The Big Picture
Melissa Benoist learned hard work from
Glee
, preparing her for the immense pressure of leading
Supergirl
.
Supergirl
was a massive undertaking with over 126 episodes, featuring a beloved character with high expectations from fans.
A new approach to
Supergirl
is in development with Milly Alcock taking on the role and continuing the legacy of the iconic character.
Melissa Benoist had quite a start in Hollywood. Her breakout role was in the supporting cast of one of the most popular series on television and then she moved on to lead her very own superhero series. During a conversation with Perri Nemiroff for Collider Ladies Night, Benoist reflected on her experience in Glee and Supergirl, and talked about how her time on one show influenced her approach to the other.
During the interview, Benoist confirmed that working on Glee wasn’t a walk in the park, but it helped her understand a lot about herself and what she was capable of. Taking on such a big role for a long-running series is intimidating, to say the least. That’s why being on the set of the musical series made all the difference for Benoist’s career. She explained:
“What I learned on Glee was that I was a really hard worker and that I could do really hard things because
the schedule on that show was grueling because there were so many moving parts
. It was fun but tough. I’m sure if you’ve had anyone else from the show on here, they’ve said the same thing. You had to rehearse the dances, you had to prerecord the songs, then you had to film the songs, and filming the songs were a lot longer — they took hours and hours and hours — and then you also had the scene work. Then
I knew that Supergirl was going to carry a lot of pressure
, and the responsibilities were going to be immense. I think that my experience on Glee gave me the belief that I had the ability to carry Supergirl.”
‘Supergirl’ Was a Massive Undertaking
It’s no secret that leading a series or being in the main cast of a high-profile show demands a lot from actors. For Supergirl, Benoist worked on 126 episodes — which is more than the vast majority of TV shows reach these days. Additionally, Benoist had to take on the pressure of embodying a character that was already known and loved by audiences, meaning that a lot of viewers came in with preconceived ideas of what the show (or the character) should be.
Supergirl is currently a major part of the superhero conversation, partly thanks to Benoist putting her back on the map. After Benoist played the superhero, Sasha Calle took on the role in 2023’s The Flash and was expected to carry on with her story in the DCEU. However, following a change of leadership that put James Gunn and Peter Safran in charge at DC Studios, we’re set to get a whole new version of the character in the rebooted DCU. Supergirl is now set to return in Superman, and Milly Alcock (House of the Dragon) is tasked with bringing the hero to life.
You can stream all episodes from Supergirl now and check out Benoist’s full conversation with Nemiroff below.
Supergirl
Release Date October 26, 2015
Seasons 5
Studio The CW
Watch on Netflix