Superman & Lois Series Finale Makes History: EPs Explain That ‘Hopeful’ Ending, ‘Bonus’ Cameo and More
Back in September, TVLine told you that the Superman & Lois series finale was poised to do something that no other Man of Steel-themed TV series or movie had ever done before. And boy did it ever.
Following Superman’s final battle against Doomsday (who is now one with the sun) and Lex Luthor (who now shares a cell with Bruno Mannheim), Monday’s swan song jumped more than 30 years into the future, where we bore witness to the deaths of both Lois and Clark. And before you ask, no, you’re not crazy — that was Bitsie Tulloch’s husband David Giuntoli, who also directed an episode earlier this season, playing grown-up Jonathan.
More from TVLine
Lois died first, surrounded by her loving family, following the aggressive return of her cancer. “Everything good in my life came from you,” a weeping Clark told her as she passed, one of several lines that would have certainly earned Tyler Hoechlin a TVLine Performer of the Week nod had we not already acknowledged him once this season. We then watched as Clark lived out the rest of his days, with a dog (named Krypto!) by his side, until his own time came.
TV’s 30 Best Series Finales of All Time
As Clark transitioned into his next life, he explained, “Suddenly, it came to me what life is all about. Joy. Hope. Forgiveness. Friendship. Love.” That last one cued Lois’ arrival in her iconic red dress (from Season 3’s “The Dress”), leaving us with one last image of the couple we’ve all fallen in love with over the past four seasons.
As for everyone else in the Kents’ orbit (so to speak), Lana and John Henry tied the knot; Kyle and Chrissy welcomed a baby girl, with another addition already on the way; Sarah decided to leave Smallville in her rearview mirror for good; and Natalie (aka Starlight) continued to fight alongside Jonathan and Jordan, both of whom now have proper suits.
Below, co-showrunners Todd Helbing and Brent Fletcher answer some of TVLine’s burning questions about Superman & Lois‘ final hour, from The CW’s reaction to the titular couple’s death to the origins of that incredible Giuntoli cameo. Read on for their thoughts, then grade the series finale and drop a comment with your full review.
TVLINE | Ending this show with the deaths of its two main characters, especially ones that are so beloved, was a big swing. Did you get any pushback from the Powers That Be?
HELBING | No, everybody was incredibly supportive. The CW had one thought, which actually really helped. It was just a small note. I don’t remember what it was, but it basically led to that scene with Clark and Lois in the farmhouse that tees up [the flash forward], and we just had to reframe it slightly. Generally, everybody had the same reaction. We got a lot of texts and emails of people reading the script and bawling their eyes out on planes. One of our execs said the passenger next to her on the flight was like, “Are you OK?” So that’s really rewarding. It’s what we were going for, to have an ending that people could think about for a while.
TVLINE | When Clark and Lois are reunited, are we calling this heaven? Or are we leaving that up to interpretation?
HELBING | I think it’s up for interpretation. What he says in the montage is, “The first time I died, I saw darkness. And then the light came back.” We love to do misdirects on this show, so at the beginning of the season, it was like, “Yeah, we’re doing the Death of Superman.” But what we were really talking about was the end — that was the death of Superman. And we wanted that to be full of light, and hopeful, and to represent everything that he and Lois stood for.
TVLINE | Then it’s only fitting that she should get to wear that incredible red dress again. It deserves its own billing at this point.
FLETCHER | For Clark, everything is being framed at its best. When he sees the boys, they’re young again, because the most connected he ever was to them was at that age. When she wore that dress to [to the awards gala], it was the most perfect moment of their love for him, so when she meets him in that dress, it’s just everything at its best. That was the intent behind it.
TVLINE | I did a double take when I saw David Giuntoli as grown-up Jonathan. How did that incredible casting come about?
HELBING | [Laughs] We love David. We’ve gotten to know him over the last four years, and he directed this past season. He’s such a great guy. [Bitsie and David] are actually neighbors of mine. Not next door, but they’re in the neighborhood, so we see him quite often. We just asked him and he was totally down. That’s the kind of stuff we love to do on the show, put crew members in the episodes. Some of them are Brent’s kids in that montage.
FLETCHER | And in Episode 7, it’s our crew members who greet Superman when he comes down the stairs. We were trying to make it feel very homemade in the last season. This show, more than any other show I’ve worked on — and I’ve worked on some really happy shows — people just loved it. We tried to give everybody a bonus, and David was just kind of a bonus. We wanted him back because he was such a cool person.
TVLINE | We see Lex sobbing uncontrollably as Clark speaks of forgiveness. Where are those tears coming from?
FLETCHER | Lex is a foil for Superman in a lot of ways. Where Superman is hope, Lex was hate, and he let it consume him. He had opportunities in his life to let it go. If he had just walked out that door with his daughter, things would have been different. Just as Superman is evaluating the life that he led in this out-of-time, ethereal place, so is Lex. There’s regret because Lex gave into his base impulses, and Superman forgives him for that. The weight of letting the wrong impulses consume you is heavy, and that’s what he’s apologizing for. He wishes he hadn’t inflicted that pain on people.
TVLINE | Which brings me to Krypto [the Superdog], another face I never thought I’d see on this show! Was this just something fun you decided to sneak into the finale, or would he have come along eventually if the show had run for seven seasons?
HELBING | Having a dog on set is a little challenging, so we had definitely talked about it, but it was never going to be Krypto with superpowers, that’s for sure. This just came out of our discussions in the room. I don’t remember specifically, but once you get a dog, a dog changes your family. It gave Clark a pal to have.
FLETCHER | At the end, you’re playing happy/sad. It’s a tough needle to thread. Lois has just passed away, and it’s so sad, so how do you make the audience not spiral? … Fluffy dog! And then the joy of a fluffy dog through Clark Kent, who’s never had a dog, was how we’d get it back to happy a little bit.
TVLINE | One moment I did not expect to get emotional over was Doomsday’s death, which felt more like an assisted suicide than a killing. Was this sort of his redemptive hero moment, sacrificing himself to save the world?
HELBING | Yeah, that’s the way we were looking at it. In a lot of ways, Bizarro Superman is the most tragic story in our show. That guy was still in there somewhere. There wasn’t a lot of him left, but in this lucid moment, it was him making a sacrifice and finally becoming the hero that he always wanted to be.
Best of TVLine
Sign up for TVLine's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
Solve the daily Crossword
