One of today’s biggest breakout stars, Tom Welling started his acting career on the WB’s hit show Smallville, playing a young Clark Kent struggling to accept his emerging superpowers.
Welling made his feature film debut opposite Steve Martin and Bonnie Hunt in the 2003 comedy Cheaper by the Dozen and it’s sequel. His newest film was a remake of John Carpenter’s The Fog, and was released in the fall of 2006.
Welling graduated in 1995 from Okemos High School in Okemos, Michigan where he performed in theater productions. After graduation, Welling chose not to go to college, but to work as a construction worker. He got some work modeling for magazines in-between.

Upon moving to Los Angeles, Welling received his first break when he was cast in a few episodes of Judging Amy.
Welling was named one of People magazine’s “Breakthrough Stars of 2001.” He has also received various awards and nominations, including four nominations for “Best Actor in a Television Series” by the Saturn Awards, and three nominations for Teen Choice Awards. He won his first Teen Choice Award in 2001 for “Choice TV Male Breakout Star.”

Delaware County Magazine: Did you know what you were getting into with Smallville by playing such an iconic character?

Tom Welling: At the time I thought I did, but looking back...no. I had no idea. I had absolutely no idea. Like anything, you think you know what you’re doing. And then you start doing it and go, “Whoa, this is a lot bigger, and a lot harder than what I thought.”

DCM: Has it gotten bigger as it’s gone along or is it just more responsibilty?

Welling: Yeah. It’s got more predictable in that I know what to expect. Literally, I don’t remember the first and second season. People talk about episodes and stuff. I’m like, “Really?” I was delirious. I didn’t know what was going on. There was so much that I was doing that I couldn’t keep track of it all. I was doing three episodes at once sometimes, and it was crazy. That was because the production was out of control. But now we’ve gotten it down to where at least I know what episode I’m working on. I’ve been able to manage my energy and focus.

DCM: How did you celebrate getting your role in Smallville?

Welling: There wasn’t really a big celebration for either. It was a quite dinner with my wife. It was just the excitement of having it. I had turned it down twice because of the way it was described to me as Superman in high school, and I didn’t want to do Superman in high school. Once I read the script and I saw that it was Clark Kent trying to fit in to be a normal kid, it became much more interesting to me with what he was struggling against.

DCM: Were you were a fan of Superman or comics in general?

Welling: When I was four or five, I demanded to be Superman two years in a row for Halloween and I wouldn’t have it any other way. I think I had grown so much that I didn’t really fit the four year costume, but I still tried to wear it. [Laughter] I had seen the Superman films. I don’t remember too much about them. I remember the stories. I didn’t really follow the mythology of the character and since Smallville started up, I made a conscious decision to stay away from it all. We’re doing something different at a time before all that, I don’t want that that to effect what I’m doing, even subconsciously.

When I went to New York to work with Christopher Reeve, it was kind of fun to talk to him about it. He was amazed at how we are able to do what we can do now with visual effects and special effects, and how quickly. He talked about even a year after the actual production of Superman had stopped, he’d worked for another year just trying to get the flying down. His joke was that he didn’t want to talk to me too much about Superman, because I wasn’t supposed to know that yet. He was like, “You’re just Clark Kent." He really took it seriously. He knows more about Superman than anybody I’ve ever met.

DCM: What’s been the hardest time for you?

Welling: The hardest time was when I made the difficult decision of moving from New York to LA, to give acting a go. I spent nine months out here going to auditions, getting good feedback, but not getting a job. As time went on, money started to get more and more tight. I started to wonder if this was really what I wanted to do. That’s when I got the role on Judging Amy, almost by default, because the guy they had chosen couldn’t get someone to watch his kids that day. They had remembered me, called me in, and re-wrote it. Instead of being a guy who is a year old than Amy's character, they wrote it as 10 years younger. It turned out to be a really good relationship. I was signed for three and after the three aired, the viewers wrote fan letters in. They called me up again and said, “Look, we’re really getting a great response. We’d love you to come back.” That was a great feeling.

DCM: Are there still challenges on Smallville?

Welling: One of the biggest hurdles that I was warned to look out for is boredom and going through the motions. That’s easy to fall into when you’re tired and frustrated and doing the same thing. But when you get to play a character who is infused with red Kryptonite, so he’s acting crazy, all of those things are ways to wake you up and have fun. You have to remember it’s a creative process that you always have to bring your best focus to. It reminds you on a daily basis that you just have to keep going.

DCM: Are you ever going to play a character your own age?

Welling: I hope so, at some point. I’m in a position now where I can play certain roles and when I get older, I won’t be able to. So, I don’t have a strategy of trying to grow up too quick, I just want to kind of look at everything.

DCM: How does it feel to be a teen pin-up? 18-year-old girls have your face on their walls.

Welling: A little awkward. I mean, it’s something that’s completely out of my control. If people like what you’re doing or like you, that’s not such a horrible thing.

DCM: Are you recognized much more now?

Welling: I’m recognized a lot more now than before I was on Smallville. It’s not something that hinders me from going on and living my life. I would never let it. I think it’s important to separate the two. Most of the time that I spend outside is in Vancouver and they’re very respectful and very nice.

DCM: In your estimation, what’s made Smallville such a success?

Welling: For one reason or another, I think people have been able to identify with this group of characters. I believe people can watch a show, and they might think it’s great, but then they don’t tune in the next week. I think that when you can identify with what a character is going through, I believe that’s what brings people back to watch a show on a weekly basis. In my opinion we also have things that most other shows on television don’t really have, that is to say we have the drama, we’ve had a little bit of the comedy this year, we have action, and we have superpowers! Thos are four huge elements that allow us to do so many different combinations of things.

DCM: It’s been stated before in the press, and during our talk, that when Smallville was in its early stages and casting was underway, that you initially turned down the role when it was offered to you. Can you tell me a little more about that?

Welling: It’s true. Everybody was very guarded in the beginning concerning what this show was going to be about…very strongly. I remember in the early phases we couldn’t get any information about that. My best guess was that Superman was in high school. That was honestly not something I was interested in doing. After a long, detailed conversation that David Nutter [who was the director of the Smallville pilot] had with my manager at the time, he explained a very different scenario. He said, “Hey, if you come in and audition, we’ll let you read the script. But we can’t let you read this script unless you audition.” It was this weird ultimatum. So I went in and auditioned, they liked what I did, and they said, “Come back tomorrow and you can read the script.” And when I read the script I thought, “Okay, now I get it.” It was amazing. I really thought it was a great take on the whole thing.

DCM: It certainly sounds as though it was a bit of an unconventional process.

Welling: Yeah, somewhat. The simple reason I turned it down originally was the lack of information I had about it. Personally, I don’t see how anyone can commit to any kind of a deal when you don’t know what you’re signing up for. And that’s all I needed in the case of Smallville…some clarification.

DCM: What are your feeling on the part and show now after you done almost six seasons now?

Welling: I think it’s been the best thing to have happened to me and my career. I’m thankful to all the fans who have watched the show faithfully over the years and stuck with us. It’s been a lot of hard work and a lot of fun as well.