We’ve had Superman himself appear on Supergirl in the form of Tyler Hoechlin, but never his nemesis, Lex Luthor. His half-sister Lena has been a major presence on the show since season 2, with Lex’s mother Lillian also acting as a primary antagonist that season. Still, the bald billionaire has never shown his face. But maybe, just maybe, that’s going to change in season 4.
THS has got hold of three character breakdowns for some new additions set to join the next run of The CW superhero series. As per usual, the casting calls employ pseudonyms to keep the real identities of the characters a secret. However, the accompanying description gives us some big clues as to who they could be. For one, the breakdown for “Chester Green” heavily suggests that villain Manchester Black is coming to Supergirl.
Another breakdown is for a character named “Ben” – but the description of a “businessman whose success has burned” away makes us think that maybe Ben’s code for Lex. Here’s what THS shared:
Simply named Ben, the show is looking for a Caucasian actor in his 40s to play a businessman whose success has burned down to the ground. Blaming others for his failure and not having his back, he is now making it his life goal to correct those wrongs.
So, why do we think this? First off, we know that Supergirl‘s Lex is currently sitting in jail after being bested by Superman. With his reputation in tatters, he lost his company to his sister, who rebranded it as L-Corp. You can bet that if he got out of prison, he would “blame others for his failure.” After all, he’d be furious that his sister let him rot in a cell while she stole his wealth and power.
Secondly, the call for an actor in their 40s would make sense with Lex’s age, as established in Supergirl. A flashback from season 2 that featured Lex and Lena as kids revealed that he’s about 8-10 years older than his sister. What’s more, young Lex was played by a white actor, hence the specific request for a “Caucasian actor” instead of the open casting for the other new season 4 roles.
Of course, we might be way off here. Supergirl has sported a bunch of Lex-wannabes in the past, such as Maxwell Lord and Morgan Edge, so this “Ben” could easily be another such character. But it would make things a whole lot more exciting if Luthor himself was to finally make a grand entrance. And hey, maybe they could even get Smallville‘s Tom Welling to play him?
