Back in 2021, Smallville star Tom Welling revealed that he was working on an animated continuation of the CW series with co-star Michael Rosenbaum during a Cameo video which was later shared on social media.
"Michael Rosenbaum and I are actually working on an animated series to bring those characters back to life, and use as many of the original cast members as possible," said the actor in his message. "Don't tell anybody, though. It's a secret, we're still working on it."
Welling did reprise the role of Clark Kent for the Crisis on Infinite Earths crossover event, but it was a very brief appearance and he didn't actually suit-up as Superman. Fans have been hoping for some kind of follow-up that would also feature Rosenbaum's Lex Luthor ever since the show ended back in 2011, and this animated sequel series would likely have been the closest we'd get to a revival.
Unfortunately, the project is no longer moving forward.
Smallville co-creator Alfred Gough, who had been developing the show with Welling and Rosenbaum, has now revealed that plans have stalled due to the recent regime change at Warner Bros. and James Gunn's big-screen Superman reboot.
“Warners has obviously gone through a lot, and I think the fact that they are in the process of rebooting Superman again, kind of unfortunately, I think, keeps our thing off the table for a bit,” Gough said during the latest episode of Rosenbaum and Welling's Talk Ville podcast. “Everything comes around in one form or another, I just read the other day that they are rebooting Buffy for Hulu.”
“That is the thing, I think the problem with most projects in development in any studio and/or any network is regime change,” he added.
There's a chance work could resume on the Smallville animated series after Superman is released, but we wouldn't count on it. Though Gunn has previously said that "Elseworlds" projects will continue to be developed alongside DCU movies and shows, some insiders believe that Matt Reeves' The Batman sequel (if it happens) will be the last we see of DC-based content that isn't connected to the main franchise.
"Set in the fictional town of Smallville, the show charts the growing up of our hero Clark Kent (Tom Welling) during his teenage years as he tries to deal with his alien powers by attempting to lead as normal teenage life as possible; complete with all its typical problems."