Huge news for fans of the Arrowverse and Smallville has just come out. Tom Welling, who played Clark Kent for a decade on the young Superman series, Smallville, will reprise his role in the upcoming Arrowverse crossover “Crisis on Infinite Earths.”
Welling will be the third actor to play a version of Clark Kent/Superman in the crossover. It was previously announced that the Arrowverse’s Superman, played by Tyler Hoechlin, will appear in the crossover. In addition, Brandon Routh, who plays Ray Palmer/The Atom on the Arrowverse series Legends of Tomorrow, will appear as Kingdom Come Superman. Routh played Superman in the 2006 movie, Superman Returns.
While Hoechlin and Routh will suit up as the Man of Steel, so far it’s only been reported that Welling will appear as Clark Kent. However, according to Deadline, Welling’s appearance will be a direct continuation of his Smallville role, which will provide a glimpse of what the character has been up to almost 10 years after the end of that series.
Welling has been uncertain about revisiting the character that remains his most iconic role, so his recruitment for “Crisis” wasn’t always guaranteed.
Now that it’s official, and Welling is joining the crossover, Marc Guggenheim, Arrow’s executive producer noted,
“For eight years,Arrow has stood on the shoulders of Smallville. Simply put, there would be no Arrow, and no Arrowverse, without it. So when we first started talking about ‘Crisis on Infinite Earths,’ our first, second and third priorities were getting Tom to reprise his iconic role as Clark Kent. To say that we’re thrilled would be a Superman-sized understatement.”
#Smallville star Tom Welling is coming to #CrisisOnInfiniteEarths – https://t.co/qyGFRR9iAX pic.twitter.com/i8XJccf99q
— Comicbook.com (@ComicBook) September 19, 2019
Rumors have swirled for months that Welling would be part of “Crisis on Infinite Earths.” Yet, as recently as late August, Welling denied his involvement. At FAN EXPO, Welling said he hadn’t been in contact with anyone from The CW about appearing in the crossover, and according to ComicBook.com, claimed: “it’s not happening.”
The news that Welling will, in fact, be part of the giant five-episode event will no doubt further anticipation for the crossover, which begins in December.
“Crisis on Infinite Earths” kicks off on Sunday, December 8 with Supergirl at 8/7c, followed by Batwoman on Monday, December 9 at 8/7c and The Flash on Tuesday, December 10 at 8/7c. The crossover concludes on Tuesday, January 14, with Arrow at 8/7c and Legends of Tomorrow at 9/8c.