“Supergirl” EPs Jessica Queller and Robert Rovner Talk Season 4’s New Villain, TV’s First Trans Superhero and More!
At San Diego Comic Con 2018, the creative team behind The CW’s “Supergirl” stopped by OMFGTV to preview the show’s upcoming fourth season. Executive producers Jessica Queller and Robert Rovner revealed some juicy tidbits about the season, including real world parallels for the show, exciting new characters and more.
One of the biggest new additions to the “Supergirl” ensemble this season is the character of Nia Nal AKA Dreamer, a former intern for Cat Grant, who has the ability to dream futures. Nia will not only be television’s first transgender superhero, but will be played by real life transgender activist Nicole Maines.
“We did a worldwide search for trans actors and it took a long time and we hit the jackpot with Nicole Maines,” Queller said. “She’s a real life hero, she’s a trans activist, has been since she was 14 years old, she’s been honored by GLAAD and she’s an extraordinary person. We’re over the moon that we got her.”
“This show is all about representation and inclusion and so, we felt it was important to show a trans superhero on television.” Rovner added. “It’s going to be fun and it’s so meaningful to us,” Queller continued. “We feel so honored to get to tell this story.”
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Rovner also adressed criticism of last season that the storylines of season 3 were less about Supergirl and more about the other characters.
“What’s great about the show is we have a wonderful ensemble, but at the end of the day, all roads lead to Supergirl,” Rovner said. “How either she’s impacting the characters, or how the characters are impacting her.”
Rovner also revealed details about season 4, namely that after a long absence, CatCo will return to the show in a big way. “The whole worldkiller thing last season took us out of CatCo, but one of the things we talk about this season is, what is stronger, hope or fear? Our villain this season is promoting anti alien sentiment. It’s a struggle for Kara, because she represents what the country is afraid of. She’ll find the power of the free press and this is the season where Kara becomes as much of a hero as Supergirl.”
If that sounds familiar, it’s because Queller and Rovner made a conscious decision to have this season’s storyline reflect the real world issues of the Trump Administration. “Reign took us to mystical places last year,” Queller said. “This time, we wanted to get grounded and tell these allegorical stories that we’re talking about all day and thinking about all day. There’s a lot of division in this country and so we think we’re a perfect show to reflect that type of divide in National City and have maybe some wish fulfillment and see someone as hopeful and as powerful as Supergirl addressing that.”
Queller also delved into how the comic book storylines influenced this season’s storytelling. “Superman in the comics in the 30s and 40s always told stories about real life issues. Supergirl stands for hope and compassion for all. It’s in the DNA of these characters to be champions of the underdog and reflect through the lens of superheroes stuff that people in the real world are dealing with.”
“Supergirl” will return for a fourth season on a new night, Sunday, October 14.