The planned Smallville animated series is still in development, with stars Tom Welling and Michael Rosenbaum having now provided further update while discussing the upcoming Blu-ray release of Smallville: The Complete Series. According to Welling, the animated show will indeed be a continuation of the original series, but unlike the live-action Smallville, the animated outing will drop the infamous "no tights, no flights" rule, and explore this version of Clark's time as the fully fledged Superman.

"Yeah, one of the things I hear from fans is like, 'Why did you guys stop?!' Well, I can give a million reasons why we stopped, but I also understand why a fan would want it to go on. I feel the same way about other projects that I'm a fan of, like, 'Keep going! Keep going!' And just there are limitations at some point. We ran out of story for Clark. Clark had to become Superman, and Smallville could not be a Superman series. It just wasn't built that way. So, what we're trying to do is sort of jumping into this other arena where we can maybe service that idea and have fun doing so."

This particular update should come as great news to Smallville fans, many of whom had hoped to see the Tom Welling version of Clark Kent finally become the Man of Steel. Created by Alfred Gough and Miles Millar, Smallville follows Welling as a young Clark Kent long before he ever donned the red cape and blue tights of Superman. Beginning back in 2002 and running for 10 seasons, the series chronicles the adolescent life of Clark Kent, depicting his formative years living in the small Kansas town of Smallville, discovering his powers, and navigating various facets of human drama. The show ended with a mere glimpse of Welling in a classic Superman suit, and while this ending worked for the finale of Smallville, fans will be excited to see more in animated form.

Reports of an animated continuation first began to circulate back in June, and as Michael Rosenbaum explains, Smallville: The Animated Series is in very early development at this stage. "Well, look, we're not allowed really to talk about it now, because it's in the early stages. So we're developing it. We're trying to see what happens with it, but that's about all I can say right now," Rosenbaum, who played Lex Luthor opposite Welling's Clark Kent in the original Smallville series, explained.

The planned animated sequel series will not only involve the talents of both Welling and Rosenbaum, but several other familiar names from the Smallville alumni. "With [Smallville creators] Al [Gough] and Miles [Millar]!" Welling added. "Yeah. With Al and Miles. We're trying. And obviously, Warner Bros.," Rosenbaum said. "We're getting our pitch ready. Let's just say that. That's all we can say," Rosenbaum teased. "We just love the relationships and we love the characters on Smallville. I think a lot of people wish that it would keep going and there's possibilities."

Smallville: The Complete Series is scheduled to be released on Blu-ray for the first time ever on Tuesday, October 19. This comes to us from CBR.