Supergirl has finally found a role for Smallville fave Erica Durance — but it's actually not a new character.
Durance has been cast as Kara's (Melissa Benoist) long-lost mother Alura, who has thus far been played by Broadway star Laura Benanti in the DC TV series.
Of course, Benanti has also more frequently played Alura's evil twin sister Astra as one of Supergirl's previous Big Bads over the last two seasons.
Benanti has a very busy stage schedule, so Erica Durance is kindly stepping in to at least play Alura in a recurring capacity in Supergirl's third season this fall.
Durance famously played Lois Lane in Superman prequel Smallville. Another former Lois Lane — Teri Hatcher — has also featured on the CW show as the alien queen Rhea.
"Unfortunately Laura, who Greg [Berlanti] and I have worked with for years going back to Eli Stone, was unable to continue in the role due to work commitments in New York," executive producer Andrew Kreisberg told Entertainment Weekly.
"But we are so blessed that Erica has come aboard to offer her own interpretation of Kara's mother. We had tremendous success with a former Lois Lane last season with Teri Hatcher. We know Erica will continue the proud tradition of legacy actors joining our shows and creating new and exciting takes on classic DC characters."
Supergirl will return to The CW in the US this autumn. In the UK, the DC TV series is screened on Sky1.
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