Black Lightning Confirmed Premiere Date
Black Lightning has an official premiere date!
The CW has confirmed that the show will air on Jan. 16, 2018 @ 9 p.m. ET on The CW following a new episode of The Flash.
The show follows Cress Williams as the character “Black Lightning” also known as Jefferson Pierce who is a father, principal and a metahuman with the ability to harness and control electricity.
The series also features Nafessa Williams as Anissa, and China Anne McClain as Jennifer, who has been cast as Pierce’s daughters. Christine Adams will play Lynn, Pierce’s wife and the mother of his children. The upcoming show also includes Damon Gupton and James Remar. Jill Scott is expected to play the big bad Lady Eve.
Source: Christian Post
Chantal Thuy Joins the Black Lightning Cast as Grace Choi
The CW’s Black Lightning has added another cast member to their list with Chantal Thuy being the latest.
Thuy – who has also appeared in Madam Secretary and Pretty Little Liars – has been cast to play Grace Choi who will be a recurring role in this first season. Choi is a comic book fan who befriends Anissa Pearce (Nafessa Williams) while coming to terms with her abilities.
Along with Thuy, the CW has also cast Marvin “Krondon” Jones III as Tobias Whale and Jill Scott as the villainous Lady Eve.
Black Lightning premieres on the CW in 2018.
Source: Variety
Rapper Krondon Joins the Cast of Black Lightning as Tobias Whale
The CW has cast Los Angeles rapper Krondon as the main villain in Black Lighting, Tobias Whale.
Co-executive producer of the show Salim Akil said he was really excited about Krondon from his audition. “His authentic street sensibility along with an insightful intelligence is perfect for the Tobias character arc,” said Akil, “Not to mention his regal physical bearing will be additive to making our show exciting and different.”
Today is the start of a great new beginning…#Blessed
— KRONDON (@KRONDON) August 10, 2017
Here’s the official description of Krondon’s character:
An African-American man with albinism, Tobias Whale is the leader of Freeland’s most feared gang — The 100. But in the days before Black Lightning, Tobias was a politician, rising up the ranks of local government through corrupt and illegal means. That was until he was brought down by Alvin Pierce, Jefferson’s father. Enraged, Tobias murdered Alvin and was driven underground into exile. It’s here he found a place to rebuild, growing into the violent and methodical leader of The 100 as we find him today. But Black Lightning’s recent return has ignited Tobias’ desire to emerge from the shadows and face his biggest adversary, Jefferson Pierce AKA Black Lightning.
Black Lightning is expected to premiere next year.
Source: Comic Book Movie.
Black Lightning‘s Location Confirmed
While The CW’s latest superhero series Black Lightning might not be set in the Arrowverse (yet), we do have confirmation on the actual city location of the new series.
Black Lightning will be set in Freeland, a fictional city. The television series is filming in Atlanta.
Developed by executive producers Salim and Mara Brock Akil, alongside Greg Berlanti and Sarah Schechter, Black Lightning will showcase battles that are even more grounded in social justice than when Jefferson Pierce debuted as one of DC’s first African-American heroes in 1977.
Topics tackled by the series will include Black Lives Matter, race relations and police brutality. “This is an American story, this is not a black story… We’re going to be culturally specific, but universal in our themes so everyone can see themselves in these stories,” said Salim Akil in an EW interview.
In the interview they also discussed if crossovers with other CW DC series could occur.
One of the things that Black Lightning will do, and Jefferson will do, is be able to introduce the humanity of the people who are caught in these communities. So I didn’t want to distract from that, and I didn’t want to distract from us getting to know Jefferson, Jennifer, and Anissa, or Black Lightning, Thunder, and Lightning. I wanted people to get to know them first.
Now, you know, everything is possible. But hopefully this season everybody will just get to know them and get to respect them and accept them for who they are before we start making other moves.
But will there be crossover potential?
Yeah, I’m not opposed to it at all.
Black Lightning premieres in 2018.