Isabela Merced Teases Hawkgirl Costume and Helmet

We’re officially less than a year away from Superman, James Gunn’s ambitious take on a brand new DC Universe. As the film’s production commenced over the past few months, several set photos leaked online, offering brief glimpses of what the project has in store. These photos highlighted the official superhero costumes for Michael Holt / Mr. Terrific (Edi Gathegi), Kendra Saunders / Hawkgirl (Isabela Merced), and Guy Gardner / Green Lantern (Nathan Fillion). In a recent interview with Deadline, Merced discussed her “badass” super-suit and helmet for Hawkgirl, confirming fans’ theories that there will be a very specific narrative reason for the costumes in the film.

“Well, there have been some leaked pictures online,” said Merced. “However, I think James knows what he wants, and this specific suit is for this specific timeline in the story. I don’t know what else I can say, but I gotta say, the helmet was my absolute favorite. It’s so sick. It’s so badass. It’s perfect.”

DC has had multiple iterations of Hawkgirl, who first made her debut alongside Hawkman in the pages of Flash Comics #1. One version is Shiera Sanders Hall, the reincarnation of the Egyptian princess Chay-Ara and the partner of Hawkman. In the Silver Age, their story was retconned into being cosmic police officers from the planet Thanagar, with Shiera now known as Shayera Hol. Shayera later changed her superhero name to Hawkwoman in the 1980s, a name she has retained ever since.

The modern-day version of Hawkgirl is Kendra Saunders, created by James Robinson, David Goyer, and Scott Benefiel in JSA: Secret Files #1. Kendra was a young Hispanic woman who became possessed by Shiera Hall after committing suicide. She reluctantly embraced her destiny as Hawkgirl and still holds the mantle to this day. This will be the second time Hawkgirl is portrayed in live-action, following Ciara Renée’s portrayal of Kendra across The CW’s Arrowverse shows.

Per DC Studios, Superman tells the story of Superman’s journey to reconcile his Kryptonian heritage with his human upbringing as Clark Kent of Smallville, Kansas. He embodies truth, justice, and a better tomorrow, guided by human kindness in a world that sees kindness as old-fashioned.

Superman will also star Rachel Brosnahan as Lois Lane, Nicholas Hoult as Lex Luthor, Skyler Gisondo as Jimmy Olsen, Wendell Pierce as Perry White, Sara Sampaio as Eve Teschmacher, Terence Rosemore as Otis, María Gabriela de Faría as Angela Spica / The Engineer, Isabela Merced as Kendra Saunders / Hawkgirl, Nathan Fillion as Guy Gardner, Edi Gathegi as Michael Holt / Mr. Terrific, Anthony Carrigan as Rex Mason / Metamorpho, Beck Bennett as Steve Lombard, Mikaela Hoover as Cat Grant, and Christopher McDonald as Ron Troupe.