EXCLUSIVE: Inde Navarrette Talks her New Show, Superman & Lois
The CW is gearing up to release its next show in its Arrowverse, Superman & Lois, tonight, February 23, and, to celebrate the premiere, we sat down with one of the stars of the show, Inde Navarrette.
Navarrette plays Sarah Cushing, the daughter to Kyle Cushing and Lana Lang, in the new series. During our chat with the star, we talked about how she came to be on the show, Sarah’s relationship with her parents, her relationship with Jordan and Johnathan Kent and so much more. Check it out below.
Talk to me about how you landed a part on the show?
“I got an audition in, I want to say, January of 2020, it could have been earlier than that, but my memory best serves the beginning of 2020. I got the audition, sent in a self-tape and immediately started going into callbacks. We did one callback where it was just in a room and it was Todd Helbing and, I think Greg Berlanti was there as well. I just did what I did. I was incredibly nervous, but something that I do before auditions is what I like to call, go into survival mode. It’s all or nothing. And I personally, I get anxiety, but I can’t let that get to me in order to get where I want to go.
So, I went into survival mode for this audition, because I just knew in my gut this is where I was supposed to be. I went into the callback, did what I needed to do and just laid it all out there, gave it everything that I could. That way, whenever I left, I just knew, I gave it everything that I could. If they call me back, they call me back. If they don’t, they don’t.”
What happened when you got the callback?
“A few weeks later and went in for the ‘real thing’. Where it’s you and two other girls. For me, Then for the second callback, they cut us down to two, and it was me and another girl. During that audition process, we were physically inside of the CW building, which was really trippy. I think it’s an intimidation tactic because you look up on these walls and you see these beautiful photos of people from the Arrow or Flash. You see these really big people and you’re like, “Holy shit, what is this?” Going in to do that, it was just really a very good atmosphere. Maybe that’s because I didn’t let the nerves really get to me, but it was a really beautiful experience. Very challenging, but very comforting in a way. Comfortably challenging.”
How would describe the how process?
“The best way to explain it is a rollercoaster. Whenever you’re going up that rollercoaster at Six Flags, and you’re really nervous and you’re looking at this long line, you’re looking at this height requirement, you’re thinking, am I tall enough? What is going on? Do I seem this way? Then there’s downs and there’s ups and it’s so much fun, your stomach hits your butt. It’s just such a good experience. And it’s so terrifying all at the same time but you do it again and again and again and again. And I think that that’s the best way to look at things, especially when you’re in this industry, because you’re consistently told no. And I think it takes a special group of… I don’t mean a special… Yeah, a special… I wouldn’t say a special person, but maybe that’s going to… I’m tooting my own horn, but to really just go at it again and again, you have to see it through the lens of how exciting it really is. I can go on for hours. So let me know whenever you have enough material, but it’s amazing.”
Click under the jump to read the rest of our chat including how she would describe her character and whether or not Sarah will have a relationship with Clark and Lois.
Superman & Lois will air its two-hour premiere tonight! Tomorrow, February 24, make sure to check the site for our follow-up interview with Navarrette.
Photo credit: Dean Buscher/The CW
What about your character, Sarah. She is the daughter of Kyle Cushing (Erik Valdez) and Lana Lang (Emmanuelle Chriqui)? Lana obviously, is a DC Comics character and is the former girlfriend of Superman.
“One thing that I’d like to say is that, whenever it comes to describing Lana, I know that ex-girlfriend is something that comes up a lot. But just to touch on that character just a tiny bit, because it really does explain who Sarah is as a person, is that she’s more than an ex-girlfriend. Seeing the relationship between Lana and Clark, they really grew up as best friends and ultimately they are childhood friends. She’s more than an ex-girlfriend to Clark.
And, seeing Emmanuelle embody Lana and seeing Kristin Kreuk play the character, and the strength that she gave Lana, I think calling her the ex-girlfriend dilutes their relationship. Especially with everything that Clark has to go through, coming back to Smallville, it really is home. I know that Lois Lane is his home now, but Lana Lang is familiar. It’s comfortable.”
Let’s talk about Sarah then?
If there’s one word to describe Sarah, it’s bad-ass and tough. I think a lot of young girls are going to be able to relate to her. I see a lot of tough women characters and, of course that’s very beautiful and it makes me feel very confident, but something that I find very relatable in Sarah is with her being 14 and having a childhood where she’s had to deal with real life problems at such a young age, she now has a mentality and a view on the world that not a lot of her peers have. Therefore, she already feels like an outsider because she already sees the darkness of the world that you’re not technically supposed to see until you’re older and an adult.
What about her relationship with Jordan and Johnathan Kent? I’m assuming that we’re going to see some form of, maybe little love triangle, but I want to get your thoughts on her relationship with the Kent boys.
“Whenever you’re pushed out there into the world and you have to mature at a very young age, it really does give you this new lens to look through. It makes you feel alone. So whenever she meets someone like Jordan Kent (Alexander Garfin), who also sees the world the same way, because of his severe anxiety and because of the way that he’s had to tackle his own personal world, they find comfort in each other.”
Can we expect see love blossom between the two?
“The teasing of, ‘Ooh, what if they like each other?’ Is so incredibly sweet but it really is deeper. Whenever you find someone that you can just speak to without having to constantly explain yourself to, who just gets it, is such a breath of fresh air. To be able to relax and and feel as though you’re understood is so important. Plus, for her to get that at 14 is immense. It’s a breath of fresh air coming out of this town When she first gets to meet Jordan, there’s an instant spark because immediately right off the bat, they get each other. ”
With that being said, what would you say Sarah’s biggest obstacle is this season?
“I think the biggest obstacle that she has to face is herself. I don’t want it to sound like a cop-out, but learning that it’s okay to care or learning that it’s okay to have feelings. I think that her biggest obstacle as of right now, that I know of, is going to be allowing herself to let go of responsibilities and to just be a kid.”
Can fans expect a relationship between Clark and Lois with Sarah or are we not going to see much between them this season?
“I think the same way that I have a relationship with my best friend’s mom is going to be the same way that Sarah has a relationship with Clark and Lois. I definitely think that it may not be a super strong, I don’t think as of right now, she’d call them up and be like, “Yo, what’s up? You’re down for dinner tonight?” But I definitely think the same way that best friends have relationships with their best friend’s parents. It is vice versa.
Do you think she’s going to start questioning what’s really going on with Clark Kent or is she going to stay away from that whole secret for now?
“I think that Sarah is a very perceptive person and she’s very intelligent. So I think we’ll have to wait and see.”
What are you hoping fans get out of, not only the series, but from Sarah?
“Strength. I think that there’s a lot of super in this show. There’s a lot of super strength, a lot of super smell and a lot of super eyesight. I hope that the fans see Sarah as someone that they can root for and someone they can relate to. I hope they also find strength and comfort “