Why won't there be a Superman & Lois season 5?
It's curtain call for everyone's favourite Kryptonian.
Superman & Lois fans are bracing themselves for an emotional farewell to Tyler Hoechlin and Bitsie Tulloch's incarnations of the legendary title characters.
The show's cancellation came as a nasty surprise to DC fans, who are also processing the winding down of the Arrowverse and James Gunn's introduction as the main player behind the franchise's film efforts.
Nevertheless, the team behind Superman & Lois have assured that they were given free rein to do as they wish with the final chapter in their story, which adapts classic (and controversial) '90s comic book story The Death of Superman.
The decision to end the show here – rather than bless it with the extended runs of Smallville, Arrow and The Flash – actually comes down to some major industry dealings as opposed to its individual viewing figures.
Read on for an overview of why we won't be getting Superman & Lois season 5.
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Why won't there be Superman & Lois season 5?
Superman & Lois was cancelled due to The CW being sold to Nexstar.
The network had been best known for its DC Comics adaptations – including Superman & Lois and the interconnected 'Arrowverse' – as well as a number of teen dramas, from Gossip Girl to Riverdale.
With these titles, it carved out a niche for itself in the US television landscape and weathered the dawn of the streaming age with a Netflix deal, which helped to popularise critical hits Jane the Virgin, All American and Crazy Ex-Girlfriend overseas.
Nevertheless, that deal was allowed to lapse in 2019, leaving The CW to shop its titles around various places, including BBC iPlayer (which snapped up Superman & Lois and Riverdale spin-off Katy Keene).
However, in 2023, the network's new owner Nexstar announced a radically different strategy for The CW moving forward, cancelling almost all of its scripted slate in a pivot towards acquired and unscripted programming (via Variety).
Superman & Lois, Riverdale, Walker and Nancy Drew were among the shows given one more season to wrap up their plot threads, with Lois Lane actor Bitsie Tulloch saying that it would have been "awful" not to offer "closure" on season 3's cliffhanger (via Entertainment Weekly).
It has been reported that the showrunners originally envisioned as many as seven seasons of Superman & Lois, with the fourth instalment's Death of Superman arc locked in before the cancellation was confirmed.
Co-showrunner Todd Helbing concluded: "It all worked out oddly in a really nice way. It's just sad that it had to be the last season."
Brent Fletcher, co-showrunner, added: "It's a great send-off for our hero and our family and these iconic characters that you care about. There are a lot of big surprises in it that are thrilling, but there's also big emotion."
Of course, even if The CW's transformation had not taken place, there's no certainty that Superman & Lois would have lasted seven seasons, especially in light of sweeping changes being introduced by new DC Studios bosses James Gunn and Peter Safran.
Superman & Lois is available to stream on BBC iPlayer.
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Authors
David Craig is the Senior Drama Writer for Radio Times, covering the latest and greatest scripted drama and comedy across television and streaming. Previously, he worked at Starburst Magazine, presented The Winter King Podcast for ITVX and studied Journalism at the University of Sheffield.
