Javicia Leslie has been casted as Batwoman in CW’s television series. The actress is succeeding batwoman star Ruby Rose and will be the first black woman to land the Batwoman role. Like Ruby Rose, Javicia Leslie, is an openly gay actress.

Last fall Berlanti Productions’ and Warner Bros’ Batwoman premiered as the first ever superhero series in television history to feature an LGBTQ character as the hero.

“I am extremely proud to be the first Black actress to play the iconic role of Batwoman on television, and as a bisexual woman, I am honored to join this groundbreaking show which has been such a trailblazer for the LGBTQ+ community,” Leslie said.

Leslie played in Berlanti Prods./WBTV drama for CBS God Friended Me, BET drama series The Family Business, as well as the feature Always a Bridesmaid.

Leslie will play a new, arguably more realistic character Ryan Wilder who is about to become Batwoman. “Ryan spent years as a drug-runner, dodging the GCPD and masking her pain with bad habits. Today Ryan lives in her van with her plant. A girl who would steal milk for an alley cat and also could kill you with her bare hands, Ryan is the most dangerous type of fighter: highly skilled and wildly undisciplined. An out lesbian,” according to Deadline.

Filming for season two is planned to begin January 2021.