"It"s Literally In The Contract": Tom Welling Addresses Breaking Smallville"s Superhero Costume Rule & His "Middle Finger" Protest

While Smallville fans got to see Tom Welling in different DC costumes during the show"s run, there are a few key details on how that came to be for the superhero drama. Even though the audience had to wait till the Smallville series finale to see Welling in (parts of) the Superman suit, the DC TV show brought a few unique looks to life prior to the final season for Clark Kent. But despite having been known for not wanting to wear the tights, it has not been clear how the Smallville creative team found a loophole until now.
During an exclusive interview with Screen Rant at Comic Con Stockholm focusing on Smallville"s legacy, as well as the Talk Ville Podcast and the new 2025 event, Cruiseville, Welling also talked about when the show entered its Red-Blue-Blur phase, which saw Clark donning a number of suits, despite "No Tights, No Flights" being a golden rule. While joking, saying, "They tricked me!" Welling elaborated more on how the show eventually got Clark in proto-costumes without wearing the traditional Superman uniform, and shared a story about when the series mirrored one of the most iconic Man of Steel details:

Tom Welling: What happened, technically, in my original contract, it said I would never [wear the costume.] It"s literally in the contract, and I say that with a smile on my face because they tried a couple [of] times. But my whole thing was once Clark puts the suit on, it"s no longer Smallville. It"s about Superman, it"s not about Clark. I signed on to tell a story about Clark Kent. But yeah, they got a little cheeky about it. Even there"s one episode where they had me wear glasses like the reporter. I remember this because I"m in the Luthor Mansion, and I"m taking a corner, and it"s written that I adjust the glasses. If you watch it, I do this thing where I use my middle finger, and I went like this [shows him adjusting the glasses,] and that"s on purpose.

Because that"s how I felt about it and then I did a little bit of research and realized that some people do that. They use their middle finger, they kind of go like this, but I went like this. But again, now it seems so precious at the time, but now these many years later, looking back, it"s like, "Dude, get over yourself. You"re on a show about Superman. Of course, they"re going to ask you to do this. Get over yourself!" So, hindsight is 20/20, but I don"t think that I missed any opportunity to put on a Superman suit that would"ve helped the show. I always hold onto the fact that it was about a kid in high school and then slightly after high school.

What Tom Welling's Smallville Costume Comments Mean Close The Smallville ending left viewers divided about not getting to see Welling completely in the suit, but only through glimpses. While the actual series finale saw a proper conclusion to Clark"s decade-long journey, many can argue that Superman isn"t defined by what he wears, but what he does as a superhero. The fact that Welling even had numerous superhero suits before Smallville came to an end was also the opportunity to do something new for Superman"s media legacy.
One of the strongest elements of Smallville was that it was very much of an Elseworld take on the Superman mythology, showing a different way to the destination. The idea of seeing Clark not only go with a moniker like the Red-Blue-Blur/The Blur, but also go through an evolution of superhero suits before putting on the actual Superman costume is what helped make the Smallville series incredibly unique. This has barely been explored in later Superman adaptations, as more recent Clark origin stories quickly lead to him having the traditional look of the Man of Steel.
Our Take On Tom Welling's Smallville Costume Comments At the end of the day, the Smallville premise lived up to what it was always designed to be, which was the ultimate origin story for Clark and what he had to learn to become the Man of Steel. Even if he wasn"t open to it back when the show was made, recent comments have shown Welling wants to wear the Superman costume 13 years after the Smallville finale. Hopefully, if Smallville ever gets a second life, Welling will finally get to don the proper costume.
Smallville: The Complete Series is available both on Blu-ray/DVD and streaming. Tom Welling and Michael Rosenbaum"s Talk Ville Podcast drops new episodes on Wednesdays on YouTube and any available podcast platform. Learn more about Cruiseville at the event"s official website, Cruiseville.com.


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