Jensen Ackles has built an excellent career since appearing in the fourth season of DC’s Smallville in 2004, though the series’ showrunner has revealed there were plans for him to stay in the story for longer. Ackles rose to fame starring in Supernatural from 2005 to 2020, though he has also notably appeared as Soldier Boy in The Boys, and voiced Batman in a range of animated releases. The actor’s range was used effectively in the plot of Smallville, where he played Jason Teague, a love interest to Lana Lang and an antagonist to Superman.
Given the actor was an effective part of Smallville’s cast, it may appear strange that the live-action Superman show only had him as a featured player for a single season instead of appearing as a recurring antagonist. Speculation surrounding this topic has existed for some time, reignited in recent years by Jesen Ackles becoming one of the most popular DCU Batman fancasting choices. More concrete details have become available now though, as the co-creator and showrunner of Smallville has provided details that clarify why Jason Teague only had a short run on the series and did not appear in season 5.
Jensen Ackles Left Smallville Season 4 Early Because Of Supernatural
According to showrunner Alfred Gough, Jensen Ackles left Smallville to take on a lead role in Supernatural. Speaking with TalkVille, the Smallville rewatch podcast hosted by Michael Rosenbaum and Tom Welling, series co-creator Alfred Gough outlined the experience of working with the actor and the plans for the Jason Teague character.
As the main antagonist of Smallville season 4, Jason Teague had a story that was made in a way that meant it could be carried to the next season if the writers and creators wanted. The villain collected Kryptonian crystals, had past links to Lex Luthor, and was part of a storyline with Lana Lang that could’ve been carried over several seasons. However, the actor’s contract for the show was short-term and never renewed beyond season 4.
Gough explains this in an interview with the Talk Ville podcast, recalling telling Ackles: “‘We have a one-season arc for your character. If it’s going great, we’ll talk about it later,’ but then, of course, he got Supernatural; the rest is history.” While Jason Teague could have been built up to be a larger threat in the coming seasons of Smallville, it seems there were no concrete plans for this. In fact, with the setup exactly as it went, Gough considers the season 5 changes to be the series’ “strongest season.”
How Jensen Ackles Smallville Storyline Could’ve Continued After Season 4
Based on Gough’s description, Jensen Ackles’ story was only supposed to last a single season on Smallville. There may have been ideas tossed around about bringing Jason Teague back in season 5, but these ended definitively when the character was killed in a meteor shower. Still, until Supernatural took up its schedule, Gough’s comments suggest that a fifth season path for the character, featuring him within some of Smallville’s best episodes, was a possibility at one time.
It is unclear how much Supernatural filming influenced Jason Teague’s story in season 4, but it’s clear that the actor’s departure seemed likely during production, as Gough mentioned, “There were several episodes he couldn’t be in because he was shooting [Supernatural]”. As a result, Jason Teague’s character burns all his bridges by the end of season 4, meaning there wouldn’t have been much room for Teague to persist in the show as anything other than a total force of evil – though this approach could’ve held some interesting opportunities had Ackles remained on the cast.
As Gough suggested, the path that things went down was ideal. Ackles was a major part of one of the most celebrated genre series in Supernatural, while Smallville was able to use what was set up in season 4 to lead into some truly exceptional episodes of the series. With the DCU potentially pulling details from Smallville, audiences can hope that the actor may return to the DC Universe in some capacity in the future.