'Supergirl' Season 5 casting hints at introduction of Atlantis, sets stage for arrival of Aquaman in the Arrowverse
'Supergirl' Season 5 is going to see the titular hero Kara Danvers/Supergirl (Melissa Benoist) face battles on multiple fronts and a recent casting announcement may have made things even more difficult for the Girl of Steel.
As Kara prepares for the upcoming 'Crisis on Infinite Earths' and the impending threat of Leviathan—not to mention the potential betrayal of Katie McGrath's Lena Luthor, she is now also going to have to deal with two ancient aliens who have a connection to Atlantis. The new development means this could be the season that introduces the denizens of Atlantis—the Atlantean King, Aquaman, his protege, Aqualad, or even Queen Mera—to the Arrowverse.
The CW show has added two new members to its cast list, according to Deadline. Cara Buono ('Stranger Things') will be joining the show as Gamemnae, a character who has been described as an ancient alien who, with others of her kind, has spent ages keeping the Earth safe from the "follies of humanity". Gamemnae’s ultimate goal is apparently the total subjugation of mankind using technology, which ties right into the show's focus this season on technological evils.
Buono will be joined by Mitch Pileggi (The X-Files) who will be playing Rama Khan, an ancient alien mystic with power over fire, water, air, and the Earth itself. Khan will reportedly be an arrogant and willful being tasked with protecting the Earth from mankind, a task that puts him at odds with Supergirl and Lena Luthor. The fact that both these figures have reportedly been protecting the Earth from mankind may seem like an alarming form of climate activism but it could also mean that they are trying to protect another race that shares the Earth with humanity: the Atlanteans.
In the comics, Gamemnae is an ancient Atlantean mystic who at one point actually managed to imprison Aquaman and kill the rest of the Justice League, with Rama Khan as one of her allies. However, she proved to be more than a match for humanity's heroes and was eventually defeated by the combined efforts of heroes from across the timeline.
Although it looks like the show may be tweaking the source material a bit, the introduction of these characters could potentially lead to us getting to see the kingdom of Atlantis make a full appearance in the Arrowverse for the first time.
So far, it looks like Earth-1, where 'Arrow' and 'The Flash' take place, does not have an Atlantis, but we do know that the nation exists on Earth-2 (as revealed in 'Flash' Season 2). So it wouldn't be much of a stretch to think that it could exist in Supergirl's world as well. And if Atlantis is coming, it's King won't be far behind.
'Supergirl' Season 5 will begin airing on the CW on October 6.