6 TV Protagonists Constantly Upstaged By Supporting Characters

5. Clark Kent (Smallville)

In a series which professes to be about him, Clark Kent wasn't always the compelling character which Smallville would like him to be, and the reason why can all be summed up in two words: Michael Rosenbaum. Rosenbaum imbues Lex Luthor with a vulnerability beneath that cold exterior that endeared him to the audience (and earned the show the nickname 'Slashville' for the subtext it created with Clark) from the first episode. Clark's character isn't so much uninteresting as strangled by his character arc, which was deliberately stalled by the Smallville writers to avoid his becoming Superman before the series finale. Clark comes to the realisation that his powers are a gift and not a curse over a dozen times throughout the decade of the show, whereas Lex undergoes a steady and well-written transformation into the infamous villain we know and love to hate. Even Oliver Queen makes a huge leap from an arrogant loner to the humble founder of the Justice League, while Clark is stuck making the same mistakes. When Clark did have a breakthrough, it's often a high point of the season, but he belongs on this list because those breakthroughs were far too rare.