Superman introduces the DC Universe’s Hawkgirl, Kendra Saunders (Isabela Merced), while Lanterns will introduce the Green Lantern John Stewart (Aaron Pierre) early next year. That means the DCU is perfectly poised for its own version of the characters’ romance, as depicted in the DC Animated Universe shows Justice League and Justice League Unlimited. It’s a fan-favorite romance, and while it would require some tweaking to work in the DCU, Merced is definitely willing to give it a shot. In an interview with Nerdist ahead of the July 11th premiere of Superman, she said she’d love to explore that relationship in whatever form it takes.
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“I really love the idea, and that’s why I love Lois and Clark stories — like, that alien-human love story,” Merced said. “There’s just something so romantic about that to me. It’s like, ‘We shouldn’t, but we should, but we shouldn’t.’ That really got my heart as a kid. It broke my heart too, you know, when she eventually abandoned… The betrayal is crazy.”
The DCAU version of Hawkgirl is a true Thanagarian warrior named Shayera Hol, voiced by Maria Canals. Merced praised Canals while acknowledging that her character, Kendra Saunders, will be different in many ways. Still, at 23 years old, Merced is just the right age to have grown up with the DCAU, and there’s no denying the influence Canals’ take on the character will have on Merced’s.
“My love for the character that Maria brought to the show definitely transferred to this version, who is not Shayera,” she said. “She’s Kendra, but still, she has all the memories of her past life. So, I’m definitely a huge fan of her story. I can’t wait to see how that evolves, or even if there is a romantic aspect that could potentially be — because I’m a romantic at heart, for sure.”
Hawkgirl has been a figure in DC Comics since 1940, but Kendra Saunders was not introduced until 1999. She’s the third character to bear that title, fusing elements of past versions and streamlining her backstory a bit in the process. We don’t know for sure which aspects of Kendra’s backstory will be pulled into the DCU, but we know at least that she is a human reincarnation of a Thanagarian warrior, with access to her past life’s memories and skills, as well as her trauma.
Since Kendra’s introduction in the comics, stories typically focus on her relationship with Hawkman, a.k.a. Carter Hall. She has not been romantically entangled with John Stewart at all, but fans still haven’t forgotten their tryst in Justice League Unlimited. Stewart will join the DCU in the HBO series Lanterns, which is filming now and is expected to premiere in early 2026. It will focus on Stewart and his fellow human Green Lantern Hal Jordan (Kyle Chandler), but we know so little about the plot that Hawkgirl could conceivably make an appearance there.
There’s plenty of time for drama like this to unfold, but for now, the DCU is just about to get started in earnest. Superman hits theaters on Friday, July 11th.
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