CBS’ upcoming journey through the superhero stratosphere, Supergirl, is starting to feel more and more real now that the casting has started ramping up. We already know who the titular superheroine is going to be, and now we know that Necessary Roughness actor Mehcad Brooks has been tapped to hopefully add a little comic relief as one of the most iconic side characters of all time: Jimmy Olsen.
Jimmy is getting a larger role in this series than just Daily Planet friend and tagalong, though he will still have some kind of a camera handy. He will be the romantic interest for Kara Zor-el/Supergirl, as portrayed by Glee’s Melissa Benoist. The photographer for Cat Grant’s media outlet CatCo, Jimmy’s an alpha male with that good old dependable heart of gold, and so of course Kara is attracted to him. (Kara is Cat’s assistant, so the two are work buddies.) But there’s some mystery to him, as he’s secretly been working and living in National City, according to THR. and it isn’t clear why.
Jimmy and Kara will grow closer as she begins to accept her powers more and more, That’s pretty interesting. If he’s keeping secrets from people, AND he’s getting closer to her super-side, then he might just have a nefarious motivation somewhere. Although I guess anyone would legitimately fall for someone who can fly and punch through concrete.
Supergirl will also center on Kara’s foster sister, the uncast Alexandra Danvers, who is brilliant in the ways of science. (And also good looking, natch.) She works for a secret government organization and I’m guessing she’ll have a lot to say about old Jimmy Olsen when he’s not around. Secrets! Love! Lust! Supergirl.
It’s interesting that Brooks was cast as Jimmy, since the character has been a white guy for a billion years now, and rarely one that could be described as “alpha male.” A lot of heated Internet discussions were had when Josh Trank’s Fantastic Four added Michael B. Jordan as Johnny Storm, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see that same kind of grumbling happen here. None of it will affect anything either way, though.
First getting his big TV break on Desperate Housewives, Brooks later went on to recurring stints on The Game, The Deep End, and True Blood. (I’ll let you guess which one of those shows had him involved in orgies and murders.) He most recently had a spot on USA’s shortlived Benched, and was recently seen on the big screen in Steve Pink’s remake of About Last Night.
Will Jimmy immediately start talking about Superman in his first scene? Will Supergirl and Arrow ever cross paths? Those questions answered and more when Supergirl makes its way to CBS later this year.
