A couple of months ago, we reported that Ruby Rose had decided to leave CW’s Batwoman after one season. It was a piece of news that certainly came as a shock, as it’s not often you see a lead actor leave a show after one season. Speculation was in the air immediately, as many wondered who the next Batwoman was going to be.
Well, it looks like Dries, Warner Bros., the CW, and Greg Berlanti‘s production company have found Rose’s replacement. According to a press release (per Collider), Javicia Leslie has been selected to put on the mask. Leslie is a relative unknown, but has been praised for her performances in the CBS dramedy God Friended Me and the BET drama, The Family Business. As someone who has always championed diversity in cinema/tv, this gets me excited.
Leslie talks about representation in the superhero space in her statement:
“I am extremely proud to be the first Black actress to play the iconic role of Batwoman on television, and as a bisexual woman, I am honored to join this groundbreaking show which has been such a trailblazer for the LGBTQ+ community.”
Warner Bros. Television also shared the official character synopsis:
Ryan Wilder is about to become Batwoman. She’s likable, messy, a little goofy and untamed. She’s also nothing like Kate Kane, the woman who wore the Batsuit before her. With no one in her life to keep her on track, Ryan spent years as a drug-runner, dodging the GCPD and masking her pain with bad habits. Today Ryan lives in her van with her plant. A girl who would steal milk for an alley cat and could also kill you with her bare hands, Ryan is the most dangerous type of fighter: highly skilled and wildly undisciplined. An out lesbian. Athletic. Raw. Passionate. Fallible. And very much not your stereotypical all-American hero.
I did some digging, and it appears that Ryan isn’t an existing DC comics character. Now, perhaps this might rub some people the wrong way, but I am ripe with excitement.
