A recently released synopsis for an upcoming episode of Supergirl‘s second season revealed that the titular hero will soon go to war with Cyborg Superman. Many fans quickly got excited by the news and assumed that this could open the door to Tyler Hoechlin returning to the series as a new version of the Man of Steel, but we now know that won’t be the case. This isn’t too surprising, but it’s hard not to be at least a little disappointed.
Here’s what executive producer Andrew Kreisberg had to say about both Cyborg Superman and Hoechlin’s future:
“Cyborg Superman is not [being played by] Tyler Hoechlin. We’d love to have him back, but right now, we’re still trying to figure out what we’re going to do for the rest of the season. We loved working with him, he’s amazing in the part and we’d be lucky to get him back.”
Fans of the comic book version of the character will know that both Hank Henshaw and Zor-El (Supergirl’s father) have been known as Cyborg Superman at various points over the years, and considering the fact that this one was created by Cadmus, we can actually make a couple of guesses as to who he’ll be.
Firstly, it’s possible that he’ll be the original Hank that Martian Manhunter replaced. Alternatively, it could be Kara’s adoptive father as there have been a few hints that he’s undergone some changes since being captured by the villainous organization. Either way, the cyborg being a clone of Superman or something similar is something which can be taken off the table now.
Despite this news, we’ll hopefully see Hoechlin reprise the role of Clark Kent sooner rather than later. He was excellent in the first two episodes of Supergirl, with critics and fans alike saying he deserved a spinoff and actually did a better job than big screen Man of Steel, Henry Cavill. For now though, we’ll just have to wait and see how and when he makes his return.
