‘Supergirl’ Will Explore Lex Luthor’s Relationships With Lena and Kara

Lex Luthor’s arrival in National City on tonight’s Supergirl is going to be a major game-changer for The CW series. While the iconic villain is getting out of prison due to his failing health, a weakened body likely won’t change Lex’s wicked heart which may present some real challenges — especially when it comes to his relationships with both his sister and Supergirl.

Speaking to press ahead of tonight’s episode, “O Brother, Where Art Thou?” Jon Cryer, who is bringing the iconic villain to life on the Arrowverse series, opened up a bit about Lex’s nature and specifically what that means for his relationship with his sister, Lena Luthor (Katie McGrath).

“I think Lex is … He’s a sociopath,” Cryer said. “They’re saying he’s an actual sociopath, but he does have a link that he can’t break with [Lena]. And also, to some degree, he gets that she’s got an incredible gift as an intellect and as a scientist so, you know, so his narcissism I think, kicks in, and he can find that to love about her, you know? ‘She’s like me, that’s why I love her.’”

Cryer went on to explain that there’s also the matter of the Luthor family history that factors in, though he admitted he’s not completely aware of all the details.

“So he understands she’s a formidable person, and I do think his really twisted family history does come into play,” he said. “Although by the way, I don’t know the entirety of the twisted family history, because they’ve sort of … there have been hints, but I don’t yet know it all. I think that’s for the best, because I’m on Twitter too much.”

But Lena isn’t the only formidable female Lex will have to contend with where familial history will come into play. Supergirl (Melissa Benoist) being the cousin of Superman will also have a unique relationship to the villain — especially since he will see her as a part of the problem, not the solution.

“He includes her among the alien hordes that are destroying Earth, and to some degree, I was trying to explore his understanding of her, because I do believe that if humanity was faced with super-powered aliens, it would be deeply threatening,” Cryer explained. “I don’t see that he’s completely wrong … except the sociopath part.”

And it’s that sociopathic part that makes Lex’s approach to dealing with the “issue” of alien hordes so chilling.

“I mean, he does deploy the sociopathic aspect in that, but that’s also part of his intellect and his narcissism is, it’s like there’s a point at which, you know, we are threatened by this,” he said. “Okay, what do we do about it? These are the steps, and the bigger picture, if it kills millions of people, there’ll still be plenty more millions. We’ve got billions of them. We got plenty.”

Fans can check out Cryer’s Lex Luthor and his relationship with Lena for themselves tonight in “O Brother, Where Art Thou”.

Supergirl airs at 8 p.m. ET/PT on Sunday nights, before episodes of Charmed, on The CW.

Are you excited for Cryer’s debut as Lex Luthor? Let us know your thoughts and be sure to check back in with us after the episode or hit me up on Twitter @lifeinpolaroid to let us know your thoughts about all things Supergirl.