After Ruby Rose gave up the mantle of The CW’s Batwoman, the network is now eyeing Riverdale Star Vanessa Morgan to fill in the void.
According to The Cinema Spot, the network is looking to cast Morgan as Ryan Wilder, a brand new character.
Here’s what showrunner Caroline Dries has to say:
“I’m inventing a whole new character. In her past, she was inspired by Batwoman. She is going to take on the mantle and is completely maybe not be the right person at the time to be doing it. That’s what makes it fun.”
This current development is good news for Morgan ever since she has voiced out her frustration at the TV series Riverdale for sidelining Black characters.
“Tired of how Black people are portrayed in Media, tired of us being portrayed as thugs, dangerous or angry scary people. Tired of us also being used as sidekick non-dimensional characters to our white leads. Or only used in the ads for diversity but not actually in the show,” Morgan said.
She also stated that she was the only black lead in the show, paid the least and was “used as the token biracial bisexual.” Fans of the show will realize that her character, Toni Topaz, doesn’t make a frequent appearance in some episodes either.
However, the creator of Riverdale Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa has made an apology and promised that the team will do better.
“We hear Vanessa. We love Vanessa. She’s right. We’re sorry and we make the same promise that we did to her. We will do better to honor her and the character she plays. As well as all of our actors and characters of color. CHANGE is happening and will continue to happen. Riverdale will get bigger, not smaller. Riverdale will be part of the movement, not outside it,” he said.
If fans are wondering how she is supposed to juggle both roles, it was announced that Riverdale is set to do a time jump in Season 5.
For Morgan to helm the role of Ryan Wilder in Batwoman, it’s likely that her Riverdale character Toni Topaz will not return after the time jump.
So far, reports stated that Morgan will do a screen test for the role with the other members of the Batwoman cast.
The CW’s Batwoman will return in January 2021.
