A few days ago, I made this post arguing that Smallville has the best-written Lex Luthor and the worst-written Clark Kent. Some people agreed, and I mentioned I might expand on that idea, so here it is.
The reason why Michael Rosenbaum is pretty unanimously considered the best Lex Luthor is because of Michael’s incredible acting chops, obviously, but also because of the character’s writing. This version of Lex is given depth, nuance, and a fully realized emotional arc that sets him apart from many other portrayals.
All the other Lex Luthors are very one note, mustache-twirling villains. We get absolutely no insight into who they are other than they want power at all costs and want to destroy Superman because he’s in their way. That works fine when we’re talking about a movie but something long term, like a TV show, is going to require a little more if the character is to remain compelling. Smallville understands this, and as a result, its Lex is not only engaging, but deeply sympathetic.
Now, before any comic fans come at me, this analysis considers only Smallville and all the Superman movies. I have no idea what Lex is like in the comics, if he’s explored more in depth in them as well or not. This analysis takes into account only Smallville and the movies.
So, having said that, Smallville’s Lex is completely fleshed out since his childhood and we get to see parts of him we never saw before. What that does is show us that Lex is arguably the most caring, compassionate and least judgmental character on the show and, above all, he’s a protector.
The protector role always belongs to Clark, and he is a protector too, obviously, don’t get me wrong, but Lex takes on that mantle here as well many times over. The following instances of that are not in order, I just wrote them all down as they came to me:
- He repeatedly tries to help the Kents financially;
- He buys the Talon for Lana and places her in charge of it so that she doesn’t have to move, even though it doesn’t really make any money and is kind of a moot business deal for him. He also allows her to live in the apartment above the Talon completely rent free;
- Later on, when Lana needs money to go to Paris, he buys her share of the Talon as soon as she asks and he is also the one to convince her that Paris is the right choice. He basically spent years supporting her, no questions asked, nothing in return required. He could do it, he cared about her, so he did it;
- When Lionel wants him to fire 20% of a LuhtorCorp company’s employees, Lex finds a way to increase the company’s profits by 20% without a single layoff;
- There are a few instances throughout the show, I don’t remember them all, where people need special medical attention and Lex always immediately pulls all his resources to get people the best possible care, no matter who they are;
- When a journalist starts going after Lana and then Clark, he’s the one that gets him to back off, even though working with him would actually benefit Lex because he had dirt on Lionel, whom Lex is desperately trying to bring down. But doing so would mean betraying his friendship with Clark and endangering him. Lex goes as far as threatening to kill him if he doesn’t leave his friends alone;
- When Lana is attacked at the Talon, Lex is the one who teaches her how to fight and to protect herself. Meanwhile, Clark tells her she should just move on;
- When Earl Jenkins holds Smallville High’s students hostage at the LuthorCorp plant, Lex goes in there by himself to talk to him. Earl claimed there was a level 3 at the plant, which made him sick and he wants to be taken there. Trying to gain his trust, Lex removes his bullet proof vest, lies about knowing where level 3 is and says he’ll take him there, thus getting him to let all the students go and placing himself in great danger, since he doesn’t know anything about a level 3 and Earl will kill him when he realizes that;
- When Lex was around 10 years old, he discovers his mother has killed his baby brother, Julian. Knowing Lionel will destroy her for that, Lex takes the blame for the baby’s death to protect her and becomes the sole focus of Lionel’s abuse and violence from that moment on;
- On that note, there’s the fact that Lex was physically and emotionally abused by his father his entire life and it only made him kinder and more protective of those he loves. He sees how awful his father is and he decides to go the opposite way. If Lex had had a family of his own at some point, he would have been the one to break the cycle of abuse and we see that on Lexmas;
- When Lionel commits him to Belle Reve, Lex knows about Clark’s secret and has many opportunities to use that to his advantage so he can escape but he doesn’t. Even when his father is about to perform electroshock therapy on him, which could kill him or leave him permanently incapacitated, he doesn’t say a word. I talk about this episode at length in this post;
- Lex harbors Ryan, a kid who is being searched by police, in his mansion. Ryan is also an example of Lex pulling on all his resources to get someone medical help;
- In season 6, when Lex is already well on his way down to evil ville, and he and Clark are enemies already, he gets trapped underground with Clark and has a chance to leave Clark down there to die but he doesn’t. He risks his own life to get Clark out;
- He takes a bullet and almost dies to save Lana;
- He helps Chloe fake her own death and hides her for months to protect her;
- I think it’s in season 2 that Lana starts receiving poems from a secret admirer. She’s very flattered and moved by it but everyone (Clark included) makes fun of her for it. Lex is the first one to reassure her and tell her that being cultured and well-read is a very good quality that everyone should strive for, and that anyone who thinks being a mindless hillbilly is a positive is probably not worth her time. I’m paraphrasing here but that’s basically the gist;
- When Lana gets infected by a meteor freak and steals (and I believe thrashes?) one of Lex’s cars because of it, after she’s back to her normal self she apologizes to him and he immediately tells her not to worry and that he did far worse at her age without the mitigating factor of not being in his right mind;
These are all the moments I can remember off the top of my head but there are many more, so, whoever reads this, feel free to add to it.
But the point is that there are countless instances of Lex helping people, being the only one to realize something’s wrong with someone and trying to do something about it, reassuring people, presenting a different perspective when someone is struggling, giving them a way out. Even when he’s already considered evil by the narrative.
It never made much sense to me why they had Lex being so constantly afraid of being like his father when his every action over the course of years proved that he was the complete antithesis of Lionel and not a single person on the show ever points that out to him. Quite the contrary. He is judged every time he takes a breath and is brutally condemned for ANY mistake no matter how small, even when it’s clearly not his fault. All the good he did, and there was so much of it (more than anyone else on the show I’d argue) was never enough.
Instead, Lex exists in an environment where his worst fears are constantly echoed back at him. Over time, this creates the sense that his eventual descent is not driven by inherent darkness, but by a prolonged denial of trust, understanding, and humanity.
Like this post by @izzymarksthespot says, “Lex Luthor turned out not to be evil, but a sad, traumatized man doing his damnedest to be good, only to get (metaphorically or not) slapped for his efforts any time someone deemed he's done something wrong. A "monster" created not by natural proclivity for violence and evil, but by being denied humanity over and over again.”
And if the following quote by Richard Siken doesn’t describe Lex perfectly I don’t know what does:
“We have not touched the stars, nor are we forgiven, which brings us back to the hero’s shoulders and the gentleness that comes, not from the absence of violence, but despite the abundance of it.”
So, if I had to describe Smallville’s Lex in one word, it would be: protector.
Clark is undeniably a hero. He saves lives, risks himself constantly, and ultimately embodies the role he is destined for. However, the writing surrounding his character often undermines this by placing him in situations where his moral stance becomes inconsistent or difficult to justify.
The central issue lies in how the show handles his secrecy.
Clark lies frequently, which is understandable given his circumstances. However, the problem is not the lying itself, it’s the standard he holds others to. He expects honesty, transparency, and moral clarity from those around him while routinely failing to meet those same expectations. When others fall short, he often responds with judgment rather than understanding, which creates a sense of hypocrisy. Even more than that, he seems to think he’s entitled to know every single aspect of people’s lives. Whatever it is they’re doing, for some reason, he has to be in the loop even if it has nothing to do with him.
When Lex starts getting medical treatments to try and regain the seven weeks of memory he lost when he was at Belle Reve, Clark is upset not be informed of this. From Lex’s perspective, this is a deeply personal matter that doesn’t concern Clark. Clark’s concern is tied to protecting his secret, but the situation raises a larger question: why not offer Lex partial truth? Clark could have explained those missing weeks without revealing his powers, potentially preventing Lex from pursuing a dangerous procedure. Instead, he allows Lex to proceed, prioritizing secrecy over Lex’s safety.
A similar issue arises after Lana is attacked. She wants to press charges, an entirely reasonable response, but Clark discourages her, fearing that an investigation might expose his abilities. From Lana’s perspective, this comes across as dismissive and invalidating. She is denied both justice and agency in a moment where she is most vulnerable.
Mind you, he doesn’t give her any alternatives, he just makes a puppy face and tells her to forget about it because it’ll hurt him. And later on, when he finds out Lex is teaching her how to fight so she can feel safer and protect herself, he gets upset over that too. This is particularly difficult to justify, as Lana’s self-defense has no connection to Clark’s secret. The result is a pattern where Clark not only limits others’ ability to protect themselves, but also resents those who try to help them do so.
Throughout the series, similar situations recur: Clark allows others to take risks or make harmful choices in order to protect his identity, even when alternative solutions exist. These moments create a version of Clark that feels less like a moral anchor and more like a character constrained by inconsistent writing choices.
Again, these are the moments I remember off the top of my head, so feel free to add any others.
But this is what I mean when I say Clark was very poorly written because they always had him in these scenarios where he constantly lied but demanded honesty, he expected things from people that he himself didn’t do, he was extremely judgmental, insisted on perfection from everyone around him and then punished them for not being perfect, and when he apologized for his mistakes he did it as if he was expecting forgiveness, not asking for it.
Bad, BAD, EVIL writing. We know that’s not who Clark is, why would they take this route with him?
It highlights a disconnect between who he is meant to be and how he is sometimes written.
Ultimately, that’s where the contrast between Clark and Lex becomes most compelling.
Lex is written with emotional continuity: his actions, motivations, and internal conflicts build on each other in a way that feels coherent and deliberate. Clark, on the other hand, is often placed in situations where his behavior contradicts his intended role as a moral center, not because of character development, but because of narrative convenience.
The result is a show where the supposed villain is, often, more empathetic, more self-aware, and more consistently protective than the hero.
And that, more than anything, is what makes Smallville's portrayal of Lex Luthor so memorable, and its portrayal of Clark Kent so frustrating.
So there you have it folks. I'm sorry if this is not as coherent as it could be, I was mostly just ranting but I tried to make it make sense.
Tagging those who asked to be tagged if I ever did an analysis: @arson-jellyfish @manyfrance @deltaoftheufe
