Comic-Con 2012: 'Beauty and the Beast's' Kristin Kreuk Open to 'Smallville' Guests

4:41 PM PDT 7/12/2012 by Lesley Goldberg

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The cast of the upcoming CW reboot received a warm reception from anxious genre fans during its San Diego debut with co-star Jay Ryan noting the beast's look is still being updated.

Beauty and the Beast Panel Comic-Con - H 2012

CBS

Smallville's Kristin Kreuk made her return to Comic-Con on Thursday to support the CW's freshman drama Beauty and the Beast, with the mere mention of the fan favorite's name drawing screams from loyal Superman fans.

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In the CW's effort, Kreuk stars as Catherine (the beauty!) while Jay Ryan portrays the beast, taking over roles played by Linda Hamilton and Ron Perlman in the George R.R. Martin-produced 1980s CBS entry. Unlike the previous series -- and classic Disney animated feature -- there's no heavy makeup on this beast and not a sight of singing candles.

The CW's take, supernatural/mystery romance reboot, also marks a reunion for Kreuk with former Smallville showrunners Brian Peterson and Kelly Souders who joined the drama in June and were joined on the panel by EPs Jennifer Levin (Without a Trace) and Sherri Cooper (Brothers and Sisters).

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Producers noted that they wooed Kreuk to play Catherine with sweets. "We wooed her with cupcakes," co-creator Levin said with a laugh.

One of three rookie shows to receive the grand treatment in Ballroom 20 at the San Diego event, the cast and creators world premiered the pilot to an enthusiastic crowd, who cheered Kreuk's intense fight scenes and laughed at former Life Unexpected star Austin Basis' quips to the scarred but sexy beast.

Kreuk noted that she has seen "a little" of the original series and didn't base her performance on Hamilton's work. "I don't think I could compare myself or try to be like her," she said.

Ryan, meanwhile, said the series is still working on the beast's look. "It's still in developent from the pilot, we've adapted it a little bit more," he said. "He's not a lion now that he's a military experiment, there's a chemical in his body."

Comic-Con 2012 News

As for whether Kreuk's former Smallville co-stars could show up, the actress previously known as Lana Lang noted that she'd love to see it happen, with producers open to the possibility. "It'd be fun to bring them in for a different role," Souders said.

Beauty and the Beast premieres Thursday, Oct. 11 at 9 p.m.

Stay tuned to THR's The Live Feed blog for full coverage from San Diego.

Email: Lesley.Goldberg@thr.com; Twitter: @Snoodit