In just 6 episodes, this TVD actor made a huge impact on another iconic CW show

During From Smallville Over its ten seasons, the show has introduced a slew of new and emerging talent to the entertainment stratosphere. Jensen Ackles has appeared on Small Villa before starring in her own show, The CW's Supernaturalfor a long and successful series. Shawn Ashmore, who played Iceman in The X-Men film franchise, played a character who temporarily steals Clark Kent's powers on two separate occasions. His twin brother, Aaron Ashmore, would later appear in Small Villa like Daily Planet photographer Jimmy Olsen. Before playing Lois Lane in Man of SteelAmy Adams played a “Meteor Freak” with an insatiable appetite in the 2001 episode “Craving.”

Not all of these guest stars stayed on the show for long, some appeared in an episode or maybe two. Others, like Ian Somerhalder, future star of The Vampire Diaries — He appeared in six episodes during the show's third season and played a major role before being killed off. He had a short run but left a lasting impression on the future.

Ian Somerhalder played Adam Knight in the third season of Smallville

Somerhalder was around 26 years old when he first appeared in Season 3, Episode 6 of Small Villa“Asylum.” His character, Adam Knight, made his debut during physical therapy with Lana Lang (Kristen Kreuk) after she was trampled by her horse at the end of the previous season. He becomes close with her and even poses a romantic threat to Clark Kent (Tom Welling). It is only later in the season that he is revealed to be a pawn of Lionel Luthor (John Glover). And his attempts to get close to Lana are cold and calculated. His character ended up being almost a zombie, having been brought back from the dead through the use of a “Lazarus serum” infused with Clark's blood.

When Adam first came on the scene, fans were curious as to whether he would ultimately turn out to be another DC Comics character. His name alone almost seems like a nod to The Dark Knight. And, indeed, it is a combination of Adam West's name (the classic TV Batman) and Batman's alternate nickname. However, as much as series creators Alfred Gough and Miles Millar wanted to work the caped crusader into the series, in some ways, their hands were tied. Warner Bros. wanted to save Batman for Christopher Nolan's films, such as Batman begins, that were in development around the same time. In all ten seasons, Batman never appears in Small Villa — surprising, considering that at one point Clark assembles a fledgling Justice League.

Adam's character kept his cards close to his chest. It wasn't clear at first whether he was a force for good or evil. In Paul Simpson's guide, Smallville, Season 3: The Official CompanionThe author mentions how the original intention for Adam was to be more of a romantic interest for Lana. However, this direction changed to a sci-fi “thriller” Pacific Heights direction,” and when that happened, the showrunners had to find a way to kill the character quickly. Hence, the introduction of the Lazarus Serum and Adam's descent into desperation to stay alive. He ends up being much more of a Ra's al Ghul-type character (with his Lazarus Pit) than Batman. Although it would have been interesting to see Clark and Bruce Wayne compete for Lana's affections in another love triangle in the series.

Adam ended up being the tenth most recurring character on Small Villa, despite his hasty and tragic end. In his last desperate attempt to get his hands on the life-saving serum, after Lionel abandons him to learn more about Clark, Adam despairs. Formerly Chad Nash, a savant who died of liver disease, Adam loses all sense of his humanity and goes on a killing spree to find what he's looking for. He corners Lana, thinking she has the serum, and pulls a gun on her. Lana is saved by Clark taking the bullet meant for her, and Adam withers and dies without his life-saving drug. Before he dies, he realizes Clark's abilities and why Lionel wanted him to learn more about the future superhero: he takes the secret to the grave.

Adam Knight was instrumental in developing the character of Lana Lang on Smallville

Lana's character underwent many changes from the beginning to the end of the series. Small Villa series. Kreuk spoke at length in Michael Rosenbaum's (Lex Luthor) two podcasts, Inside you AND Ville speaks, that she was a fairly new actress when she came into the role. And how she struggled with the character at times, as her development was largely dependent on her relationships with the men on the show. As the seasons went on, Lana definitely lost a lot of the innocence she started the show with, and no doubt because of the distrust she had developed in men and the people around her. When her character was finally written out of the show, she was almost completely independent, and another character even tells her that she will leave her own legacy aside from Clark in a not-so-distinct future. When asked what Kreuk thought about Lois eventually replacing Lana, she said, “I don't know if she's replaced by someone else; I think her bond with Clark changes and she builds her own future. That's how I saw it, anyway.”

According to Michael Rosenbaum's podcast,
Ville speaks,
In season 3, episode 15, “Resurrection”, Adam Knight is played by an uncredited stunt double and not Ian Somerhalder.

Wool begins Small Villa with a high school jock junkie named Whitney who attacks Clark and abandons him in a field to die as a prank on her friends. Once she and Whitney break up after he goes off to the army, it seems like an opening for her and Clark. But Clark's continued hesitation in pursuing Lana is always a drag on their relationship as he tries to keep his secret from her. When she meets Adam after his accident, she has just told Clark that he is too dangerous for her, since it seems like something is always happening to her. When Adam enters her sphere, she is doubly burned and yet still holding on to youthful hope. After things start to deteriorate with Adam, it's a pivotal moment for Lana's character and that innate trusting nature that she started the show with.

In a way, Adam foreshadowed her relationship with Lex, which would send her character into a full-on downward spiral. Adam works hard to earn Lana’s trust early on, when she’s up to her mark, and even pushes her to put in more effort into her physical therapy so she can walk freely again. Likewise, her relationship with Lex is a slow simmer. He warms up to her during another vulnerable moment between her and Clark later on. Lana’s breakup with Lex and the discovery of his web of deceit, including a fake pregnancy, creates a spirit of revenge in Lana that inspires her further independence. Kreuk said that when she exited the show, she was proud that Lana “separated herself from these men… Because her stories were so tied to these men, it was such a beautiful thing for her to honor herself.”

Ian Somerhalder starred in eight seasons of The Vampire Diaries

Small Villa It wouldn't be the last time Somerhalder played one of the undead. Like Ackles, he moved on to another series on The CW, The Vampire Diaries. He appeared in all eight seasons from 2009 to 2017 as a 178-year-old vampire named Damon Salvatore. The show was capitalizing on the huge vampire craze of the early 2000s, inspired in part by Buffy the Vampire Slayer and the exit of Stephanie Meyer Dusk books. The original The Vampire Diaries The novel series was published between 1991 and 1992. Luckily for Somerhalder, when he began to establish himself in the industry, there was already an audience ready for a television adaptation of L.J. Smith's young adult vampire novels.

The end of The Vampire Diaries It wouldn't be the last time Somerhalder would encounter these ghostly creatures. Based on another book series, Netflix's V Wars (2019-2020) was inspired by a 2012 sci-fi horror series of the same name in which a viral outbreak turns humans into vampires. Somerhalder plays Dr. Luther Swann, not a vampire this time, but a doctor battling the spread of the infection. Also starring is the former Small Villa actress Laura Vandervoort, who played Kara, Clark's Kryptonian cousin. V Wars was canceled after season one, but despite the closure, Somerhalder was still optimistic. He posted a video to his Instagram following the news, saying, “No, no, this is not the end of the road for Dr. Swann or V Wars. There are a lot of great stories to tell, and I will tell them.” Unfortunately, for Somerhalder, a second season has yet to materialize.

Even with his 2020 setback with V Wars, Somerhalder has a solid career behind him. And while he now appears to be retired from acting, he doesn't seem to have any regrets, leaving the industry with the parting words, “I've loved what I've done for a long time… we've had an incredible run.”