Many tv viewers were surprised recently when Ruby Rose abruptly left the series "Batwoman." Part of The CW's and DC's 'Arrowverse' slate of programming. No reason was publicly announced for her departure.
At first, it was announced that the character Kate Kane, Batwoman's alter ego, would remain on the series. A new actress was supposed to take on the role. But there seems to have been a change of plans.
A new character to be introduced instead
According to The Hollywood Reporter, a new character is being written to don the Batwoman costume. This option seems to have been chosen over the original plan.
Taking on the daunting task of re-casting the main character.
Not that this direction wouldn't also be daunting. They are creating an entirely new character that the audience is not familiar with. Transitioning an already-established series to center around them, rather than the previously top-billed lead, explaining why Kate suddenly isn't there anymore. Introducing the new character and getting people to embrace and follow them. And that's just to name a few of the issues at hand.
Some details about the new character appear to have already been released. Among them was her name - Ryan Wilder. Others include that she is to be a very different character from Kate Kane. Among other things, she was described as 'a little goofy.' Something that Kate could hardly be described as.
Ryan Wilder also apparently has a criminal past and lives out of her van.
For many other comic book characters, there might be an obvious solution available. Many superheroes have had multiple alter egos over the years. It might have been relatively simple to introduce a different Batwoman alter ego from DC lore. But that wasn't really a viable option in this instance.
In the source material, Batwoman has always been Kate Kane.
The family dynamic will probably drastically change
Another issue to grapple with is the varying plotlines directly involving Kate's family. Not even family tie to Batman, who is Kate's cousin, Bruce Wayne. The primary villain of the series has been her twin sister.
Formerly known as Beth, she took the name Alice thanks to her obsession with the Lewis Carroll character.
There's also Kate's step-sister Mary, who helped with her crime-fighting endeavors. And Jaco Kane, her father who has a deep dislike for Batwoman without realizing it's his daughter behind the mask. The like prospect of his one day finding out the truth was setting up to be a climactic moment. It may still happen, but it probably won't be the same.
One upcoming storyline seems set. Entertainment Weekly reports that the next season is to explore the relationship between Alice and Mary.
