The much-anticipated Naomi is fast approaching its premiere on the CW, and many DC fans are eagerly anticipating if the latest superhero show will have any crossovers to the Arrowverse shows that populate the network. Those dreams were dashed by series creator Ava DuVernay, who said that she expects her new series to create its own universe. “I think this is the first part of the Naomi-verse,” Duvernay said as part of a TCA panel discussing the series; meaning that, for Season 1 at least, there will not be any crossover episodes involving the Arrowverse.
That doesn’t mean that DC Universe crossovers with Naomi are completely off the table. Jill Blankenship, who will serve as an executive producer of the series, hinted that there could be some crossover episodes involving DC’s other characters as the show moves forward. “Nothing is ever off the table,” Blankenship says.
DuVernay is promising that Naomi will be different from the other CW DC shows as the series will deal with themes revolving around race and gender. “It’s called normalization,” DuVernay said when asked about the topical themes Naomi will tackle. Her goal is to tell these stories in a normal way, as opposed to making them stand out from the rest of the series’ plot. “We start to make them normal, and it’s radical,” DuVernay added.
Ava DuVernay Turning DC Comic 'Naomi' Into CW Series
Naomi first came to light toward the end of 2020, when it was revealed that DuVernay was working on developing a series based on the Naomi comic book series. Created as a tribute to comic book writer and creator Dwayne McDuffie, Naomi is a teenager with “Godlike” powers that makes her durable and super strong. She will be played in the CW series by Kaci Walfall.
Naomi will have its series premiere on The CW on Jan. 11.