USA Weekend talks to Justin Hartley about directing tomorrow’s episode and what fans expect for the last few hours of the series. Here are the highlights.
So explain how you finally were able to direct an episode.
At the very beginning of Season 8, I had a meeting with Kelly Souders. She took me out to lunch and we sat down and she wanted to know what I thought about my character and where my headspace was and all that. We had this really great conversation, and at the very end I said, “Hey, listen. I’ve got a question off topic. You know how some of these actors have directed episodes, like Tom and Michael [Rosenbaum] and Allison [Mack]?” She goes, “Yeah. You’d be great. I tell you what, if we do a 10th season, absolutely you can direct.” And I said, “OK, I’m gonna take you up on that offer. Absolutely. But that’s not what I was going to ask you.” All the color wiped away from her face and she was like, “Hmmm?” I said, “Have you ever had any actor ask to write an episode?” Then she became clear, and you could see the veins and the bones. Obviously the answer was no, but I convinced her and said, “Hey, if I wrote a Smallville spec, would you read it?” She goes, “Oh yeah, I’ll read it, so I handed it to her because I’d already written it.” The writing thing ensued, and then I took her up on her offer to direct.
How many times did you have Callum say, “Kneel before Zod!” just because it’s an awesome line?
Yeah, 13. [Laughs] I think I had him do it about 13 or 14 times: “Play it again, dude!” He’s awesome.
It’s cool we get to see Zod again after he was sent to the Phantom Zone.
Well, that’s where we see him now. We go to the Phantom Zone and we find him there. He’s become the ruler of the Phantom Zone, and it’s like, “Of course he has. That’s what he does.” It was really great to have him back. He’s a really strong actor — I’ve always been a fan of his work. We hung out while he was on Smallville before, and I’ve always enjoyed working with him. I’d like to work with him again. He’s a joy to be around.
