Flashback: How Smallville Celebrated Thanksgiving

Smallville celebrated Thanksgiving on November 9, 2006 with an episode titled “Rage” and underneath its proto-“Green Arrow on Mirakuru” type story featuring Justin Hartley’s version of Oliver Queen, it also contained one of the simultaneously most memorable and absurd scenes of the entire series.

“Our family has a tradition. It goes back way before I was even born. Where everyone takes a moment to say what they’re the most thankful for in their lives,” Clark Kent (Tom Welling) says before giving a toast and saying what he’s appreciative for.

It was a nice family moment with the extended Smallville family, something the series did very well, but most interesting about it is the presence of Lionel Luthor (John Glover) who had tried to kill almost everyone at the table at one time or another.

KryptonSite’s Craig Byrne spoke with Smallville cast members about this scene for the Smallville: The Official Companion book for Season 6.

“It was fun,” Annette O’Toole recalled. “It was one of those parties where you invite people who never in a million years would be together, and it makes for a much more fun party. I wish that we’d gone into the Thanksgiving dinner and seen what these people were talking about. If you’re going to have them there, then let’s have some fireworks. Let’s say, ‘Well, what about it? Why did this happen? I’ll drink some wine and get a little loose.’ That would have been great.”

John Glover also had fun memories of the filming of that particular scene.

“We had a wonderful time shooting it. You should have seen Justin messing with Erica. He was being so ornery with her. Just keeping her off guard, and pulling the rug out from under her all the time. We were doing a lot of improv, and talking about the brussel sprouts. Then I said ‘Miss Sullivan, how much longer are you going to be jailbait?’” Glover laughs. “Allison just looked at me, and Annette laughed. It was a lot of fun,” he said.

Warm Thanksgiving wishes to you and yours from KryptonSite — if you’d like to see the scene that the actors were talking about, you can find it below.