Ana Nogueira, the screenwriter of Craig Gillespie’s Supergirl, explained why and how she added Lobo (Jason Momoa) into the film.
Ana Nogueira’s name is bound to become familiar to fans of superhero cinema, especially those who follow the DC universe. Originally an actress and playwright, the American has been working as a screenwriter for some time now. She was initially tasked with writing a Supergirl movie featuring Sasha Calle that would continue the story after The Flash for the DCEU, and she truly believed her work might have been wasted when the extended universe overseen by Zack Snyder concluded after Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom.
Nevertheless, with the birth of James Gunn and Peter Safran’s DCU, she was recalled. The initial script clearly crossed the desks of the two DC Studios co-presidents, and they were sufficiently persuaded to entrust her not only with the screenplay for the new Supergirl, but also for Teen Titans and Wonder Woman. While there is still little information about those two projects, Ana Nogueira has revisited the writing of the Milly Alcock-led adventure and, in particular, the inclusion of Lobo, portrayed by Jason Momoa.
LOBO FRONT-AND-CENTER
The information has been repeated many times since trade outlets began covering the film: Craig Gillespie’s Supergirl is an adaptation of Tom King and Bilquis Evely’s comic Woman of Tomorrow. What fewer people know is that, although Tom King long considered incorporating him, Lobo does not appear in his run. In the movie, however, the character is indeed there, as played by Jason Momoa. In a interview with Variety, Ana Nogueira explained this decision:
“It’s something I was asked to do. [Gunn and Safran] told me, ‘We want to do Woman of Tomorrow, and we want you to find a way to weave Lobo into it. We think Lobo belongs there.’ I believe their thinking was this: they knew Jason Momoa was interested, and how could you turn down such an opportunity? He’s excellent in this role; you’ve got to seize the moment when someone is willing to invest like that. But at the same time, it makes sense because the story is intergalactic. It’s hard to bring Lobo to Earth—his adventures typically take place in space—so they said, ‘This is the perfect chance to introduce a character who would otherwise be tough to integrate.’”
Ana Nogueira therefore states outright that the presence of the space mercenary is more about bringing in a bankable actor for the project than about a genuine storytelling necessity. If one can understand the impulse to work with a performer they admire, it’s hard not to see it primarily as a mercenary move, all the more questionable when it shifts the very structure of the narrative. The screenwriter, however, managed to make the assignment work by leaning on a superb reference—the Coen brothers:
“I knew Tom King drew inspiration from True Grit for the comic, but initially Lobo was supposed to be the bounty hunter and Kara the young girl. Then he thought, ‘That doesn’t quite work.’ He swapped the roles and introduced the character Ruthye. But when I began looking to integrate Lobo, I thought, ‘There’s a third character in True Grit: Matt Damon’s character.’ If you follow that structure, there’s room for a figure who is both friend and foe to the other two. And Lobo is the very embodiment of the friend-enemy.”
Despite these explanations, it still seems to us that the character struggles to rise above a Deus ex machina function within the film. While Écran Large wasn’t especially convinced by Craig Gillespie’s movie, we invite DC fans, superhero enthusiasts, or simply Jason Momoa fans to form their own opinion in theaters. Supergirl has been in theaters since July 1, 2026.
