The CW President Updates on Potential ‘Batwoman’ Series Status

Last month, news broke that The CW has a Batwoman television series in development and now network president Mark Pedowitz has an update for where that stands.

Speaking at the network’s Television Critics Association summer press tour presentation (via Deadline), Pedowitz affirmed that producer Greg Berlanti is in the early stages of series development and that a pilot episode may be coming mid-season.

“We’ll do a pilot for mid-season, whether it goes to series, I cannot tell you,” Pedowitz said. “We have five [DC shows] on the air and just added a sixth night.”

If the pilot gets picked up to series, it will focus on the titular character’s alter-ego Kate Kane, who is the featured hero in the streets of Gotham City. The character on the show will be an out lesbian, matching the original Kate Kane in comic books. She will also be a highly-trained street fighter and fans will be introduced to her in the middle of her efforts against crime in Gotham City. However, despite her heroic actions, Kate will have plenty of her own demons to face making for the right balance of action and drama.

The series would mark the first live-action superhero series to feature a gay lead character and the series plans to cast a lesbian actress in the role. The character is set to make her first appearance in the network’s shared Arrowverse during the annual crossover event this December, though Pedowitz was vague on what role the character would play. When asked if Batwoman might serve as a villain, Pedowitz didn’t have an answer, but noted that Batman does exist in the universe.

“I can’t even answer that question,” he said. “Batman already exists in the Arrowverse because Oliver Queen mentioned his name at one point.”

Caroline Dries, who served as a writer and producer on The Vampire Diaries, is set to be the executive producer on Batwoman. Joining Dries in the EP role are Greg Berlanti, Sarah Schechter, and Geoff Johns, the latter of which recently stepped down as the head of DC Entertainment. Berlanti and Schechter will produce via Berlanti Productions in association with Warner Bros. Television. If picked up, the series would air in the 2019 television season.