Death strikes 'Smallville'

PASADENA, Calif. — As it hits the 100-episode mark tonight, the WB's "Smallville" is still going strong. Ratings are good, the show is expected to make the transition to the new CW network (which replaces the WB and UPN in the fall) and cast members are upbeat about their future.

Well . . . not all members of the cast. One of them is getting bumped off in Episode 100.

According to series star Tom Welling, even he — with his powers as Clark Kent/future Superman — didn't know who was going to die until he got the script for tonight's episode (7 p.m., Ch. 30).

"We didn't know for sure. The person got a phone call, I think, the day before the actual script came out," he said. "This show did a really good job, leading up to this episode, to not hint toward it at all. And when the death occurs in the 100th episode, it's a complete surprise to every single character." (I could tell you but then I'd have to kill you. Or, more likely, the folks at the WB would kill me.)

Welling, at least, thinks fans will be surprised. (I'm making no promises. But I'm not giving anything away.)

"It's not something that Lex planned or that the audience may have known or have hints about in the future like sometimes happens in episodic television," Welling said. "This is a complete surprise for everyone. And I literally didn't know who it was until I read the script. I actually thought it was between two different people until I read the scripts. And I was right, this person was one of those two people, but I didn't know for sure."

It's not just a surprise that the character is dead, but that a member of the cast is no longer a member of the cast. "Yes, it was very bittersweet to see that person go," Welling said. "I think it was bittersweet for that person themselves. Because I think they were looking forward to a little time off.

"But then, when the day came, that person was caught a few times on set just kind of looking around, going, 'Yeah, well, I guess this is it.' "

(Once you see who dies, just insert that person's name above instead of "that person," and it will make so much more sense.)

Welling himself is in no danger of dying before "Smallville" leaves the air — he is, after all, Superman. (Unless . . . they can find another actor who looks a lot like him. Or they come up with some geeky, sci-fi TV explanation for a change. Which is highly unlikely.)

But TV characters are killed and actors lose jobs with some frequency.