Biography
Date of Birth
26 December 1977, Putnam Valley, New York, USA
Birth Name
Thomas Joseph Welling
Height
6' 2¾" (1.9 m)
Mini Biography
Tom Welling is probably best known for playing Clark Kent on the hit television series Smallville (2001).
He was born Thomas Joseph Welling in Putnam Valley, New York, to Bonnie and Thomas Welling, who is a retired executive for General Motors. He has a younger brother, Mark Welling, who is also an actor, and two older sisters. He is of three quarters German and one quarter British Isles (mostly Irish) descent. Welling graduated from Okemos High School in Okemos, Michigan, when he was eighteen years old. Before that, he spent his freshman year in the Salesianum School in Wilmington, Delaware. He played a lot of varsity soccer in his high school and received "fair" grades on his exams. But even so, Tom did not want to go to college. He wanted to be a construction worker and after graduation worked in a construction service site.
Tom eventually moved on to modeling after spending a period of time working in the construction business. While modeling, he met fellow celebrity and model Ashton Kutcher while they were booked for a project together. The two eventually become good friends. Even though both Ashton and Tom were famous models, Tom decided to be an actor. He had an offer from a guy who worked in the agency he was signed with to be an actor. Tom attended a few casting calls and not too long later, became an actor.
The acting gigs that he received eventually made directors take more notice of him. Tom Welling was asked to play the role of Clark Kent in the hit series Smallville (2001). What many people probably don't know is that Tom turned down the role twice. He said that the reason he turned down the role wasn't because the story wasn't good, but it was because he thought the role was bigger than he was and he didn't want people to think that he wasn't a good enough actor.
Even so, Tom ended up taking the role because he had the feeling that the show was going to be a great hit and he would be a fool not to take it. Tom even said he felt some sort of connection between himself and his character, Clark Kent. Therefore, Tom made himself a household name.
Other than only becoming a face on television, Welling also acts in other movies. The movie with which he is probably most associated is Cheaper by the Dozen (2003), in which he starred with Steve Martin and Bonnie Hunt, and its sequel, Cheaper by the Dozen 2 (2005), in which he repeated his prior role. Tom has also starred in a B-grade horror flick, The Fog (2005), together with Lost (2004)'s star, Maggie Grace. Although that movie didn't really achieve box-office success, Tom's acting talents still got noticed by the critics. More recently, he co-starred in the fictional historical drama Parkland (2013) with Zac Efron, whom he befriended.
Tom married Jamie White, one of his closest friends, on July 5, 2002. Tom has said that the person he respects the most is his wife, because she has the greatest heart. According to reports, while working on Smallville, he lived with his wife in Los Angeles, and relocated to Vancouver for filming. Tom and Jamie separated in 2013.
Trivia
Graduated in 1995 from Okemos High School in Okemos, Michigan.
Like Christopher Reeve, was not a big Superman fan prior to being cast as Clark Kent, and in fact continues not to read Superman comics.
Named one of People Magazine's 'Breakthrough Stars of 2001'.
Turned down the role of the young Clark Kent twice before accepting it.
Has a pug named Cook.
Played varsity soccer in high school.
Received "fair" grades in high school and opted not to go to college. Instead, he chose to become a construction worker while continuing to live with his parents.
Worked in construction after graduation until he became a model.
After seeing a woman being mugged, he ran over and fought off her attackers. The woman looked at him and said, "Wow, you really are Superman," after which he laughed.
Auditioned for the role of Tag Jones on Friends (1994). It eventually went to Eddie Cahill.
Father is a retired executive for General Motors and mother is a "home engineer."
Older brother of actor Mark Welling. He also has two older sisters.
Played the role of Joseph/Josephine in "Some Like It Hot" in high school.
Modeled alongside Ashton Kutcher. The two are good friends.
Can do a voice of Gollum (The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)), and a pretty accurate Keanu Reeves impression.
Favorite celebrities: Bob Saget, Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, Christopher Walken, Robert De Niro, Steve Martin and Jerry Seinfeld.
Favorite movie: Mutiny on the Bounty (1935).
Attended Salesianum School in Wilmington, Delaware, for his freshman year of high school.
His father is of German descent. His mother is of German descent on her own father's side, and of Irish, and some English, Scottish, and Swiss-German, ancestry on her own mother's side. Tom's great-grandfather, Bernard Heinrich Welling, was born c. 1852 in Lingen, Germany, to Johann Heinrich Welling and Euphemia Maria Maier. On his father's side, Tom is the grandson of Louis H. Welling and Leora M. Poelker. On his mother's side, Tom is the grandson of Joseph W. Meitz and Geraldine A. Byington.
Was on Stephenie Meyer's wish list to play Emmett Cullen before casting even began for the movie Twilight (2008).
Appeared in Angela Via's first music video, "Picture Perfect," as her love interest. It took place in a video game arcade and ended with them in a photo booth about to kiss.
He has played the role of Clark Kent longer than any other actor.
His favorite show is Seinfeld (1989).
Tom is good friends with Jensen Ackles and Jared Padalecki of the show Supernatural (2005), and has worked with both, separately. One of his visits to their sets ended up in an unofficial appearance of his on their show when they played a joke on the crew by having Tom get out of a car when Jared was supposed to.
He is very good friends with his "Smallville" co-stars Michael Rosenbaum and John Schneider.
Moved from Vancouver, British Columbia, to Los Angeles in March 2011.
He is the only actor to appear in all 217 episodes of Smallville (2001).
When Tom was a kid he was a striker in soccer, but by the time he finished high school, he was a goal keeper.
In baseball, Tom Welling played a short stop and pitcher.
In 2002, Tom Welling had his honeymoon with his wife, Jamie, in Paris, France.
Tom Welling did a whole press tour promoting his film "Draft Day" all across United States heading to Miami in Florida, Dallas in Texas, Denver in Colorado, as well as Los Angeles in California, and New York in New York City.
Tom Welling's favorite designer is Tom Ford. Tom got married in a tuxedo designed by Ford for YSL.
While Tom was living in Vancouver shooting Smallville, he had three dogs. : A "Mixed Akita" named Bear; A pug named Cook; and a Boston Terrier named Maui.
Tom Welling said he had a lot of jobs growing up including bartending, waiting tables, and construction.
Tom Welling attended the premiere of "6 Bullets To Hell", on January 15th, 2015 to support his friend, Tanner Beard.
One of his parents is a Democrat and the other a Republican. When asked what he is, Tom answered, "No comment." He says 'politics effects him in a way', but he will never run for The White House!.
Distant cousin of Evan Peters.
Became engaged to girlfriend Saddle Club founder Jessica Rose Lee in 2018, they have been together since 2014.
Before he was cast as Clark Kent (Superman) in Smallville (2001), Brandon Routh auditioned for the role. Routh would later star as Superman in Superman Returns (2006).
Is two years older than Brandon Routh who starred as Superman in Superman Returns (2006) back when Welling starred as a younger Clark Kent on Smallville (2001).
Fiancée Jessica Rose Lee gave birth to their first child, a boy, Thomson Wylde Welling, on January 5, 2019 12:31am 8 lbs. 8oz.
Quotes
You know one of the things about going from modeling to acting is it's so much more fulfilling. With modeling, you get your picture taken, which is great, good for you, you know? But in acting, you're able to reach in and show a little bit more of yourself.
[on having his own action figure]: I don't think one is ever prepared for something like that. But it's fun. I hope it's durable.
To me, from the beginning, this show has always been about Clark before Superman. And for me, flying then brings you into the realm of Superman. I find it much more interesting to concentrate on the development of this character and show you what happened in his life to make him become this Superman that we all know him to be.
[on Smallville (2001)'s "Homecoming" episode] It was a real exciting episode for us to shoot because it's a turning point, and I think from this episode on, the show is going to be very different from what it's been in the past. I also think we're finally going to get to what I believe the audience wanted the show to be.
[on Smallville (2001)'s final season] It's a turning point. The episodes we're doing now are even better, I think, than what we've done in the past. From [here] on, the show is going to be very different from what it's been. We're finally going to be what the audience wanted the show to be.
I find it much more interesting to concentrate on the development of [Clark] and show what happened in his life to make him the Superman that we all know him to be. To put on the cape or put on the tights and start flying around... makes things too easy for Clark.
[on why he dislikes interviews] I don't want to be a celebrity for the sake of being a celebrity. I wanna work and then go home and live in private.
[on Supergirl (2015)] I do enjoy it. It's got a different angle, a more comedic angle, of course. It's telling the story in a different way, and I don't think it's a world that I ever existed in with Clark because ["Supergirl" and Smallville (2001) are] two different shows. There's really nothing in common, there are no parallels at all. I say that being a fan of what they're doing. I think they're doing a great job.
