Over the last month, we’ve learned about some of the villains that Supergirl will be facing when her TV series airs later this year. These adversaries, who are a mix of aliens and enhanced humans, so far include Vartox, Reactron and Livewire, all enemies of the Superman family in the comics. Now the series has announced Kara Zor-El’s craziest foe yet: Hellgrammite, one of the weirdest characters in the DC Comics universe.
EW is reporting that actor Justice Leak has been cast to play Hellgrammite in one of the early Supergirl episodes. He is described as an “alien that Supergirl will be chasing,” which deviates from his comic book background of him originally being a human. No other details have been revealed about what this iteration of the character will be like, but depending on what’s in store for him and how well he is received by viewers, maybe Hellgrammite will be lucky enough to become a recurring enemy for the Girl of Steel. It will be especially interesting to see if his insect-like appearance will be retained or if the show will make him look more normal.
In the comics, Hellgrammite was originally an entomologist named Roderick Rose who experimented on himself and was transformed into an mutated insect humanoid. His abilities include super strength, enhanced leaping, secreting adhesives (umm, gross) and creating cocoons that can transform the prisoners into “larvae versions of himself” (even more gross). Helgrammite is primarily a Superman foe, although he has fought heroes like Batman, Green Arrow and Black Canary. He has also been affiliated with the massive criminal organization Intergang. While some of Supergirl’s villains have already been mentioned to have connections to Superman, it’s still unknown whether the TV version of Helgrammite has already tangled with the Man of Steel or if Kara Zor-El will be his first Kryptonian opponent.
Helgrammite’s appearances in other media include cameos on Justice League Unlimited and being taken down by Batman and The Creeper in an episode of Batman: The Brave and the Bold, so this is by far is biggest appearance yet. As for Leak is no stranger to the world of comic books, having just played Kutter in the Playstation Network series Powers. His other work includes guest spots on The Vampire Diaries, The Walking Dead, Halt and Catch Fire and Turn: Washington’s Spies.
Supergirl will debut on Monday, October 26, at 8:30 p.m. on CBS (following an episode of The Big Bang Theory) before flying to its normal Monday 8 p.m. timeslot on November 2.
