Characters That Got Replaced In Superhero Movies And TV Shows – Looper

Today it might not seem so strange to see Superman and the Flash rubbing elbows in live-action. We’ve seen both heroes team up in Zack Snyder’s “Justice League” — played by Henry Cavill and Ezra Miller — and in episodes of The CW’s “The Flash,” played by Tyler Hoechlin and Grant Gustin. But back in the early 2000s, when “Smallville” was the hottest superhero TV show on the tube, the closest fans ever came was Clark Kent fighting villains alongside the hoodie-wearing speedster Bart Allen, also known as Impulse.

“Smallville,” of course, is the origin story of Superman, in which Tom Welling plays a young Clark Kent as he slowly discovers his superpowers. Most of the show’s superhero guests are similar origin stories for the likes of Green Arrow, Aquaman, and Cyborg. Welling told TVLine in 2021 that due to a ban from studio executives, who were working on a big-screen franchise for Batman, Bruce Wayne wasn’t allowed to appear, though he was vaguely alluded to. Sadly, The Flash was rejected for similar reasons when producers wanted an appearance from Barry Allen, as confirmed by series creator Al Gough in a 2004 interview with KryptonSite. 

In his place, the show was allowed only to use the younger spin-off hero known as Impulse. Though he became a mainstay in the series as a recurring character, the irony is that during its run, The Flash proper never actually turned up on the big screen.