Supergirl star Melissa Benoist has reacted to the news that the CW show's season 6 will be its last, saying she's been humbled by the experience. Benoist debuted as Danvers in 2015, when the show first aired on CBS. She remained the lead through the show's move over to The CW and took a significant role in the Crisis on Infinite Earths storyline during the ambitious Arrowverse crossover. The show has been popular among Arrowverse fans, and as a result, the news of the cancellation is something of a surprise.
Benoist has also had a fairly extensive career outside of Supergirl, first making a name for herself as Marley Rose in Glee and starring in Whiplash and Patriots Day. Ironically, Benoist almost missed out on playing Supergirl by earlier auditioning for the part of Thea Queen on Arrow. However, the audition wasn't successful, and she ended up claiming the titular role in the Arrowverse's third show after Arrow and The Flash. Benoist's portrayal of Danvers/Supergirl has been hailed for its combination of tenderness and fierce determination, with many holding her up as a role model for young girls.
Following the announcement that Supergirl will end after season 6, Benoist has posted a heartfelt message on Instagram reacting to the news. Calling the opportunity to portray the character an "honor," Benoist added that the response to her portrayal of the character over the past half-decade left her "humbled and speechless." The actor also says playing the character changed her life for the better, before concluding by saying she is grateful the show has the opportunity to end the story properly, given they've been told it's coming to an end before they've started shooting season 6. You can see the post below:
It's a positive reflection of the show's shooting environment that Benoist posted to positively about her experience. The actor has hopefully found an on-set family while shooting Supergirl after struggling with domestic abuse, something she's spoken out about before, and it's clear she has genuine affection for the character. It's unclear if the cast and crew knew about the show ending before today, but hopefully not too much will need to be rewritten to give the show a proper conclusion.
The 20 episode-season will, as Benoist says, now have the chance to wrap things up for all of the show's main characters, as well as potentially crossing over with the other Arrowverse shows one last time. With Supergirl now part of Earth-Prime, it is a pity there won't be more opportunities to see how the character fares in the new reality created by the Crisis on Infinite Earths. Hopefully, season 6 will still be packed with the fun adventures fans have expected from the show.
Source: Melissa Benoist/Instagram