For years, Aquaman was a joke. Just because this character was innately silly and had superpowers that didn’t revolve around killing people, Aquaman became a go-to source for mockery. TV programs like The Big Bang Theory and Family Guy especially were relentless in their withering skewering of this classic superhero, a microcosm of the endlessly witty writing that permeated both shows.
Wait, There Was Almost an Aquaman TV Show? In a 2005 installment of the original Smallville TV show, Alan Ritchson made a guest appearance as Arthur, a grounded yet recognizable version of Aquaman. The character proved quite popular on Smallville and would make three subsequent appearances on the program before it wrapped up in May 2011.
The Aquaman pilot swam quickly through production, with this episode shooting in Miami, Florida in March 2006, just four months after the show was first announced. Given all the hype surrounding its sister show Smallville, the ambitions behind Aquaman were grand and the hope was that it would be an easy series pick-up for The CW. After all, if one DC Comics superhero show had proven so successful for the network, surely a second one would be greeted with open arms.