Posted in: CW, Preview, TV | Tagged: cw, preview, season 4, superman & lois

Superman & Lois Supporting Characters Will "All Get a Real Story": EPs

Superman & Lois EPs Brett Fletcher & Todd Helbing on making sure characters' stories get told and their take on Douglas Smith's Jimmy Olsen.

The San Diego Comic-Con 2024 (SDCC 2024) Hall H panel for CW's Elizabeth Tulloch, Tyler Hoechlin, Michael Bishop, Alex Garfin & Michael Cudlitz-starring Superman & Lois gave the series the honor it deserved heading into its fourth and final season on Thursday, October 17th. It also gave the fans a lot of juicy intel to chew over between now and then – including putting a lot of fans' minds at ease when it comes to the show's supporting cast. When the news first hit that the series was returning for an abbreviated final run, rumblings began that production budget cuts would mean that Dylan Walsh, Emmanuelle Chriqui, Erik Valdez, Inde Navarrette, Wolé Parks, Tayler Buck, and Sofia Hasmik either wouldn't be returning or would only be making guest appearances. Well, fans needn't worry – their favorite characters will be getting their moments during the final season.

"They all came back, and we made sure to give everyone who had been a regular on the series a closing out to their character arcs," EP Brett Fletcher shared with TVLine. "They all get a real story … and you kind of know where they are into the future." EP Todd Helbing added, "Smallville really becomes a massive character this season in a way it hadn't been in the first three. All of the other townsfolk that you've gotten to know, you get to know a little bit more."

But the final season won't just be about familiar faces, with the executive producers also sharing some insights into what fans can expect from Douglas Smith's Jimmy Olsen. Choosing not to go the "super quirky, dorky photographer guy," Helbing revealed that Smith's Jimmy Olsen is "the life of the party. He's the guy that everybody at the office loves." Fletcher added, "Everybody wants to be Jimmy Olsen's friend, especially Clark Kent. So we have a story developed around that dynamic."

Following an action-packed and dramatic season three finale, the Kent family continues their fight against their biggest enemies in the upcoming final season. With Lois still reeling from her battle with cancer and Lex Luthor and his proxy Bizzarro-turned-Doomsday still a threat to Smallville and Superman, viewers are left hanging on edge amid this epic intergalactic battle in space.

Previously, Brad Schwartz, CW's President of Entertainment (and someone who still seems to have "'Arrowverse'-on-the-Brain"), shared with TV Line his impressions of what he's seen so far of the final season. "I have watched nine of the 10 episodes, and [they are] f***king awesome. It is weekly-event television. Greg Berlanti and the producers have constructed 10 bangers. They really go for it. I've cried twice watching [the episodes], and I haven't even gotten to the finale yet. It's Emmy-worthy. And, by the way, you can watch this final season without having watched the previous [seasons] and still be emotionally invested in what is happening. It's a wonderful, 10-episode, contained arc." Though he hasn't seen the finale, Schwartz did read the script – adding, "People are going to be blown away."

Earlier this year, Schwartz discussed the series and the final season during the Television Critics Association Winter Press Event about the final season. Noting that the series return would be "wasted" during the summer, Schwartz confirmed that the series will hit screens for its final run this fall. Teasing that the upcoming season is "going to blow your minds, Schwartz added, "I watched the first episode last night. It will make you cry."

But that wasn't the only bit of news that Schwartz made during the event, also noting that Superman & Lois was going to end with its fourth season no matter how well it did. Why? "They don't want a competing Superman product in the marketplace," Schwartz explained, referencing Warner Bros. Discovery & DC Studios' Superman: Legacy, written and directed by DC Studios Co-CEO James Gunn. During a rollout of their short-term & long-term plans for their new DCU in January 2023, Gunn & Co-CEO Peter Safran said that they expect the series to run for "one or two more seasons" – with Gunn adding, "It's a show everybody likes, so it's going to keep going for a little bit."

Heading into the final, ten-episode season, viewer should expect to see Dylan Walsh, Emmanuelle Chriqui, Erik Valdez, Inde Navarrette, Wolé Parks, Tayler Buck & Sofia Hasmik. Yvonne Chapman (Kung Fu, Avatar: The Last Airbender) has joined the cast as Amanda McCoy, a trusted ally of Cudlitz's Lex Luthor. Douglas Smith (Big Love, Clarice) has been cast as Daily Planet photographer Jimmy Olsen, an extroverted 20-something known for being the 'life of the party' around the office. Despite being work colleagues with Clark, he's been unable to get him out of his 'awkward' shell. Unaware of Clark's super-secret, Jimmy's still determined to become his pal.

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