Smallville aired its last episode more than 10 years ago. It aired before superhero films and series were fashionable, yet it still earned a huge fanbase. Two decades after it debuted, Smallville's impact on the DC Universe is palpable. Smallville's cast features some familiar actors who fans can also see in the wider Arrowverse. Since it first began, the Arrowverse has introduced actors from different DC projects into its shows.
Additionally, there have been crossovers, such as Crisis On Infinite Earths, which pulled Smallville into the Arrowverse officially. There are still Smallville actors missing from the Arrowverse, such as Justin Hartley and Aaron Ashmore. Hopefully, they will return to the DC family soon, even if it's for a small cameo.
10 Michael Eklund Has Played Two Horrible DC Live-Action Villains
Canadian actor Michael Eklund has been acting since 2000. Besides his role as Geoff Burton in Errors Of The Human Body and as Zane Morgan in Bates Motel, he played Richter Maddox in the sixth season of Smallville. Here, he was the director of Hospital Belle Reve and ran an underground fight club for its super-powered patients.
Seven years after playing Maddox, Eklund returned to the DC Universe to play another villain. He portrayed Barton Mathis, aka the Dollmaker, an Arrow villain who transformed his female victims into dolls by pouring a polymer down their throats. His crimes provided some of the creepiest scenes in the Arrowverse.
9 Lochlyn Munro Played A Spy In Smallville And A Police Officer In Arrow
Lochlyn Munro - famously known for his role as Jack Sheridan in Charmed and as Hal Cooper in Riverdale - appeared on Smallville during its sixth season. He played the role of Orlando Block, a spy who worked alongside Oliver Queen to kidnap Lex Luthor and gather information from him.
In Arrow, Munro portrayed Captain Stein, a former police captain with a personal vendetta against vigilantes. Munro only appeared in one episode of Arrow's second season. After this, his character was fired for his unethical attitude towards criminals and vigilantes. He helped form some of the many links between Riverdale and Arrow.
8 Lexa Doig Was A Recurring Character In Arrow
Lexa Doig is a Canadian actress who gained fame after playing the lead role in the sci-fi series Andromeda from 2000 to 2005. Five years after her breakthrough, she portrayed Dr. Christina Lamell in two episodes of Smallville. Lamell was a doctor who tried to help Tess Mercer with Alexander's problem with rapid aging.
From 2017 to 2020, Doig played Talia al Ghul in Arrow. The actress had a recurring role in three different seasons as a morally ambiguous vigilante. She was Oliver's mentor and Ra's al Ghul's daughter, which means she was constantly pinging between good and evil.
7 Dean Cain Is One Of DC's Most Famous Alums
In 2007, Dean Cain played the role of Curtis Knox in Smallville. Knox was an immortal neurosurgeon obsessed with making his wife immortal. The villain, who confessed to being Jack the Ripper, had no problem with killing to conduct his unethical experiments and was based on DC's immortal villain, Vandal Savage.
Eight years after playing Knox, Cain took the role of Jeremiah Danvers in Supergirl. As the lost father of Alex and Kara Danvers, he spent a decade working for Cadmus against his will. Cain is famous for playing Clark Kent/Superman in Lois & Clark: The New Adventures Of Superman. His appearance in both shows is also a nod to this '90s series.
6 Teri Hatcher Had A Very Small Role In Smallville
Famous for her roles as Lois Lane in Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman and Susan Mayer in Desperate Housewives, Teri Hatcher has a longstanding career of almost 40 years. She appeared in Smallville in the 10th season as Ella Lane, Lois' deceased mother. Since she had passed away when Lois was younger, Hatcher only appeared in recordings.
Hatcher's role in the Arrowverse was far bigger. In the second season of Supergirl, she played Queen Rhea, the queen of Daxamites and leader of an alien invasion. While her role in Smallville was pretty much a cameo, Hatcher's Queen Rhea was the main villain in Supergirl during its second season.
5 Helen Slater Aka The Original Supergirl Returned To The Show
After becoming internationally famous for playing Kara Zor-El in the 1984 film Supergirl, Helen Slater didn't stray too far from the DC Universe. She voiced Martha Kent in DC Super Hero Girls: Hero of the Year and Talia al Ghul in Batman: The Animated Series. Additionally, she played Lara-El in Smallville, a role she shared with Kendall Cross.
Slater also landed a role in the Arrowverse. She appeared in 13 episodes of Supergirl as Eliza Danvers, Alex and Kara's mother. Slater is another important DC alum. The CW even referenced her role as Kara Zor-El in the 1984 film during Supergirl's finale.
4 Sam Witwer Keeps Messing With Kryptonians
American actor and musician Sam Witwer appeared in the eighth season of Smallville as David Bloome (AKA Smallville's own Doomsday). He was a paramedic who assisted the heroes on several occasions while also transforming into a Doomsday-like monster to murder people. While this character is based on Doomsday, he's more of a tragic villain than a monster.
Witwer, who played Mr. Hyde in Once Upon A Time and Adan Waite in Being Human, also appeared as a villain in the Arrowverse. He portrayed Ben Lockwood in Supergirl, an anti-aliens activist who radicalized and became the terrorist codenamed Agent Liberty. This character was the main villain of the series' fourth season.
3 Laura Vandervoort Played Supergirl And One Of Kara Zor-El's Biggest Enemies
Laura Vandervoort is known for playing Sadie Harrison in Instant Star and Arla Cogan in Haven. Additionally, she's famous for playing the first version of Supergirl on television in Smallville. Vandervoort first portrayed Kara Zor-El in the seventh season of Smallville. This season focused greatly on her adjusting to Earth.
In 2016, Vandervoort returned to the DC Universe as Indigo/Brainiac 8 in the first season of Supergirl. She was a villainous Coluan who wreaked havoc on National City after escaping Fort Rozz and joined Supergirl's uncle Non in an attempt to conquer Earth. Ultimately, she was ripped in half by Martian Manhunter during their final confrontation.
2 Erica Durance Had Three Different Roles In The Arrowverse
Erica Durance joined Smallville in 2004 to play the role of Clark's ally and love interest, Lois Lane. Although she started with a recurring role during Smallville's fourth season, her character became so important that she became one of the main characters.
Durance reprised her role as Lois in the Arrowverse crossover Crisis On Infinite Earths. Additionally, she appeared on Supergirl in two different roles. First, she played FBI Agent Noel Neill in "Midvale" and Kara Zor-El's mother, Alura Zor-El. Durance shared this role with Broadway actress Laura Benanti.
1 Tom Welling Reprised His Role As Clark Kent In The Arrowverse
For 10 years, Tom Welling portrayed Clark Kent in Smallville. This series focused on Clark as he took the path toward becoming Superman, and earned Welling international fame. After the show ended, he appeared in other series and films such as Lucifer, where he played Marcus Pierce/Cain, and Parkland, where he portrayed Roy Kellerman.
Welling is beloved as Clark Kent. Given this, he reprised his role as Clark in Crisis On Infinite Earths alongside Durance. This Arrowverse crossover indicated that Clark gave his powers away to live a regular life with Lois and their kids.