Lesbian ‘Batwoman’ Gets Greenlight At CW

It's official: the utility belt-wielding lesbian "Batwoman" will be coming to the CW, starring Ruby Rose.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the CW on Thursday "handed out a pilot order for the Ruby Rose-led drama from showrunner and writer Caroline Dries ('The Vampire Diaries') and exec producer Greg Berlanti."

The arrival of "Batwoman" breaks several barriers. Not only is the character an avowed lesbian, but she will also be played by the openly gay Ruby Rose, who played Stella Carlin on "Orange is the New Black." THR provided the show's official description:

Armed with a passion for social justice and a flair for speaking her mind, Kate Kane [Rose] soars onto the streets of Gotham as Batwoman, an out lesbian and highly trained street fighter primed to snuff out the failing city's criminal resurgence. But don't call her a hero yet. In a city desperate for a savior, Kate must overcome her own demons before embracing the call to be Gotham's symbol of hope.

The character Batwoman first came onto the comic book scene in the '50s as a potential love interest for Batman, but eventually took a backseat in the '60s. The character did not become a lesbian until being reintroduced in DC's "New 52."

A previous Hollywood Reporter poll showed that 85% (more than 2,000 people) of respondents wanted a "Batwoman" series.

While "Batwoman" is certainly a notch in CW's woke-belt, the network broke barriers on the SJW-themed "Supergirl" with the arrival of Nia Nal, the first transgender hero in television history.

The character Nia Nal will be played by transgender actor Nicole Maines (a man presenting himself as a woman) and will be based of the DC Comics character Nura Nal. Sometimes called "Dream Girl," the character Nia Nal is a humanoid alien that also sees into the future.

Speaking with Variety, Maines said that being TV's first transgender superhero will be a "great responsibility."

"I haven’t really wrapped my head around it," Maines said. "It feels fitting to say with great power, comes great responsibility. I’m nervous because I want to do it right."

In terms of the female superhero race, DC has been well ahead of Marvel for some years now, starting with "Supergirl" on the CW and Wonder Woman on the silver screen. Though the Marvel universe has offered plenty of female superheroes, from Black Widow to Scarlet Witch, neither has had their own film. This coming March, audiences will see the emergence of Captain Marvel, with Brie Larson in the starring role.

The success of "Spiderman: Into the Spiderverse" has also prompted Sony Pictures to put some girl-power into the Spider-Man franchise by giving audiences an animated "Spider-Women" film that will focus on "three generations of women with Spidey powers," Deadline reported in November. Phil Lord & Christopher Miller (directors of "The Lego Movie") will be on board in some capacity along with Amy Pascal, who previously produced "Spider-Man: Homecoming."

"One of these characters could very well be Spider-Gwen, a breakout character from the Spider-Verse," reports Deadline. "This all builds on the buzz preceding the animated 'Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse.'"