Following the news that the casting of the planned Supergirl TV series will be handled by David Rappaport Casting (Arrow, The Flash), interest in the Casting Director’s Twitter account has inevitably increased. Eagle-eyed followers were not disappointed, either, as a sizeable hint appeared on December 30th.
Met some amazing DC fans on my holiday travels back east. Getting me pumped to return to work. She’s coming soon… pic.twitter.com/ZXnLkN4H01
— DavidRapaportCasting (@RapaportCasting) December 30, 2014
“She’s coming soon” suggests that the casting process is beginning to crystallize, and an announcement could be imminent. Interestingly, unlike developing series such as Marvel’s Jessica Jones, there does not seem to be a popular shortlist of actresses for the role. Some names have come and swiftly faded, but a single name has led the field for some time – British actress Gemma Atkinson. The rumours swirling around the involvement of the former Hollyoaks star are now gathering momentum – which may indicate that CBS intend to kick 2015 off with an unveiling of their final Supergirl choice.
With the show being nurtured into life by Ali Adler and Greg Berlanti (Arrow, The Flash), the outline is as follows:
“Supergirl, which is based on characters from DC Comics, comes from Berlanti Productions in association with Warner Bros Television, and is executive produced by Berlanti, Adler and Sarah Schechter. It’s based on the story of Kara Zor-El, who, like her famous cousin, escaped from Krypton amid its destruction. She’s been keeping her powers a secret since arriving on Earth, but now – at age 24 – she decides to embrace her superhuman abilities and be the hero she was always meant to be.”
While the character of Supergirl is technically a spinoff from the male character of Superman, the production of a Supergirl TV series is great news for those audiences that have longed for a female lead hero to root for amid the testosterone-filled schedules. The fact that it comes from the same team that created Arrow and The Flash – both highly successful, well-made shows – makes it all the more exciting.
In recent years, there have been several nightmarish attempts to create a Wonder Woman TV series for modern audiences, but now that the Amazon Warrior Princess has moved to the big screen, there is more than enough room for Supergirl to make her small-screen presence felt – whichever actress ultimately gets to play her.