The CW’s DC TV line-up is going to have its biggest season of all time, with Arrow ending after a 10-episode run, the debut of Batwoman, as well as the highly anticipated Crisis on Infinite Earths crossover. With every new season for The CW’s Arrowverse come also new exciting characters, both existing ones from DC Comics as well as original creations. Throughout and after this year’s San Diego Comic-Con, executive producers of the various shows revealed several new players who will be coming into the respective shows.
While Black Lightning is returning this fall as well, no new characters were announced at that time. That is also a similar case for Legends of Tomorrow which isn’t coming back until January, with its fifth season premiere being the final hour of the crossover. With that said, here are the ten new characters that we’ll see on the Arrowverse shows, as well as a few who are debuting in the crossover.
William Dey (Supergirl)
Supergirl's fifth season will feature an original creation in the form of William Dey, played by Staz Nair (Game of Thrones, Humans) who will be a series regular. Described by the executive producers as a bit of a lone wolf who doesn’t care for a social life, William will clash with Kara (Melissa Benoist) because of her passionate idealism. Starting out as a cynical reporter who will do anything to get a story, William’s ties to the criminal underworld will be a large arc for his character. Expect to see him right in the season premiere.
Malefic J’onzz (Supergirl)
Through the mysterious assistance of the Monitor (LaMonica Garrett) in the season 4 finale, we saw Malefic J’onzz arrive on Earth. He has a major bone or two to pick with his brother J’onn (David Harewood.) In an interview with TV Insider, executive producer Robert Rovner describes Malefic’s presence as being a big test for J’onn which will play a significant part in the five-hour crossover.
Female Brainiac-5 (Supergirl)
We got introduced to Brainiac-5 in the third season of the Girl of Steel drama, with Jesse Rath portraying the popular Legionnaire member. While we know of his very distant relatives aka the evil Brainiac, the fifth season will actually feature another good version of Brainiac!
Rath’s real-life sister Meaghan Rath of Being Human fame will be appearing as a female version of Brainiac-5 who will be a recurring guest throughout the season. It remains to be seen if this is an alternative version of Brainy from another universe. At the panel, Rath shared his excitement for his sister coming on the show, as this has been something that he has pitched ever since Season 3.
John Diggle Jr. (Arrow)
In the seventh season of Arrow, we got introduced to a Star City storyline taking place in 2040 where viewers get to follow the children of some of the team members. While we’ve met Connor Hawke (Joseph David-Jones), John Diggle’s (David Ramsey) stepson, it’s time to meet his biological son. Announced as a series regular, Charlie Barnett of Russian Doll stardom will be portraying the grown-up John Diggle Jr. in the future. All that is known is that when we first meet him, J.J. is the Deathstroke gang’s leader which will lead to a clash with Mia Smoak (Katherine McNamara) and William Clayton (Ben Lewis.)
Andrea Rojas/Acrata (Supergirl)
Every season of Supergirl always introduces at least one major player from the DC Universe, and season 5 is no exception. Julie Gonzalo of Veronica Mars and Dallas has been tapped in the series regular role of Andrea Rojas who is better known to DC fans as Acrata. TPTB describe Andrea as "a polished businesswoman and heir to a Central American tech empire."
However, when we meet Andrea in the season premiere, she will be pursuing a “hostile advance” into the world of media. While she is unapologetic about who she is, expect her to carry a mystical secret. Could that secret be related to her Acrata persona from the comics? Only time will tell.
Lois & Clark’s Child (Crisis on Infinite Earths)
In the Elseworlds crossover, we saw Lois (Elizabeth Tulloch) and Clark (Tyler Hoechlin) getting ready to leave Earth for a while to go to Argo City. One of their major reasons for that was because Lois is pregnant and they intend to let the child get born in Argo City. With Lois and Clark both returning for the crossover, it was revealed that their child will also be making an appearance in the crossover. While not confirmed, it’s very likely that the child will be Jon Samuel Kent aka the new Superboy in the DC Universe.
Tommy Elliot/Hush (Batwoman)
Batwoman will be kicking off her new series in early October, and the executive producers are intending on introducing several Batman villains from DC Comics. One of the first ones we will meet is none other than Tommy Elliot aka Hush. When we first meet him in episode 2, the show will kick-off an origin story for Tommy which will evolve into his transformation as Hush. Showrunner Caroline Dries teased that they’ll be exploring new angles for some of their villains, and Hush is one of them.
Ramsey Russo/Bloodwork (The Flash)
The sixth season of The Flash is changing their storytelling format, as the new season will be split into two halves with two separate big bads. The first one will be one of the newer villains from Flash’s rogues' gallery, and that is Ramsey Rosso aka Bloodwork, played by Sendhil Ramamurthy of Heroes. Described as “the world’s leading expert on hematological,” Dr. Rosso has a past relationship with Caitlin Snow (Danielle Panabaker) as the two get reunited by a surprising incident.
However, their rekindled friendship will come to a fast end when Dr. Rosso’s mission to “defy the laws of nature” is revealed. This is what will take him down the grim path of becoming Bloodwork which showrunner Eric Wallace describes as “the most chilling villain” that Barry and his team has ever faced.
Bruce Wayne/Batman (Crisis on Infinite Earths)
Kevin Conroy has, since Batman: The Animated Series, been titled the definitive voice of the Caped Crusader. Having lent his voice to the famous DC vigilante in various animated shows, video games, and films, Conroy is taking it to the next level. Announced at the Television Critics Association Summer Press Tour, The CW is bringing Conroy into the Arrowverse in the Crisis on Infinite Earths crossover as none other than the future Bruce Wayne. This marks a big deal for many reasons, starting with the legacy casting in Conroy.
This is also a big win for the Arrowverse, which has never been allowed to feature Bruce Wayne or Batman other than name-drops here and there. With Batwoman coming up, we know that Bruce has been missing for over three years. But, with this particular casting, that mystery will remain what it is as fans will see Bruce from the future. While it’s described as a special guest appearance, it remains to be seen what role Bruce will play in the crossover and if he’ll even be suiting up as the Dark Knight. Will his cousin Kate (Ruby Rose) get some answers as to why Bruce is missing in the present? Only time will tell.
Anti-Monitor (Crisis on Infinite Earths)
There is only one big bad for the Crisis on Infinite Earths crossover as it’s going by the book. LaMonica Garrett will pull double-duty in the crossover as both the Monitor and his villainous brother, the Anti-Monitor. The announcement at San Diego Comic-Con also came with concept art of how he will look, which is pretty much bringing the character from page to life.