Superman & Lois Showrunner Explains the Challenges of Dramatizing Superman

The CW’s upcoming Superman & Lois will be the latest series to bring Superman to the small screen, but where other series have focused on Clark Kent growing into the hero — as was the case with Smallville — or his life as both Superhero and reporter for the Daily Planet, Superman & Lois will show a different side of the iconic character: a father who isn’t always as super as his caped counterpart. For series showrunner Todd Helbing, that’s part of the challenge of dramatizing the character.

“Superman is a difficult person to dramatize because he’s perfect in a lot of ways,” Helbing told Den of Geek. “The analogy we always use is Superman is sort of but Clark can be clumsy as a dad. I think being clumsy as a parent, that’s something that we all are. We’re all figuring it out. There are a lot of books written about it, but the second it happens to you, you don’t know what you’re doing. So why would that be any different for the Man of Steel? In a lot of ways, that opened up the floodgates about really telling stories where people can relate to him in a way that they haven’t been able to before.”

While the idea of Clark as a father isn’t new — Lois and Clark are parents in the comics — getting to explore that in a new way was something that Superman actor Tyler Hoechlin found exciting.

“For me, it was an exciting opportunity to tell a part of the story that hasn’t been told before,” Hoechlin said. “In a way, it raises the stakes significantly… the only real threat to him is threatening the people that he cares about. Of course, he’s had that relationship with Lois, but now he’s also got two kids, so that threat becomes all the more real.”

You can read the official synopsis for the series premiere below.

SERIES PREMIERE – In SUPERMAN & LOIS, after years of facing megalomaniacal supervillains, monsters wreaking havoc on Metropolis, and alien invaders intent on wiping out the human race, the world’s most famous superhero, The Man of Steel aka Clark Kent (Tyler Hoechlin, “Teen Wolf”) and comic books’ most famous journalist, Lois Lane (Elizabeth Tulloch, “Grimm”), come face to face with one of their greatest challenges ever – dealing with all the stress, pressures and complexities that come with being working parents in today’s society.

Complicating the already daunting job of raising two boys, Clark and Lois must also concern themselves with whether or not their sons Jonathan (Jordan Elsass, “Little Fires Everywhere”) and Jordan (Alexander Garfin, “The Peanuts Movie”) could inherit their father’s Kryptonian superpowers as they grow older. Returning to Smallville to handle some Kent family business, Clark and Lois are reacquainted with Lana Lang (Emmanuelle Chriqui, “Entourage”), a local loan officer who also happens to be Clark’s first love, and her Fire Chief husband Kyle Cushing (Erik Valdez, “Graceland”). The adults aren’t the only ones rediscovering old friendships in Smallville as the Kent sons are reacquainted with Lana and Kyle’s rebellious daughter, Sarah (Inde Navarrette, “Wander Darkly”).

Of course, there’s never a dull moment in the life of a superhero, especially with Lois’ father, General Samuel Lane (Dylan Walsh, “Nip/Tuck”) looking for Superman to vanquish a villain or save the day at a moment’s notice. Meanwhile, Superman and Lois’ return to idyllic Smallville is set to be upended when both a mysterious stranger (Wolé Parks, “All American”) and impassioned self-made mogul Morgan Edge (Adam Rayner, “Tyrant”) enter their lives.

The episode was directed by Lee Toland Krieger and Todd Helbing wrote the teleplay for the first episode, based on a story by Greg Berlanti and Todd Helbing.

Superman & Lois will premiere on Tuesday, February 23, at 8 p.m. ET/PT on The CW, followed by Superman & Lois: Legacy of Hope, at 9:30 p.m, which rounds out the two hours of primetime programming following the 90-minute premiere.