Batwoman (season 2)

The second season of The CW series Batwoman is scheduled to premiere on January 17, 2021. The series is based on the DC Comics character of the same name, a costumed vigilante created by Geoff Johns, Grant Morrison, Greg Rucka, Mark Waid, and Keith Giffen, and is set in the Arrowverse, sharing continuity with other Arrowverse television series. The showrunner for this season is Caroline Dries.

The season was ordered in January 2020. Production began that September. Main cast members Rachel Skarsten, Meagan Tandy, Nicole Kang, Camrus Johnson and Dougray Scott will return; however, series star Ruby Rose will not return as Kate Kane / Batwoman, with her character being replaced by a new one named Ryan Wilder portrayed by Javicia Leslie.

Main

 * Javicia Leslie as Ryan Wilder / Batwoman
 * Rachel Skarsten as Beth Kane / Alice
 * Meagan Tandy as Sophie Moore
 * Nicole Kang as Mary Hamilton
 * Camrus Johnson as Luke Fox
 * Dougray Scott as Jacob Kane

Recurring

 * Shivani Ghai as Safiyah Sohail
 * Christina Wolfe as Julia Pennyworth
 * Gabriel Mann as Tommy Elliot / Hush
 * Leah Gibson as The Whisper
 * Nathan Owens as Ocean
 * Alex Morf as Victor Zsasz

Development
In January 2020, The CW renewed the series for a second season. Caroline Dries returned as showrunner.

Writing
In May 2020, ahead of the season one finale, Caroline Dries announced that Safiyah Sohail would be the Big Bad of season two. Though the character was referenced multiple times in season one, Dries said they "didn't want to waste her or blow out her character in Season 1 when there are all these other hijinks happening", so it was decided to preserve her debut in season two. As the last two planned episodes of the first season could not be filmed due to the COVID-19 pandemic causing production to be shut down, they were changed to be part of season two. Dries said the scripts of those episodes may undergo tinkering.

Casting
Main cast members Rachel Skarsten, Meagan Tandy, Nicole Kang, Camrus Johnson and Dougray Scott will return as Beth Kane / Alice, Sophie Moore, Luke Fox and Jacob Kane. In May 2020, Ruby Rose, who portrayed the title role of Kate Kane / Batwoman in the first season, announced she would be leaving the series ahead of its second season; no reason was given for her departure. TVLine and Variety reported Rose did not like the long work hours and did not adjust to life living in Vancouver where the series was partially filmed, leading to "friction on the set"; Rose would later refute these reports. It was mutually decided between Rose, the studio, and the network for her to leave. The producers reaffirmed their commitment to the series and finding a new actress of the LGBTQ community to lead future seasons. The following month, a casting notice for a new character named Ryan Wilder was revealed, indicating the series was looking to replace Kate as Batwoman.

Dries said it was discussed to replace Rose as Kate Kane, as "it would be seamless" for some of the episodes already written. However, with guidance from Greg Berlanti, it was decided to move forward with an entirely new character invented for the series as Batwoman, which would "also respect everything that Ruby put into the Kate Kane character." Dries also felt by using a new character, "it helps the audience" so the writers would not have to "address the elephant in the room". She also revealed Kate would not be killed and her disappearance would be a key storyline during season two. In July, Javicia Leslie was cast as Wilder. Rose later called being the lead of a series "taxing" and stated her back surgery following an on-set accident in 2019 was a contributing factor in deciding to leave, saying it was "time for me to take a break to fully heal and then return" to acting. Spending time in isolation because of the COVID-19 pandemic also allowed Rose "to just think about a lot of different things and what you want to achieve in life and what you want to do," which allowed her "a great opportunity to have a dialogue about a lot of things" with the producers.

In September 2020, Shivani Ghai was cast as Safiyah Sohail, Leah Gibson was cast as The Whisper, and Nathan Owens was cast as Ocean, all in recurring roles.

Filming
Filming for the second season began on September 3, 2020. By September 29, filming was temporarily postponed, because of delays in receiving COVID-19 test results for the cast and crew. By October 6, the cast and crew were given permission to resume filming after receiving their delayed test results. Filming is expected to conclude on May 10, 2021.

Broadcast
The second season is scheduled to premiere on January 17, 2021.