The Supergirl TV series has found its Jimmy Olsen… and he’s going to be a bit different to his comic book counterpart.
According to TV Line, 34-year-old Mehcad Brooks has been cast as photographer Jimmy Olsen in the upcoming CBS Supergirl TV show.
“Supergirl has snapped up Desperate Housewives vet Mehcad Brooks to play the classic role of shutterbug Jimmy Olsen,” they revealed. “Supergirl‘s version of Jimmy is described as a smart, worldly photographer for CatCo, the media company where Kara — played by Glee‘s Melissa Benoist — works. He has recently been living and working in National City, though the reason is still a secret, and his salt-of-the-earth nature quickly piques Kara’s interest.”
Of course, it’s no surprise that Mehcad Brooks is quite a lot different to the comic book version of Jimmy Olsen. After all, Jimmy was most-often depicted as a young, red-headed photographer who idolised his reporter chums at the Daily Planet.
It’s no surprise to find roles such as this opened up in the name of diversity… and perhaps it’s a good call. After all, we’re about to see some racially diverse siblings in the upcoming ‘Fantastic Four’ movie.
But the troubling part of this casting is the character description.
Described as ‘smart’, ‘worldly’ and ‘salt-of-the-earth’, it barely sounds like the Jimmy Olsen we know and love from the comic books. I mean, he sounds way too cool. But will this drastic change affect his interactions with Supergirl? Perhaps… and with Jimmy ‘piquing her interest’ it sounds as though there might even be a budding romance there somewhere.
Of course, we haven’t seen Mehcad Brooks in the role… and so we’ll have to wait and see how it all plays out on screen before we cast any judgements. But either way, it’s going to be an interesting take on the character.
Will it be the Jimmy Olsen we know and love? Maybe not… but it could be the dashing young photographer of the 21st Century that Supergirl really needs.
What do you think of this bold casting choice? Will Mehcad Brooks make a good Jimmy Olsen? Let us know what you think in the comments below…
