Actors Cast As New ‘Smallville’ Villains

Sam Witwer and Cassidy Freeman have joined the cast of “Smallville” as two new evildoers who will challenge the young Clark Kent next season.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Witwer will play the villain Doomsday, who is a Hulk-like alien creature in the DC Comics but has been reworked for the show as David Bloome, a charismatic paramedic who must confront a growing darkness within himself.

Freeman will play Tess Mercer, who comes to Smallville as acting CEO of LuthorCorp after being handpicked by Lex Luthor as his successor prior to his vanishing act last season.

The two new characters will help fill the void left by some major cast departures, including Kristin Kreuk (Lana Lang) and Michael Rosenbaum (Lex), who will no longer appear as regulars.

Witwer may be a familiar face to sci-fi junkies – he played Alex “Crashdown” Quartararo in “Battlestar Galactica” and had one-episode stints on “Dark Angel,” “Angel” and “Star Trek: Enterprise.”

Freeman appeared in the 2007 mockumentary “Finishing the Game: The Search for a New Bruce Lee” and had a guest-starring role on “Cold Case.”

“Smallville” will enter its eighth season in September.


Michael Rosenbaum Leaves Smallville

Looks like Lex Luthor is leaving Smallville.

Producers have confirmed that Michael Rosenbaum, who has played the bald bad boy since 2001, will be leaving the series at the end of the current season.

“It has been an honor and pleasure to work with Michael for the past six seasons,” the CW and Smallville executive producers Darren Swimmer, Todd Slavkin, Kelly Souders, and Brian Peterson said in a joint statement.

“He is one of the best actors on television and has never failed to bring a new layer to the character of Lex Luthor in every episode.”

Rosenbaum, 35, also made a statement to his fans:

“Your support is what has made Smallville so soccessful, and I appreciate you all more than you know.”

“I am truly grateful, as Smallville fans are the best fans out there. I sincerely hope that you will continue to follow my career through my hair growth period and beyond.”

The CW announced in March the series would be coming back for an eighth season. Two new villains have been brought on to the show to keep Clark Kent on his toes.

But it might not be the end-all for Rosenbaum’s character.

“While Michael won’t be a series regular and we won’t have the pleasure of working with him on a weekly basis this fall, we like to think that we haven’t seen the last of Lex Luthor,” the producers said.

“Stay tuned.”


Smallville Creators Quit

Miles Millar and Alfred Gough, the creators of Smallville, have quit the show they created.

The show will continue on to its eighth season without them, ew.com reports.

“We look back at 152 episodes. We look back knowing that the show will continue into season 8 without us. After much heartache and debate we have decided it is time for us to move on,” the two said in a statement.

Smallville centres around a teenage Clark Kent. It was expected the current season would be the show’s last, but the CW announced it would be back for an eighth.

Michael Rosenbaum (Lex) and Kristen Kreuk (Lana) have already said they will not be returning for the final season, though both have said they are willing to return for guest spots.


CW Finally Breaks Suspense

The CW, the new conglomeration of the WB and UPN networks, unveiled its fall line up today.

Many people were awaiting the announcement to see which shows from each of the two networks would make it on the new one.

Returning shows from the WB are: ?Smallville,? ?7th Heaven,? ?Gilmpre Girls,? ?Beauty and the Geek,? ?One Tree Hill? and ?Supernatural.? Returning shows from the UPN network include ?Everybody Hates Chris,? ?All of Us,? ?Veronica Mars,? ?Girlfriends? and ?America?s Next Top Model.?

New shows include ?The Game? and ?Runaway?. The station will air WWE Smackdown on Friday evenings.

The only real shocker was the return of ?7th Heaven,? as well as the fact the network decided not to pick up ?Aquaman,? a show about the superhero from the creators of ?Smallville?. The network will begin broadcasting in the fall.


Twitter @andpop Become a facebook Fan RSS Headlines andPOP Daily