Laura Benanti played twin sisters Astra and Alura Zor-El in Supergirl, the latter being Kara Danvers a.k.a. Supergirl’s mother. Since then she has been cast in a number of television and film roles, including a recurring appearance as Melania Trump on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. In Supergirl, Benanti first played the Kryptonian criminal and former army general Astra, then later her twin sister, Alura.
Benanti left Supergirl in 2016 as she was unable to continue her role due to clashing work commitments. The role of Kara’s mother was therefore recast and Erica Durance, who played Lois Lane on the long-running WB/CW show Smallville, took over the role in season 3. Durance is the second ex-Lois Lane to appear in Supergirl, after Teri Hatcher was cast as the Queen of Daxam, Rhea, in season 2.
Since Laura Benanti’s departure from the DCEU show, she has had numerous live action and voice roles in TV, most significantly in Younger and The Detour, along with work on Broadway and the big screen. Here's a guide to her most recent career steps.
Benanti’s Television Roles, From The Detour To Younger
After saying goodbye to Supergirl, Benanti did voice work as Lady Caine in the TV movie Tangled: Before Ever After and in Tangled: The Series. Lady Caine is the main antagonist of Before Ever After as the leader of a pirate gang, and has a recurring role in the continuing series. Since 2016 Benanti has also had a recurring role as First Lady Melania Trump, appearing in numerous comedy sketches on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. Continuing her comedy work, Benanti also starred in The Detour, an American TV series about a family road trip that quickly gets out of control; in it, she plays US Postal Inspection Service Agent Edie Randall. The actress has also been cast in a recurring role on the comedy-drama series Younger, in which she plays self-made millionaire Quinn Tyler.
Benanti's Broadway Shows
As a Tony Award winner and five-time Tony Award nominee, Benanti is actually best known as a stage actress. It can therefore come as no surprise that since leaving Supergirl, she has appeared in three shows. She starred alongside Amy Schumer and Keegan Michael Key as Laura in Steve Martin’s Broadway play Meteor Shower, was nominated for a Tony for her role as Amalia Balash in Broadway’s She Loves Me. Most recently, Benanti played the famous Eliza Doolittle at the Lincoln Centre’s production of My Fair Lady.
Benanti As Karen Abate In Worth
Alongside Michael Keaton and Stanley Tucci, Laura Benanti stars in her movie debut as Karen Abate in the 2020 movie Worth, which premiered at Sundance Film Festival in January. Worth is a biographical film about a Washington D.C. attorney who was appointed by Congress to lead the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund. The film stars Keaton in the role of Kenneth Feinberg, the subject of the film. Worth has not yet been bought by distributors, so its release date remains uncertain.