Melissa Benoist stars as the series' titular character, Supergirl.
Melissa Benoist as Kara Zor-El / Kara Danvers / Supergirl: A 24-year-old Kryptonian living in National City, who must embrace her powers after previously hiding them. She assists her adoptive sister as part of the Department of Extra-Normal Operations (DEO) as she discovered the truth that her adoptive father also worked for the DEO so they would not take her, while Alex's co-workers at the DEO help her perfect her powers.[1][2][3] Kara worked as Cat Grant's assistant at CatCo.[4] Benoist expressed her excitement over portraying the character, and being able to "[tell] a story about a human being really realizing their potential and their strength".[5] At the end of season one, Kara was promoted by Cat and became a junior reporter at the beginning of season two. Malina Weissman portrays a young Kara.[6]
Mehcad Brooks as James Olsen / Guardian: A former Daily Planet photographer, James moved to National City and became the new art director for his former colleague, Cat Grant, at CatCo Worldwide Media. He is initially a potential love interest for Kara.[3][4][7] Among his reasons for moving across the country include his breakup with his fiancée, Lucy Lane,[8] and keeping an eye on the newly revealed Supergirl for Superman. While working at the Daily Planet, James received the Pulitzer Prize for taking the first photograph of Superman. In the second season, James becomes Guardian.[9] He also becomes the acting CEO of CatCo after Cat Grant takes a leave of absence.
Chyler Leigh as Alex Danvers: Kara's adoptive sister. She is a scientist and government agent who works for Hank Henshaw at the DEO, serving as his right-hand.[4][10][11] Having been extensively trained in combat after joining the DEO, Alex in turn provided rigorous training to Kara in order to decrease her reliance on her powers. Initially, like Kara, she becomes suspicious of the DEO and thus her own role upon learning of their father having worked there in order to protect Kara, but Alex ultimately learns that Henshaw is the Martian survivor J'onn J'onzz in shape-shifted disguise, whom her late father had rescued before his and the real Henshaw's deaths. Jordan Mazarati plays a young Alex.[12] In season two, Alex continues to search for her father, while she meets and befriends Maggie Sawyer. She develops feelings for her, forcing Alex to confront her sexuality.
Jeremy Jordan as Winslow "Winn" Schott, Jr.: A tech expert who worked alongside Kara at CatCo, he is Kara's best friend and serves as one of her allies, helping her develop her costume and aiding her in her adventures. Winn has an unrequited feelings for Kara and is a rival with James for her affection. However, at the end of "For the Girl Who Has Everything", Winn has accepted the fact that it's best that they remain as best friends, and in "Solitude", he begins seeing Cat Grant's new assistant, who is also Kara's rival; Siobhan Smythe, who is subsequently fired by Cat and who, in "Worlds Finest", becomes a supernatural metahuman supervillain called Silver Banshee. In the series, he is the son of Toyman.[4][13][14] Cat nicknames him Toyman Junior after she finds out.[15] In season two, Winn left CatCo to work at the DEO as a desk agent. He also works with James Olsen as his vigilante partner.
David Harewood as J'onn J'onzz / Martian Manhunter: The head of the DEO who takes Hank Henshaw's likeness after Henshaw is killed in Peru while hunting J'onn. J'onn takes Henshaw's likeness in order to reform the DEO from within as well as to watch over Alex and Kara.[4][10] The evolution of Henshaw was discussed during the filming of the pilot, with the executive producers jokingly saying that Harewood would be a good actor to play the Martian Manhunter in a potential television series, to which DC Comics' Geoff Johns asked why it could not be done in Supergirl. Harewood reflected that he had difficulty "find[ing] an angle to play Hank Henshaw" in the pilot, and became excited when he was told about the change to his character's backstory.[16] Harewood also recurs in the series as the real Hank Henshaw, who becomes Cyborg Superman.[17]
Calista Flockhart as Cat Grant: The shallow and superficial founder of the media conglomerate CatCo Worldwide Media, who feels, since she "branded" Kara as "Supergirl", that she has proprietary custody over the new hero.[4][18] Before she founded CatCo, she was a gossip columnist at the Daily Planet, and before that, the personal assistant to the Daily Planet's Editor-in-Chief, Perry White. Cat investigates and reveals that Supergirl is Superman's cousin, which then causes Kara to become a target for some of Superman's rogues gallery. Cat also serves as a mentor to Kara, dispensing advice about being a woman in a man's world. In the episode "Hostile Takeover", she suspects that Kara is Supergirl. In the second episode of season two, Cat announces she is taking a leave of absence from CatCo, leaving James to run the company in her stead.
Chris Wood as Mon-El: A prince from the planet Daxam with similar powers to Superman and Supergirl, Mon-El lands on Earth in the pod at the end of season one.[19][20][21]
Floriana Lima as Maggie Sawyer: A detective for the National City Police Department who takes a special interest in the cases involving aliens and metahumans.[22]
^Cite error: The named reference DeadlineSep2014 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
