'Supergirl' Casts Activist Nicole Maines as TV's First Openly Trans Superhero

From Cosmopolitan

The fourth season of CW's Supergirl is going to be even more super, with 21-year-old trans activist and actress Nicole Maines confirmed as joining the cast. On Saturday, at San Diego Comic-Con, it was announced that Maines would be playing Nia Nal (aka Dreamer)-the first transgender superhero to debut on television.

Maines' character Nia a reporter and will be working alongside Melissa Benoist's Kara (aka Supergirl), and according to a report by Deadline, she'll be "fulfilling her destiny as the superhero Dreamer."

Although many reports have assumed that Nia is a new take on the DC Comics character Nura Nal aka Dream Girl, Entertainment Weekly has confirmed that Nia is a totally different person- and, in fact, is Nura's ancestor. No details have been given as to what her superpowers might be, but as Maines pointed out in an interview with Variety, being a strong trans woman is a super power in itself.

The actress said that what she appreciates most about her character is that she's "a trans character whose storyline doesn't revolve around her being trans." She told the panel that she wants to emphasize that trans people "have lives beyond their gender identity."

"Nia is so much more than 'the trans superhero'," Maines continued. "She is a reporter. She is hopeful. She is good. She is powerful. She is wise. She's caring. She's such a good friend. And I want Nia to be so many things before she's trans."

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