‘Legends Of Tomorrow’ To Reboot Vixen With A New Actress
Legends of Tomorrow is bringing back a superhero who appeared in the series’ first season, but fans may not recognize Vixen at first, as she won’t be played by Megalyn E.K., who played the superhero previously and even voiced the character in an animated DC Comics spin-off. While Legends of Tomorrow showrunners Greg Berlanti, Marc Guggenheim, and Phil Klemmer may have wanted Megalyn E.K. to reprise her Vixen role, the actress is just too busy to fit the opportunity into her schedule.
Legends Of Tomorrow Will Bring Back Vixen, But With A Twist
The producers of Legends of Tomorrow are very interested in bringing Vixen back on a more permanent status for season 2, but, unfortunately, Megalyn E.K. isn’t available for the role, so the showrunners had to come up with an alternative. They sought out a way of reprising Vixen, but without the actress who had made her famous. Taking their cue from the latest reboot of the X-Men films as much as from their own Legends of Tomorrow plot, the showrunners elected to use time travel to explain the recasting of Vixen.
Legends of Tomorrow will introduce a Vixen from before Megalyn E.K.’s Mari McCabe stepped up to become the superhero, meaning that the older version of Vixen, for which Legends of Tomorrow is currently casting, will meet her demise sometime in the future. This story arc will allow Megalyn E.K. to continue voicing the animated character and to reprise the role in any DC Comics adaptation.
Vixen is something of a feral superhero with the ability to tap into the unique traits of various animals, through her family’s Tantu Totem. Her appearance in Arrow stirred a large reaction from fans, with many pleading with the CW network to give Vixen a series of her own Prior to the decision to bring Vixen to Legends of Tomorrow, that was something CW boss Mark Pedowitz had considered.
“Hopefully that character could actually spin itself out; if not, maybe join as one of the Legends.”
Megalyn E.K. Loves Playing Vixen
While Megalyn won’t be returning as Vixen in the foreseeable future, the actress interviewed prior to her appearance on Arrow and gushed over the character, which will now be a Legends of Tomorrow regular. Even before Megalyn’s appearance on Arrow, there had been talk of bringing her on as a live action superhero, and the actress revealed then that she was very open to the idea, so it’s unfortunate that the Legends of Tomorrow offer came at the worst possible moment.
“I mean, who doesn’t want their own superhero show! Come on! If that happened, I definitely would not be sad. I just love the opportunity to play this character in live-action and I think, if the fans appreciate it like I hope they will, that I would love to do more, in any capacity, really,” Megalyn E.K. said earlier.
“I’m really excited about the second season of the animated show, and I’m really excited about the idea of bringing Vixen into all of the universes, basically getting to hang out with all of her comic book friends — even the Suicide Squad or the Justice League. All of that would be very cool.”
While she enjoys voicing the animated character, Megalyn was very excited about bringing the character to life in a live action setting. The actress revealed that she felt compelled to deliver a Vixen worthy of the adoration and love she has received from DC fans. For that reason, the Vixen actress says it’s been the most rewarding role of her career up to this point.
“It’s exciting, and — in a lot of ways — it’s the most rewarding thing I’ve ever done because fans really appreciate it,” says Megalyn E.K. “I get a lot of love in a way I haven’t before. It’s really nice. I feel really lucky.”
The season 2 premiere of Legends of Tomorrow will air on Friday, October 7 on the CW network.
[Image by CW]
