Superman’s Black Suit Revealed in New ‘Elseworlds’ Arrowverse Crossover Photo

The upcoming Arrowverse ‘Elseworlds’ crossover is supposed to be all about the debut of Ruby Rose’s Batwoman, but the event keeps getting more and more hype thanks to some of the other big debuts that will occur during its run. After learning that Tyler Hoechilin’s Superman and a new Arrowverse Lois Lane would be featured in this Batwoman crossover, we now have a new photo from behind-the-scenes of production that reveals that Hoechlin’s Superman will be donning an iconic (and very ominous) costume!

The immediate question fans will have is, “Why is Superman wearing this suit?” And given that this is the Arrowverse, there could (literally) be several dimensions of answers to that question.

We’ve known for some time that Superman was part of the Batwoman Arrowverse crossover event, and that he’ll be featured in all three episodes of the crossover (Supergirl, Arrow, The Flash). However, details on how Superman and Lois Lane figure into this “Elseworlds” crossover storyline have been kept rather vague, and secretive. This photo kind of blows the door wide open for speculation; given the title of the crossover (“Elseworlds”), it’s not crazy to guess that this black suit may not come with the same message of mourning like in the comics – but rather, as a sign of a darker version of Superman that may exist in the multiverse.

Honestly, at this point it’s almost a rite of passage for an Arrowerse actor to get to play the evil alternate universe version of his/her character – and the Arrowverse heroes would definitely have their hands full if an ‘Evil Superman’ was on the game board. It would be interesting to see what kind of Kryptonian deterents teams Flash and Arrow developed after their encounter with an evil Supergirl in the “Earth-X” crossover – and even more interesting if we get some ‘Batwoman v Superman’ action, with Ruby Rose’s Kate Kane being responsible with combating the Superman threat on her world. Could Evil Superman be the reason that LaMonica Garrett’s Monitor makes an appearance? We’ll see.

In the comics, Superman’s black suit gained iconic status in the “Death and Return of Superman” story arc. It was a suit designed to help revitalize Superman’s Kryptonian cells, after they were severely depleted in his fight with Doomsday. When he was “resurrected,” Kal-El/Superman fought in that suit for a brief time.

The “Elseworlds” Arrowverse crossover will take place across three nights, kicking off on Sunday, Dec. 9th on The Flash at 8 p.m. ET. It continues on Arrow Monday, Dec. 10th at 8 p.m. and then finishes up on Supergirl Tuesday, Dec. 11th at 8 p.m. ET.