Supergirl prepares for another flashback episode and recasts young Kara and Alex. Meanwhile, we prepare for this season and try to keep track of the changes.
Ever since I saw the headline that Tom Welling didn’t want to be part of Supergirl, I can’t help but feel like maybe nobody does. If you watched Supergirl‘s sophomore season and considered it to be the peak of television, superhero or otherwise, it’s possible you and I were watching two different shows. But the fact of the matter is that it’s The CW, which means, it’s not CBS. What do I mean by that? Well, The Big Bang Theory, one of CBS’ most formidable shows, averages about 12 million viewers or so. As a whole, The CW averages about one million, two on a good day. Also worth noting is that Supergirl is down by nearly 60 percent from its first season to its second.
So when I look at all these casting changes and whatnot, I wonder whether people exited the project just to jump ship before it sank.
For example, let’s look at Laura Benanti, one of the first changes and arguably one of the most talented actors on the show. In early July, Supergirl announced that she couldn’t do the show anymore and Erica Durance would step in to replace her. They pegged it on commitments in New York and motherhood, which seems fine. But that same month, Deadline said she joined The Detour as a series regular.
Hmm.
Alright. That’s just an example, of course. But a weird, on the nose one.
The newest recasting news includes Supergirl’s flashback episode that will see Kara and Alex return to Midvale. Izabela Vidovic will replace A Series of Unfortunate Events‘ Malina Weissman as young Kara and Olivia Nikkanen replaces Jordan Mazarati as teenage Alex.
Never mind how un-Supergirl the “murder mystery” episode sounds.
As far as other additions, we know that Jane the Virgin‘s Yael Grobglas will appear as Psi; Adrian Pasdar will appear as Lena Luthor’s foil, Morgan Edge; Carl Lumbly will appear as J’onn J’onnz’s father; Emma Tremblay will play Ruby.
That’s a lot of people, right? Wait, there’s more. Plus, keep in mind, these aren’t huge roles either.
Now, despite the fact that Maggie Sawyer will appear in a diminished capacity this season, Supergirl went out of its way to cast her father. 24‘s Carlos Bernard will be Oscar Rodas, perpetuating the ongoing problem of casting non-Latinx in roles canonically stated to be Latinx. For an idea of Latinx vs. Hispanic vs. Spain, The Huffington Post broke it down so I don’t have to. The gist of it is that I’m a Spanish and Portuguese-speaking woman whose mother is from Puerto Rico and whose father is from Brazil and nothing irks me more than having a legitimate claim to these cultures and watching a white woman call herself Latina on TV.
Honestly, if Supergirl tried to undo that by casting Odette Annable (which, like, you go girl, I’m rooting for you), it didn’t work. Though I’m super excited to see what she does as Reign/Sam March.
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Did I miss anyone? I feel like it’s possible, so holla at me in the comments. Supergirl season 3 premieres on Oct. 9 at 8 p.m. ET on The CW.