The CW's widely acclaimed DCTV series Superman & Lois returns for its third season this March, bringing back Tyler Hoechlin and Bitsie Tulloch to their fan-favorite title roles. The Kent family will be tested on every front in Season 3, with frightening challenges at home and with ones bearing the world-shattering stakes that only the Man of Steel and his closest allies can handle. Through it all, Clark and Lois' sons, Jonathan and Jordan, continue to experience the trials and tribulations of attending high school in Smallville while having Earth's most famous superhero as their father.
In a roundtable interview attended by CBR, Superman & Lois stars Tyler Hoechlin and Bitsie Tulloch explained some of the changes and challenges facing the Kent family in Season 3, shared behind-the-scenes secrets about the making of the CW show, and hinted at an intensely emotional story for the season.
The roundtable kicked off with a question about the challenges of having to act on virtually every extreme of the emotional spectrum in the first two episodes of Superman & Lois Season 3. Hoechlin teased that the season's 12th episode contains the greatest range of emotions he's ever had to play to date, hinting that it involves "The most outrageous, comic book thing I've ever had to do," adding that he can't wait for audiences to see it.
Tulloch acknowledged that alternating between different emotions and intensities scene-to-scene presents unique acting challenges, observing that the ordeal facing their characters will be "incredibly intense." Tulloch added that this intensity made Season 3 "the most challenging season we've done on this show."
ComicBook.com elaborated that the opening of Season 3 gives Clark and Lois a rare quiet moment to collect themselves before new challenges arise. Hoechlin and Tulloch greatly appreciated this change of pace, with Hoechlin asking showrunner Todd Helbing multiple times during production if he was "having too much fun" to get a tonal check. Hoechlin has heard that the Season 3 premiere is "one of the most fun" episodes they've ever done, with that sense of joy spreading to the viewer.
At the end of Superman & Lois Season 2, it was revealed that the series takes place in a different universe than the Arrowverse, where Hoechlin and Tulloch first took on their roles. DC Comics asked if this revelation that they were playing different characters than they had in the Arrowverse affected the way they approached their performances.
"For me, it was just the element of them being parents mostly," explains Hoechlin. "It's a different focus. When we were playing them in the Arrowverse, it was just the two of them together, and they were each other's most important thing outside of themselves, and now they have these kids. What I really love is that I've always seen it as their kids' origin story."
"It's looking at Clark and Superman from a new perspective," Hoechlin added. "He's not finding himself anymore. He's just trying to guide these kids to become who they are meant to be and figuring out the best way to do that. For me, it was really just a focus shift that meant the most."
"One of the things we were facing, whenever we did [an Arrowverse] crossover episode, there's only so much time you can allot to any character in any of those," Tulloch recalled. "They were huge characters, and it was really fun getting to work with everyone, but it was just skimming the surface of their relationship and who the characters really were. With this, we got to delve into it."
CBR continued the discussion about family, asking Hoechlin and Tulloch about the recasting of Jonathan Kent, with Michael Bishop replacing Jordan Elsass for Season 3. "Obviously, the situation is what it is, but I think it's been a best-case scenario of that situation." Hoechlin noted, "Michael is a great actor [and] really happy to be here, so we're lucky to have him. It was a quick turnaround! He was up here for the [screen] test, had a return flight home, he found out that night, and he didn't get to go home."
"Three days later, he was filming, so it was a bit of a whirlwind, and I think that would've been difficult just accepting on some level that this was really happening," Tulloch added. "He does a good job, and I'm excited for people to see what he does with the character."
ComicBook.com asked how Superman's perspective may have changed from being the only superhero on this Earth to suddenly having Jordan Kent and Steel by his side. Hoechlin pointed to the reveal of Superman having a half-brother in Tal-Rho led to the realization that he would have super-powered allies but "also people to contend with." This shift means that "there is even more of a responsibility that he feels" because of facing more formidable threats that may force him to sacrifice himself.
With more people learning about Clark and Jordan's secret by the end of Superman & Lois Season 2, DC Comics asked how that changes the Kent family's dynamic in Smallville as the circle of trust and support system grows. Hoechlin explained that this will take some of the pressure off the Kents, noting that it's fun to see how the supporting cast deals with the knowledge of this super-powered secret.
CBR closed out the roundtable by asking Tulloch and Hoechlin how it was working with Tom Cavanagh as the director on the Season 3 premiere after Cavanagh -- who also plays the Reverse-Flash on The Flash --previously helmed the Superman & Lois Season 1 finale.
"He's just so fun!" Tulloch declared. "I love working with actor-turned-directors. He has a wonderful energy on set, and we had a cast and crew screening of [the season premiere]. People were laughing. It was fun and felt like a mini-movie experience, where it just runs the entire gamut of running through these giant set pieces with all the action, and there was a lot of humor. It felt great to start the season that way."
"It was a perfect way to kick off this season." Hoechlin agreed. "Everybody came back excited. We had a longer break between Seasons 2 and 3, so everybody was excited to be back. It was the perfect way to start things."
Superman & Lois premieres March 14 at 8 pm ET/PT on The CW, with episodes available to stream the following day on The CW App.