Superman & Lois Cast Got ‘Emotional’ Over Historic Twist in Final Season: ‘It’s Going to Rock People’s Worlds’
Spoiler alert: We’re about to break down Season 4, Episode 7 of Superman & Lois. Haven’t watched? You’ve been warned.
Yes, Superman & Lois really just did that.
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Monday’s episode, the seventh of 10 in The CW drama’s final season, ended with the Man of Steel doing something we’ve never seen him do on screen. During a live news broadcast, with the entire world watching, Clark Kent revealed himself to be — wait for it — Superman. Crazy, right? But as he explained, “you’d be surprised what a pair of glasses will do.”
“I kind of teared up the first time I read it,” Erik Valdez (Kyle) tells TVLine of the jaw-dropping moment. “I was very emotional, and I felt honored to be part of such a profound moment in such a massive story — not only on our show, but with the Superman property as a whole. It was really cool to be on set in that moment, knowing that [when it airs] it’s going to rock people’s world.”
So, what led Clark to let Streaky the Supercat out of the bag? His crisis of conscience was partially the result of some long-overdue introspection, as he finally examined the unintended consequences of his secret. As he explained in his TV interview, “I made good people doubt themselves,” expressing remorse over gaslighting some of his nearest and dearest.
Flashbacks to Clark’s time at The Daily Planet revealed that lying is precisely what destroyed his friendship with Jimmy Olsen (played by Douglas Smith, brother of Gregory Smith, who directed this episode). Thankfully, the emotional hour ended with Jimmy and “C.K.” mending fences in present-day Smallville.
But the real trigger for Clark’s decision came courtesy of a tense moment in the diner. Candice’s loser dad showed up guns blazing, interrupting an otherwise lovely double date between Kyle, Chrissy and the Kents. He started yelling some nonsense about mild-mannered Smallvillian Clark Kent being Superman (say whaaaat?), then pulled out a gun and threatened to prove it.
Despite knowing that Clark could handle a bullet or two, Kyle still stood up to protect his friend, but the future mother of his child wasn’t about to let that happen. “Did you see how quickly Chrissy pulled Kyle back?” Valdez says. “She’s like, ‘Whoa, whoa, you’ve got a kid coming!'”
What followed was a beautiful slow-motion sequence in which Clark, without speaking a single word, weighed the consequences of potentially revealing himself. He landed on “reveal,” quick-changing into his Superman suit before a room full of slack-jawed diners.
“The way that moment was shot was just incredible,” Valdez adds, offering a tip of his hat to Smith’s inspired direction. “The way Greg chose to direct that whole thing, what a great moment.”
It’s also worth noting that Clark gave his exclusive interview to one of his former Daily Planet colleagues, Jimmy’s sister Kelly — sorry, make that Janet — Olsen. It’s hard to keep these earths straight sometimes.
Did you ever think you’d see the Man of Steel reveal his true identity to the world? And how do you think Superman & Lois handled this historic event? Drop a comment with your thoughts on the game-changing hour below.
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