'Black Lightning Is Dead,' Jefferson Declares in First Trailer for Final Season

Jefferson Pierce is not taking the death of longtime friend/sometime frenemy Inspector Henderson well, judging by the first trailer for Black Lightning‘s fourth and final season.

In the wake of the Season 3 finale in which Henderson tragically died, Jefferson (played by Cress Williams) is alternately seen at his friend’s grave and apparently sitting with a shrink. “No matter how hard I try to protect my family, it will always end in tragedy,” he shares. “I can no longer be the man I was.”

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In fact, he at one point goes so far as to declare, “Black Lightning is dead” — to which Gambi (James Remar), the editing would at least have us believe, responds, “Freeland will be lost without Black Lightning!” Jeff snaps back, “Freeland is lost!!!”

Watch the full trailer below.

That this would be Black Lightning‘s farewell run was announced back in November. “When we first started the Black Lightning journey, I knew that Jefferson Pierce and his family of powerful Black Women would be a unique addition to the superhero genre,” executive producer Salim Akil said in a statement. “The love that Blerds and all comic book fans around the globe have shown this series over the past three seasons proved what we imagined, Black People Want To See Themselves in all their complexities.”

“While Season 4 may be the end of one journey,” Akil added, “I’m extremely excited to usher in a new chapter and continued collaboration with The CW as we tell the story of Painkiller” — by way of a spinoff that has been in development, starring Black Lightning vet Jordan Calloway.

On the casting front, original cast member China Anne McClain revealed that she was set to exit the series had it continued on, and only signed on for a limited number of Season 4 episodes, while Chantal Thuy was promoted to series regular as metahuman Grace Choi.

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