Batwoman showrunner Caroline Dries has taken time to address the show’s direction after Ruby Rose;s departure.
Since Ruby’s unexpected resignation of her role as lead of the CW series, her character’s fate has been dubious. Yes, executives have confirmed a new original character – Ryan Wilder – will don the cape and cowl in Ruby’s place. As for the original Batwoman, Dries took time to address Kate Kane’s exit after rumors circulated that she would be killed off.
Batwoman Showrunner – Why Change Characters and Not Recast Kate?
“As a lesbian who has been working as a writer for 15 years, ” she says, “I’m well aware of the ‘Bury your Gays’ trope and I have no interest in participating in it. My comments about recasting Batwoman have launched a storm of rumor and misinformation and I wanted to clarify something. Like you, I love [Kate and] she’s the reason I wanted to do the show. We’ll never erase her.” Further, she has confirmed that Kate, like her cousin Bruce, will vanish under mysterious circumstances. “In fact, her disappearance will be one of the mysteries of season 2. [I] don’t want to give away any of our surprises, but to all our devoted fans, please know that LGBTQ+ justice is at the very core of Batwoman and we have no intention of abandoning that.”
As to the decision of simply replacing Kate with a new character, Dries is candid on her choice to go against the grain of simply recasting Kate Kane. “To be honest with you, I did consider the soap opera version for a hot minute, selfishly because we had already a couple of episodes written, and transition-wise it would be seamless. Upon further reflection [Greg Berlanti ultimately] helped me make this [call. He said] you know, we should just reboot the character of Batwoman as a different character, [and] respect everything that Ruby put into the Kate Kane character. And I think it helps the audience a little bit too, that we are not asking them to address the elephant in the room.”
There have been no announcements as of yet who will portray Ryan Wilder and when production will resume. Stay tuned.
