Although the main Arrowverse continuity wrapped up in 2023 with the conclusion of The Flash, there is a holdover tied to The CW franchise that’s still airing. Superman & Lois premiered on February 23, 2021, and while it was originally believed to take place in the same universe as The Flash, Arrow, Legends of Tomorrow, Batwoman, Supergirl and Black Lightning (those last two being post-Crisis retcons), the Season 2 finale revealed this show actually took place in a different reality. Nevertheless, S&L collected a lot of fans over its first three seasons, and they can look forward to a fourth season airing on their small screens.
So what’s on the docket for Superman & Lois Season 4? That’s what we’re here to go over, as a decent amount of information has been shared with the public about what’s in store for this next batch of episodes.
What Is Superman & Lois Season 4’s Premiere Date?
Superman & Lois Season 4 will premiere Thursday, October 17 on The CW. That means roughly 16 months will have passed between when the Season 3 finale aired and when the Season 4 premiere will hit the airwaves. It's possible Season 4 could have arrived sooner had it not been for the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes in 2023, but because they happened, filming didn't begin until January 11, and it wrapped on April 25.
The Core Superman & Lois Cast Will Return
You can’t have Superman & Lois without its titular two protagonists, so naturally Tyler Hoechlin and Elizabeth Tulloch will respectively reprise Clark Kent/Kal-El and Lois Lane in the new episodes. The two actors originally played the main Arrowverse’s versions of Clark and Lois, most notably in the "Elseworlds" and "Crisis on Infinite Earths" crossovers, but now, they keep busy the days playing these other versions of the characters.
It would also be weird if the drama series continued with the main protagonists’ sons not around anymore. Well, fans don’t have to worry about that either, as Alex Gavin and Michael Bishop will be back as twin brothers Jordan and Jonathan, respectively. Bishop took over as Jonathan in Season 3 following Jordan Elsass’ departure after Season 2.
Michael Cudlitz’s Lex Luthor Has Been Upgraded To Series Regular
Michael Cudlitz debuted as Lex Luthor in Superman & Lois Season 3’s penultimate episode, with this version of the longtime comic book villain being freed from prison after 17 years following the discovery that he’d been framed by for the murder of Boss Moxie by Bruno and Peia Mannheim. Luthor didn’t waste anytime enacting his revenge plan not just on Superman (which we’ll talk more about in the next section), but also on Lois, whose reporting on this crime played a big role in him being thrown behind bars.
So much groundwork was laid for Lex Luthor in the final chunk of Season 3 that it would’ve been weird if he hadn’t returned for Season 4. Fortunately, not only will that not be the case, but Michael Cudlitz will be a series regular alongside Hoechlin, Tulloch, Garfin and Bishop.
More Characters From The Comics Are Being Introduced
This is a TV show based on the Superman mythos, so naturally that means there will be more characters from the comics who are being included in Season 4. The biggest name that's been revealed so far is Jimmy Olsen, Daily Planet photographer. This version will be played by Douglas Smith, and he's described as someone who's the "life of the party" and trying to get Clark Kent out of his shell to become his "pal," indicating his scenes might be from flashbacks.
We'll also meet Amanda McCoy, played by Yvonne Chapman. This character is described as being one of Lex Luthor's key allies, as she not only ran LuthorCorp while he was in prison and took it to new heights, she will also aid in his vendetta against Superman and Lois Lane. In the comics, Amanda learned that Clark Kent was Superman, but failed to convince Lex of this, so maybe her TV counterpart will have better lucky.
A Familiar Arrowverse Face Will Appear In An Episode
Tom Cavanagh is set to appear in the final episode of Superman & Lois Season 4, titled "It Went By So Fast." This will be the actor's first time showing up on the series, but the man is well acquainted with DC shows on The CW, having played multiple versions of Harrison Wells and Eobard Thawne/Reverse-Flash in The Flash. However, it hasn't been revealed yet if Cavanagh will play a version of Wells or Thawne from Superman & Lois' Earth or from elsewhere in the multiverse, or if he's playing a brand-new character.
Season 4 Will Resolve The Doomsday Fight
In Superman & Lois Season 2, a character fans initially thought was Doomsday because of the bodysuit he was wearing actually ended up being the Supes from the Inverse World, i.e. this show’s take on Bizarro. This version of the Man of Steel was killed by Mitch Anderson when he was juiced up on X-Kryptonite, but Intergang later stole his corpse on Bruno Mannheim’s orders and managed to revive him. After Mannheim’s incarceration, this now-feral Bizarro was found by Luthor and captured yet again, and the bald antagonist learned that each time he killed the creature with X-kryptonite weapons, it would keep evolving into something that became even harder to kill.
The result was, ironically, the creation of Doomsday, whom Luthor sent to kill the main Superman as revenge for all the times the Man of Steel had interfered in his criminal pursuits. The battle became so intense that Doomsday carried an unconscious Kal-El out into space, but the hero woke up in the nick of time and managed to get them onto the Moon by the end of Superman & Lois Season 3. Needless to say this fight will be resolved at the start of Season 4, though what’s unclear is if Doomsday will continue to appear or if he’ll be permanently defeated.
Season 4’s Budget Has Been Significantly Trimmed Down
Remember when I said that Nextstar now controls The CW? Well, the change in ownership resulted in a major overhaul that, as also previously mentioned, resulted in all but four of the network’s originals being cancelled as The CW starts pivoting to more unscripted shows, syndicated content and other cheaper programming. But those remaining shows aren’t escaping entirely unscathed either, as they’ve had their budgets significantly trimmed down. This resulted in the Superman & Lois writers room being cut down to just five people rather than eight, according to Deadline, but the audience will notice the smaller budget reflected in more obvious ways.
Season 4 Will Have A Much Smaller Main Cast
Shortly after Superman & Lois’ Season 4 renewal was announced, Leslie Borque Walsh posted on Instagram that her husband Dylan Walsh’s character, Sam Lane, had been cut from the main cast due to “budget.” A day later, Deadline reported that six more actors were cut from the main cast: Emmanuelle Chriqui, Erik Valdez, Inde Navarrette, Wolé Parks, Tayler Buck and Sofia Hasmik. A few weeks later, Navarrette shared on TikTok that she and some of her castmates are set to appear in three Season 4 episodes as guest stars.
By the beginning of December 2023, it was reported by the Be More Super podcast that Walsh was expected to reprise Sam Lane for two episodes in Season 4, although where they'd be slotted in the season and whether or not they'd be grouped together wasn't disclosed. A week later, the same podcast shared on its X page that Chriqui will also appear in Season 4, although it's unclear for how many episodes. Then in February 2024, Erik Valdez confirmed on Instagram he would be back.
Season 4 Has Fewer Episodes Compared To The Previous Seasons
Superman & Lois’ first two seasons consisted of 15 episodes each, whereas Season 3 consisted of 13 episodes. Because of the budget cuts, Season 4 will consist of just 10 episodes, making it one of the shortest seasons for a CW show ever. Still, that will ideally be enough time to accomplish the final item on this list.
The Show Is Ending With Season 4
On November 2, 2023, The CW announced that Superman & Lois was ending with Season 4, though this move wasn’t entirely surprising. Along with the budget reduction, The CW’s been drastically changing the kind of content it offers following the Nexstar acquisition, which includes moving away from scripted shows and delivering more unscripted programming, sports and shows acquired from other sources.
Additionally, the new DC Universe franchise is launching in the next few years, and along with Superman (formerly known as Superman: Legacy) kicking off the film side of this shared continuity, all DC Universe shows will be available exclusively to people with a Max subscription. So the chances of Superman & Lois continuing into Season 5 were slim, and it was even claimed by Brad Schwartz, The CW's entertainment chief, that Warner Bros. wanted the show to end because "they don’t want a competing Superman product in the marketplace." Still, at least Superman & Lois' writers have enough time to craft a definitive ending rather than leave fans with any unresolved plot threads due to a sudden cancellation.
So with the beloved show ending, we’ve reached the end of an era, as this will officially mark the conclusion of the Arrowverse. Still, there’s plenty left to be revealed about this final outing, so we here at CinemaBlend will let you know when more details about Superman & Lois Season 4 are shared.
