Batwoman Reveals First Look at Season 2 Villain Safiyah

When Batwoman returns to our television screens later this month, it will be bringing a lot of major changes to the hit The CW series. In addition to introducing an entirely new Batwoman, Ryan Wilder (Javicia Leslie), the series will be bringing some fan-favorite DC Comics characters into the fold. Among these is Safiyah Sohail (Shivani Ghai), a now-iconic Batwoman comics villain who was teased throughout Season 1. As fans wait to see Safiyah officially make her debut in the series, Entertainment Weekly recently unveiled a new photo of Ghai in character, as well as what her arrival on the show will bring.

"She's not what we expected from season 1," Ghai explains in the report. "She does come across as someone who is quite charming and kind. She has a definite soft spot for Alice. You will learn as we go on that there's definitely a much deeper relationship there."

In the comics, Safiyah is the ruler of a pirate nation called Coryana, who saves Kate Kane's life during the middle of her post-coming-out trip around the world. Kate and Safiyah become lovers, but they ultimately part ways when Kate accidentally carries a deadly disease onto the island, and Safiyah blames it on an innocent man. Years later, Safiyah has become a leader of the Many Arms of Death, a terrorist organization with reach across the world. Safiyah's arrival on Batwoman has been teased almost from the get-go, with Season 1 dropping multiple hints to the Many Arms of Death, culminating in confirmation that both Alice (Rachel Skarsten) and Julia Pennyworth (Christina Wolfe) have had previous dealings with Alice.

"In season 2, Alice starts the season with nothing left to lose, so her perspective of Safiyah shifts a little bit," Batwoman showrunner Caroline Dries revealed. "She's less afraid because she's got [Safiyah] in her sights, and what does she have to lose? Her whole plan for killing her sister went down the drain."

"[Safiyah and Alice's] dynamic is amazing, because Alice is [normally] the strongest, most manipulative person in the room. And when she's with Safiyah, she's a little differential to Safiyah," Dries continued. "It's a new dynamic and it's very intriguing to watch."

Are you excited to see Safiyah debut in Batwoman Season 2? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below!

Season 2 of Batwoman will premiere on Sunday, January 17th, at 8/7c on The CW.