How Superman & Lois Puts a New Twist on The Death of Superman

The Death of Superman is a popular story that has been told and retold since it first began in Action Comics #684 as part of the Doomsday arc. Superman dies, often at the hands of Doomsday, and typically comes back to life one way or another. Since 1992, it’s been almost like a rite of passage for Superman stories to tell some version of it, from comics to animated films to Zack Snyder’s Batman vs. Superman and Justice League. And now, with their fourth and final season approaching, it looks like Superman & Lois is officially taking their turn with the story.

In the Den of Geek SDCC studio, we got confirmation from the cast and creators that this is, in fact, the story they’re doing this season, as well as how this version differs from the others. “We’re doing ‘The Death of Superman,’” executive producer Todd Helbing confirms. “We teed it up at the end of last season and it’s not that Tyler [Hoechlin] isn’t in the show, he’s definitely in the show. Like we always do, we take a storyline like that and we put it through the Superman & Lois filter and then we make it our own, so that’s what we’re trying to do and I think it’s going to be really satisfying, cool, and epic.”

Unlike other versions of this story, save for the original, Superman & Lois’ gaze will be turned a little more inward toward Smallville. This version will be a more family-oriented story, focusing on how Superman’s (Tyler Hoechlin) death not only affects Lois (Bitsie Tulloch) and their sons Jordan (Alex Garfin) and Jonathan (Michael Bishop) but also how it affects the town that raised him as their own.

According to Helbing, Jonathan and Jordan are both “going to be reeling with their father’s death,” though they will be dealing with it in profoundly different ways. “Jordan particularly is gonna feel like the weight of that and how to respond [to his death]. It’s gonna cause a lot of friction between him and his brother,” he says. “They’re gonna sort of like go on their own separate path of how to sort of fill their dad’s shoes”

Lois’ breast cancer is also very much still a thing she’s dealing with on top of Superman’s death, and another twist that Superman & Lois adds to this story. “It’s not front and center in season 4, but she still has cancer, she’s still going through the radiation treatments,” Bitsie Tulloch tells Den of Geek. “Basically, with the death of Superman, and other things that I can’t disclose, she is sort of forced to put that a little bit on the backburner and jump into her role as heroine.”

With Superman gone, Lex Luthor (Michael Cudlitz) now sets his sights, and wrath, on Smallville. Executive producer Brent Fletcher calls their version of Lex Luthor a “psychopath” who brings an intense “Cape Fear kind of vibe” when he rolls up into town to hassle the Kents and anyone connected to them. 

“We’ve got a really great Lex Luthor storyline, you know, it’s kind of primed from the end of last season and we had enough time to kind of figure out the whole arc of the season and I think it wraps up in a really satisfying way,” Fletcher shares. “I think the characters, every character from the people that aren’t around as much to [Lois and Clark] and the rest of the family, they all get a satisfying ending to their story, and it’s all on theme and on point. And I think when you finish that tenth episode, you’ll feel some feelings, but you’ll also feel like…it’s a real journey, and we’re really proud of it.”

That is a lot different from the versions of Lex Luthor we’re used to seeing. Lex is often willing to do whatever it takes to achieve his villainous vision, but this version of the character is a lot tougher and grittier. He’s a lot more willing to get his own hands dirty.

While we don’t know exactly how Superman & Lois’ take on The Death of Superman will pan out, it’s clear that we’re in for an emotional ride over the course of the final season’s ten episodes. Everyone is excited for fans to see what this season has in store, with Tulloch hinting at a potential “bait and switch,” something that Helbing and Fletcher are known for doing well. The original Death of Superman comics was the ultimate bait and switch, shocking fans and leading many to believe that the beloved character was truly gone for good until the series revealed his resurrection. If there’s any series that can tell this story in a compelling, yet exciting way, it’s Superman & Lois.

Superman & Lois season 4 premieres on Oct. 17 on The CW.