Michael Cudlitz and Chad L. Coleman in Superman & Lois season 3

Actors Michael Cudlitz and Chad L. Coleman are fondly remembered for their roles in The Walking Dead. Cudlitz portrayed the witty and brave Abraham Ford from seasons 4-7, while Coleman played the compassionate and protective Tyreese in seasons 3-5. The actors will reunite in the third season of the CW series Superman and Lois. 

This series is based on DC Comic characters created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, and Todd Helbing and Brent Fletcher serve as showrunners. The story follows Clark Kent/Superman, a superhero, and his wife, Lois Lane, the world’s most famous and best reporter. They move back to Smallville with their sons Jonathan and Jordon and try to balance their busy lives.

The series stars Tyler Hoechlin, Elizabeth Tulloch, Jordan Elsass, Alex Garfin, Erik Valdez, Inde Navarrette, and Michael Bishop.

Cudlitz joins the cast as the Lex Luthor of this Earth (this series is set in an alternate Earth different from Earth Prime).  This Luther is the billionaire behind LexCorp, whose alter ego is heavily involved in the criminal world. He is a psychopath known for exacting revenge on anyone who has wronged him, including Superman and Lois.

In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Fletcher had this to say about Cudlutz’s Lex:

"The whole point of it was this is different than anything that you’ve seen in live-action for Lex. It’s a slow burn before Lex shows up, so it’s earned, but his whole point of view in the world is different. His demeanor, his tone is different, and he is going to be the greatest oppositional force to Superman and Lois that they’re ever going to face. When we talked to Michael about it, he was really excited about the take, and we just knew that was who we wanted standing toe-to-toe with those two."

Coleman portrays Bruno Mannheim, one of the world’s greatest crime bosses. He is the Intergang leader, a devout worshiper of the Religion of Crime, their Crime Bible, and a loyal servant to Darkseid.

Helbing had this say about Coleman’s character:

"Our objective is always to present a “villain,” really more of an antagonist than a mustache-twirling villain, in a way that you may not agree with what they do, but maybe you understand their point of view. I’m excited for everyone to see Chad Coleman [in the role]. At first blush, you may lump him into something, but as you get to know him, you’re surprised, and you start to understand some of his decisions — some are really bad, some are very evil, but some are really good. He’s a complicated person, like all of us, and we’re really proud of what the story is with him."

Superman & Lois season 3 episode 1 release date

The CW will premiere Superman and Lois season 3 on March 14, 2023, at 8:00 p.m. ET. With the additional 14 episodes released weekly.

First looks at both of the new characters.

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