Supergirl will be taking her last flight. The CW and producers Warner Bros TV and Berlanti Productions just announced that the drama series starring Melissa Benoist will conclude with the upcoming sixth season, set for premiere on the CW in 2021. It is the second series from the CW’s DC Arrowverse to come to an end following Arrow, which wrapped its eight-year run last season.
Production on all 2020-21 broadcast series was delayed by the coronavirus pandemic. Additionally, Supergirl had been targeting a later start of production to accommodate the pregnancy of star Benoist. I hear the series is slated to begin filming in Vancouver next Monday, Sept. 28, pending a deal with the local unions to comply with SAG’s testing guidelines, which has been a sticking point for a number of Hollywood productions there. The series would initially be filming around Benoist who would join the production later, I have heard.
Between the delays and Supergirl’s downward ratings trajectory, I hear the producers, the studio, the network and Benoist came to a decision that it was better to end the show with a longer final season.
The creative team has started developing the storylines for the final 20 episodes. The order is expected to be longer than most broadcast series this coming season, including the CW scripted shows, which will be launching in January and beyond.
As it keeps adding new series every season, the CW also has been retiring veterans. It ended three established series in each of the last two seasons, including Arrow, Supernatural and The 100 this past season. (Because of the pandemic, Supernatural‘s final season stretched to this fall.) The network, which traditionally gives its long-running series a proper farewell by announcing their final seasons ahead of time, will likely reveal more shows coming to an end after the upcoming season in the coming weeks.
Supergirl, starring Benoist in the title role, debuted in October 2015 on CBS before joining The CW lineup for Season 2 in October 2016. The most recent Season 5 also starred Chyler Leigh, Katie McGrath, Jesse Rath, Nicole Maines, Azie Tesfai, Andrea Brooks, Julie Gonzalo, Staz Nair and David Harewood, with special guest star Jon Cryer.
In Season 5, Supergirl faced threats, both new and ancient. National City became enthralled with addictive virtual reality technologies created by CatCo’s charming-but-secretive new owner Andrea Rojas (Gonzalo), which enable people to bury their heads in the proverbial sand. As Kara used the power of the press to try to expose the danger, she was forced to contend with challenges put up by rival reporter William Dey (Nair), renegade Martian Malefic J’onzz (Phil LaMarr), a shadowy organization called Leviathan, and the shocking return of Lex Luthor (Cryer) who, in addition to his plot for world domination, sought to claim the soul of Supergirl’s best friend — and his sister — Lena.
Based on characters from DC created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, Supergirl is from Berlanti Productions in association with Warner Bros Television, with executive producers Greg Berlanti, Sarah Schechter, Robert Rovner, Jessica Queller and Rob Wright.