'Superman & Lois' Renewed for Season 4 at The CW, But With Some Major Changes
It's been a long time coming, but The CW has finally renewed Superman & Lois for Season 4. Unfortunately, with that news comes some pretty big changes. According to Deadline, much like the other three renewed CW series, All American, All American: Homecoming, and Walker, Superman & Lois will be getting a shortened season. Season 4 will only have 10 episodes, instead of the usual average of 15 that the first two seasons had or the 13 that Season 3 has. It's not too much of a loss since the number is pretty close, but it's still a disappointment that there won't be more episodes.
That's not all. It was reported that, much like a lot of series these days, there will be budget cuts in order to keep the series going. Like recently-renewed All American: Homecoming, Superman & Lois will have a reduced number of series regulars, which is currently at 12. It's expected that leads will not be affected, but it's likely supporting cast will be. While it's still early, one member has been confirmed to not be returning for next season. Dylan Walsh, who portrays General Lane, is the first confirmed cut, as his wife, Leslie Bourque-Walsh, posted the news on Instagram, saying, "We now know General Lane was cut due to budget. It was a fun ride."
It's a definite disappointment to know that General Lane won't be coming back next season since it was always nice to see him work with his family, but hopefully, he will still be mentioned. If nothing bad happens to him to explain why he isn't on screen, it's also possible that the Kents will continue to visit him and work with him, just off-screen. There will be more cuts in the coming months or even weeks, so it will be even harder to say goodbye to more of the cast.
There is some other good news to come out of the renewal, though. The network is expected to share library streaming rights to Superman & Lois, as the series is currently streaming on Max. What this means is unknown since there aren't any other details for it, but since new episodes on The CW stream on The CW app for free the next day, it's possible that next season, fans will be able to stream it the next day on Max, or it will be made available on another service, like Paramount+.
Season 4 of Superman & Lois is going to be strange next season with the changes, especially since we still don't know how Season 3 is going to end given that there are still a few more episodes left. Hopefully, not too many more cast members are cut, or it doesn't impact the storyline that much. These budget cuts are definitely hard to deal with, but it is better than a cancellation.