Why Lobo Never Appeared in the ‘Supergirl’ Comic and Why the Movie Just Fixed That

When audiences watch Jason Momoa unleash the Main Man in ‘Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow,’ the more comic-literate among them might feel a quiet sense of confusion. Lobo simply does not appear in Tom King and Bilquis Evely’s celebrated source material. The character was never on the page. But the reason for that absence turns out to be one of the more fascinating publishing stories in recent DC history.

As it turns out, Lobo was not added to the film adaptation as a crowd-pleasing casting stunt. His presence in the movie is something closer to a restoration. The ‘Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow‘ comic was built on the bones of a concept that always had the Main Man at its very core.

How the ‘Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow’ Comic Began as a Lobo Pitch

Writer Tom King has been candid about the project’s origins. The original pitch for ‘Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow’ was a Supergirl and Lobo team-up, something King described as a “Lobo and Supergirl book” when speaking on the Word Balloon podcast. The project as fans know it today came into existence only after DC’s editorial team intervened and reshaped the concept from the ground up.

King’s editors, Brittany Holzherr and Jamie Rich, told him to take Lobo out entirely and reframe Supergirl as what he called the “Rooster Cogburn character.”

That name refers to the hard-bitten, morally grey gunslinger at the center of ‘True Grit,’ originally played by John Wayne and later by Jeff Bridges in the 2010 Coen Brothers remake. The shift moved Lobo’s intended role completely onto Kara Zor-El herself.

King later said the editorial changes were the right call, crediting Holzherr and Rich directly and saying the comic would not exist without them. DC had also reportedly asked King and Evely not to use Lobo in the series, as the company already had separate plans for the character.

The ‘True Grit’ Blueprint and the Lobo Connection

The ‘True Grit’ comparison is not a loose metaphor. ‘Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow’ follows Kara as she meets a young alien girl named Ruthye Marye Knoll, who enlists her help to track down a man named Krem of the Yellow Hills, who murdered her father in cold blood. Just as the Cogburn character is a world-weary hero recruited by a young girl on a quest for vengeance, Supergirl occupies that same emotional space in the comic.

In King’s original pitch, Lobo was meant to play that grizzled anti-hero role, with Supergirl cast in a younger, supporting capacity. When DC removed him, Kara stepped into that position and the dynamic shifted entirely.

The editorial move essentially had Supergirl become both the muscle and the moral compass of the story, with young Ruthye driving the quest, mirroring how Mattie Ross operates in ‘True Grit.’

The result was a comic that gave Kara Zor-El a depth rarely seen in her ongoing series. ‘Woman of Tomorrow’ presents a Supergirl who, unlike her famous cousin, carries the full memory of watching Krypton die, making her far more hardened and emotionally complicated than the traditionally cheerful portrayals of the character. That version of Kara is precisely what James Gunn found compelling enough to build an entire DCU film around.

Jason Momoa’s Lifelong Dream of Landing Lobo

The casting of Jason Momoa as Lobo was announced in December 2024, and the response was immediate. ‘Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow’ stars Milly Alcock from ‘House of the Dragon’ as Kara Zor-El, alongside Matthias Schoenaerts as the villain Krem of the Yellow Hills and Eve Ridley as Ruthye Marye Knoll, with the film directed by Craig Gillespie and written by Ana Nogueira. Momoa rounds out that ensemble as the intergalactic bounty hunter who was always meant to exist in this story’s universe.

For Momoa, landing the role was the conclusion of a long personal ambition. In an interview with CBR, Momoa recalled that when he was originally called in for what became the role of Aquaman in ‘Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice,’ he believed he was auditioning for Lobo instead, reportedly telling director Zack Snyder that Lobo was the only character who could believably go up against both Batman and Superman at once.

Momoa explained that his passion for Lobo goes back to his childhood and that stepping into the role felt natural in a way his earlier DC casting never quite did, describing it as something he had wanted for so long that playing it felt inevitable.

The actor has referred to Lobo as his favorite comic book character and described the opportunity as a dream role in multiple promotional appearances and social media posts ahead of the film’s release.

Why Lobo’s Film Debut Makes Perfect Sense

Beyond the fascinating backstory, Lobo’s inclusion in the adaptation holds up structurally as well. James Gunn has explained that Lobo was added to help adapt the story into a three-act structure, and described him as the biggest comic book character that had never appeared in a feature film. That framing makes the creative case as clearly as the historical one does.

The plot of ‘Woman of Tomorrow’ sees Kara tracking Krem across space while fighting off bounty hunters dispatched to intercept her, and Lobo’s identity as a space-faring mercenary makes him a natural fit for that story without requiring significant rewrites of the source material. The film also has room to position Lobo as a potential solo franchise character, using ‘Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow’ as an effective backdoor pilot for future DCU appearances.

Just days before the film’s theatrical opening, DC Comics released ‘Summer of Supergirl Special #1,’ which features a lead story pairing Kara Zor-El and Lobo in the town of Midvale, written by Sophie Campbell with art from Belén Ortega. The timing underscores how completely the Main Man has been woven back into Supergirl’s world on page and on screen. If you have a take on whether Lobo’s addition improves on King’s original vision or whether the comic was better off without him, this is absolutely the moment to make your case.