'Supergirl' TV Series News 2015: Dean Cain and Helen Slater Will Guest-Star
Former "Superman" actor Dean Cain and ex-Supergirl star, Helen Slater have been cast to join the pilot of the CBS "Supergirl" TV series in the fall this year.
The new "Supergirl" TV series will premiere on CBS from September 2015, and the pilot will include guest starring roles for Dean Cain, who played Superman in ABC's "Lois & Clark" from 1993 to 1997, and the original Supergirl, Helen Slater, who played Kara, the Man of Steel's cousin in the 1984 movie.
CBS has yet to release their roles in the pilot, and information on their characters' roles are reportedly top secret. The pair has previously guest-starred in "Smallville" the 2001 to 2011 WB/CW Superman TV drama with Slater playing Kal-El's mother, Lara, and Cain taking on the role of Dr. Curtis Knox.
The upcoming "Supergirl" series titular character, Kara Zor-El, will be played by Melissa Benoist (formerly Marley Rose on "Glee"), a superhuman refugee from the erstwhile Krypton who has spent most of her life hiding her powers before finally embracing them.
According to Benoist, Kara Zor-El will be a more "relatable hero" than the previous Supergirl portrayals, Digital Spy writes.
"Nashville's" Laura Benanti has been cast as Alura Zor-El, Kara's biological mother, who will appear as a ghostly figure guiding Supergirl through her many adventures.
Other cast members include Chyler Leigh from "Grey's Anatomy" to play Alex, Kara's foster sibling, David Harewood of "Homeland" fame will be Hank Henshaw, chief of the Department of Extra-Normal Operations, Calista Flockhart, "Ally McBeal's" female lead as Kara's employer, Cat Grant, and Mehcad Brooks from "Desperate Housewives" as photographer, Jimmy Olsen.
Glen Winter, who directed "The Flash" will be behind the directorial debut of "Supergirl" when it premieres this September, while the show's executive producer, Greg Berlanti, who heads production for "Arrow" and "The Flash" for CW has broached the possibility of a "Supergirl" crossover with the other two shows.