Legends of Tomorrow lost more than one member of the crew at the end of Season 5, although Sara Lance's abduction by aliens doesn't mean that Caity Lotz is leaving the show. Still, it seemed like there could be a hole left in the team in Season 6 due to the departure of Maisie Richardson-Sellers, but now the show has added a brand new character who should mix things up on board the Waverider, and she'll be a familiar face to Chicago P.D. fans. Lisseth Chavez will play Spooner Cruz on Legends of Tomorrow.
Lisseth Chavez made an impression in primetime on Chicago P.D. in the 2019-2020 TV season as young cop Vanessa Rojas, but her Legends of Tomorrow character will require her to be tough in a new way. Spooner Cruz is a tough and self-sufficient woman who lives off the grid, and uses her ingenious tech to detect and defend herself against space aliens. Considering what happened to Sara at the end of Season 5, I can see why Spooner would be a logical addition to the crew in Season 6!
As a survivor of an alien encounter when she was a child, Spooner prefers to be prepared for what could come, although others could call her paranoid. As an adult, Spooner believes she can telepathically communicate with aliens. She's an ideal recruit for Waverider co-captains Sara and Ava, as the Legends will be hunting down aliens displaced throughout history. The Legends may never be able to catch a break, but Spooner sounds like a valuable ally!
That said, based on comments from executive producers at Legends of Tomorrow's DC FanDome panel, Lisseth Chavez' Spooner won't fit right into the Legends the way some others have. Executive producer Grainne Godfree dropped some extra details on the newcomer, saying:
She is a young Latinx from Texas who was kidnapped by aliens and has got a thirst for vengeance. So she’s gonna come up to the ship. She’s not gonna be the loveable losers that we normally have. She’s gonna be someone who is pretty tough and gives it to the other Legends, and they’re gonna all have to react to her. And I think it’s gonna throw them off their feet a little bit.
Not only will Spooner come onto the Waverider with experience in alien abductions and preparation for their return, but a "thirst for vengeance." Depending on when the Legends get Sara back and what she went through while abducted, Sara might be hankering for some revenge as well, although she has come a long way since her time as the first Canary on Arrow to Captain Lance over five seasons on Legends of Tomorrow.
Besides, it's not like every addition to the Waverider team has been smooth at the start. John Constantine didn't even want to commit to the team at first, and Zari 2.0 had to be compared to Zari 1.0. Throw in Courtney Ford's Nora Darhk and even Ava back in her Time Bureau days, and Legends of Tomorrow has a history of eventually making even somewhat abrasive characters endearing. Executive producer Keto Shimizu elaborated on Lisseth Chavez's Spooner, saying:
If everyone joins the ship and are best friends immediately, where’s the story? You gotta earn that. You gotta earn your spot in the family.
Legends of Tomorrow also has a knack for changing up its ensemble time and time again without disaster. In fact, as of the end of Season 5, the only two remaining original cast members are Caity Lotz as Sara and Dominic Purcell as Mick, following Brandon Routh's heartbreaking departure ahead of the fifth season finale. Could Lisseth Chavez stick around for the long term? And what does this mean for Chicago P.D.?
Like most of The CW's other big shows, Legends of Tomorrow isn't slated to return until 2021, whereas Chicago P.D. is expected to return with Season 8 in November. Will Rojas depart the show ahead of Season 8, or appear again?
The full Legends of Tomorrow panel with the cast and executive producers is available on DC FanDome now, along with a Legends blooper reel not to be missed. For more ways to pass the time until Legends returns with new content, you can watch and rewatch the first five seasons of Legends of Tomorrow streaming on Netflix, and get a look at Lisseth Chavez in action with Season 7 of Chicago P.D. streaming on Peacock. For more viewing options, check out our 2020 fall TV premiere schedule.
