the films The Butterfly Effect 2 (2006) and House of the Dead (2003).

Personal: Currently married to David Palffy and has two children

Thoughts on Smallville: “One of the things that people will start with [at conventions] is: ‘Hey, this is something me and my family did together. It was something that brought us together.’ Family. Parents. Kids. Whatever. And it was something that they looked forward to.”

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Annette O’Toole

Character Played: Martha Kent

Born: 1952 in Houston, Texas

Best Known For: Films like 48 Hrs. (1982), Superman III (1983) and A Mighty Wind (2003) and shows such as Virgin River (2019-2023)

Personal: Married to Michael McKean and has two children

Thoughts on Smallville: “I thought that was interesting and just loved it! I loved watching Tom [Welling] and Schneidy [John Schneider] and their portrayals of their characters, so I went in and spoke to AL Gough and Miles Miller who produced it and loved them because they were great and I said yes.”

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John Schneider

Character Played: Jonathan Kent

Born: 1960 in Mt. Kisco, New York

Best Known For: The series The Dukes of Hazzard (1979-1985) and movies like Sydney White (2007) and The Rebound (2009).

Personal: Previously married to late wife, Alicia Allain and has four children

Thoughts on Smallville: “Another great lesson in Smallville, which is that we need to listen to our children and the children need to know that it’s okay to talk to your parents… They really developed an incredibly real and important family structure.”