Superman & Lois star Wolé Parks, who portrays John Henry Irons, in the Arrowverse drama, previews his arc as the superhero Steel in season 3. While the Arrowverse line-up is looking a lot lighter this year, The CW still has a few DC dramas returning for new episodes. One of them is Superman & Lois, which has been on a massive hiatus since the summer of 2022. In the long-awaited third season, the Lane-Kent drama will continue to explore the lives of the Man of Steel and the iconic star reporter.
One of the core characters that has been with Superman & Lois since the beginning is John Henry Irons, a.k.a. Steel. John and his daughter Natalie have been living on this Earth after escaping their world, which had been terrorized by a corrupted Superman. The end of Superman & Lois season 2 saw John learn a devastating fact: the man who murdered this world’s John all those years ago was Bruno Mannheim (who will be played by Chad Coleman in season 3).
Ahead of the Superman & Lois season 3 premiere, Screen Rant spoke with Parks about the new season and where Steel is going this year. Throughout the interview, the Arrowverse star chatted about his own nerdom while working on this DC series and how Steel evolves in Superman & Lois season 3. Parks also responded to the major shifts happening at DC Studios and how he would love to work with James Gunn and Peter Safran down the line.
Wolé Parks Previews Superman & Lois Season 3
Screen Rant: It’s an honor to speak with you; I’ve been a huge fan of John Henry Irons since Superman & Lois season 1. You have roughly one month left of filming season 3 before the finale, correct?
Wolé Parks: We actually start the second to last episode tomorrow, episode 12. We’re doing 13 episodes this season, so we started on 12 tomorrow and then we’ll close it out, I think March 13 or 14. That’s still to be determined, but it’s just crazy. It’s three seasons down; so weird.
You’ve been on the show for three years now. How has it been working on Superman & Lois and getting deeper into the DC-ness of it all?
Wolé Parks: [Laughs] The DC-ness of it all, as opposed to the Marvel in itself of it all. For me, it’s weird. Out of the cast, I’m the one with the most comic knowledge because I read this stuff growing up. I read The Death of Superman. I’m a huge fan of the Bruce Timm-verse [Batman: The Animated Series, Superman: The Animated Series, Justice Leagu]. I’m the one who knows the most out of everyone. I read the scripts and play along to figure out what’s happening and what’s coming up. It’s just cool.
I’ll admit that in season 1, it was all like, “Oh my God, this is so new and so unique.” Now, it’s more like, “Okay, I know what’s going on. I know what world we’re in. How do I make it work? Where is the character going.” But it’s so cool. I forget sometimes that I’m on a comic book show, and I’m playing a character I read as a kid!
I love that you’re a big Bruce Timm fan because I grew up on those shows as well. I feel this show puts John through a lot of seriousness, and I don’t know how many times he’s been to the hospital and knocked out or had emotional trauma. Do we move a little bit away from that in the new season and let him have a little fun?
Wolé Parks: Andy, that’s a great question. I would love to say that he’s going to have a lot more fun. Here’s the reason why: at the end of season 2, we found that Bruno Mannheim killed the John Henry on this Earth. Obviously, we’re going to have a lot of confrontation with that. [There will be] a lot of digging up the past.
But I will say this: the season opens up really happy and well. But then when Bruno and John start going at it, it’s going to go a little dark! [laughs] He’s just an intense guy. Maybe in season 4 he is going to be happy [laughs]
I was watching some old episodes and thought to myself, “Man, this show doesn’t give him a break!” Natalie has to see her father in a coma or help him with his bruises. I just need to see him have a drink or something.
Wolé Parks: Here’s what was nice, though. In season 2, we got to see Clark and John start bonding more because the whole idea was that this Superman is not the Superman of his world. It’s about letting go of that resentment and the past. I did want to infuse some of that into the story. He’s trying to lighten and loosen up a little bit [while] finding a way to accept what happened and move on.
Of course, it is a superhero show, so we’re going to get into conflict. It’s just funny because I will say there were times when I’m doing these fights, and I’m like, “He’s not Superman. He’s just a man who has a suit.” He’s really smart, but when he’s not in the suit, he’s getting beaten up in all these ways. I don’t know how he’s going to survive all of this! He just keeps getting back up, but I guess that’s the idea of what a superhero does. It’s not about how many times we get knocked down; it’s about how many times we get back up. How we don’t give up, and we keep striving and persevering.
I think that, hopefully, [John is] somebody that people can relate to because he doesn’t have superpowers. Superman is invincible, but he’s not.
You were talking about Bruno Mannheim. I can’t wait to see what Chad Coleman is going to do with that character. How has it been working with him, and what should we expect between Bruno and John this season?
Wolé Parks: I love Chad. I had met Chad when we did All American together a couple of years ago. We worked together, so we had already had a relationship. But this is much deeper and in-depth. Our characters didn’t really overlap [on All American]. We just saw each other, sat and talked off the lot.
Whereas in this one, it’s interesting because Bruno’s so intense. This is a guy who’s running an empire and doing really very well at it. You don’t get to that level if you don’t take some risk and crack some skulls, basically. There’s going to be a lot of fireworks between them, and a lot of history. I think what’s going to be interesting is that Bruno knows John, but this John doesn’t know Bruno.
That puts Bruno [at] an advantage and what you’re going to find out is John’s going to realize that Bruno knows even more than he even thinks. That’s going to be interesting to see how that works and plays out, because John’s going to have to play catch up. It will be interesting to see this season how these two go back and forth a lot. We come to blows a lot, I’ll just say that. There’s a lot intensity happening.
You’re playing someone who has a doppelganger and had all this history that we’ve never really gotten into before he got killed. Has Todd Helbing ever given you a one-on-one about what this John was up to before he died. or do you have your own headcanon?
Wolé Parks: It’s kind of both. I definitely have some idea about what this John has been up to. We flesh out some more of it; we definitely get into some more history of John. What is going to be cool for me in the season is that you get to see more of that side; you get to merge the two worlds and that’s going to be really great. But again, that’s why I talk about how Bruno is going to come in because he knows more about that.
Some of it I make up in my own mind and, to be honest, some of it changes as time goes by. This is just the nature of TV: you have an idea maybe one day, and then two years later, you’re like, “But what if it’s this?” Because that has more depth that could play more interestingly. It’s been fascinating to delve into that and try to not have my version of John impede on whatever life or mistakes this John made, and find a way to navigate those worlds.
Does that mean we might even see some flashbacks, maybe?
Wolé Parks: I would love to see some flashbacks! We’ll see. We definitely learn more about this John, and we’ll see some people who I think are going to be very cool — at least for the John of this world.
In this world, did this John maybe have a history with Lex Luthor? Because we know he is coming this season.
Wolé Parks: We do know he’s coming! It’s funny. Obviously, it’s already been released and announced that Michael Cudlitz is playing Lex Luthor, who I’m super excited for. He’s going to be very intense; it’s a darker version of Lex. There’s something a lot grittier than I’ve seen before, and I really like it. But I’m sure that they have a history.
Again, it’ll be one of the things where John has a history on his world with Lex. We already know from season 1 that he worked with him. I’d be curious to find out what the history between this Lex and John was.
You’re talking about being a comic book fan yourself. Do you go and dive into Steel’s history in DC and go, “I wish we could do that on the show!”
Wolé Parks: I do! [laughs] I’m the weirdo of the cast; I don’t like to know the storyline before we start shooting. The way it works is Todd Helbing and Brent [Fletcher], who are our co-showrunners, will sit everyone down and be like, “Okay, guys, this is what we’re planning to do for your arc this season.” I’ll always say, “Look, only tell me what I need to know,” because I’d like to be surprised.
What I then will do is, if something comes up, I start texting Todd and go, “Hey, is this going to mean this? Is this gonna be this or whatever?” For me, it’s fun because I’m truly a fan of the show. Even if I wasn’t on there, I would be a fan who gets to watch. It’s just interesting to see all that.
During the breaks, I don’t really do much. I’ve read some comics. I think if I’m correct. don’t Steel and Superwoman get married at some point in another version?
How interesting because suddenly we have a version of Lana Lang, whose marriage may not survive…
Wolé Parks: Listen…I’m sorry, I can’t answer anything! [laughs]
I have to ask, as a comic book fan myself, are we getting any closer to Steel finally getting his own cape? That suit is cool, but we need to complete it with a good cape.
Wolé Parks: I know, I know. I will tell you…It’s coming…at some point! [laughs]
The suit in general looks heavy, but also so cool at the same time. Has it gotten easier over the last couple of years as you work in it, including stunts?
Wolé Parks: That’s actually a cool part this season, which I’m excited about. There’s a lot of stuff that happens in the suit. It basically is their version of Iron Man, but just a different version of it. My John Henry, the John who interacts with the show from the alternate universe, was in the military. He’s trained, so there’s actually going to be a lot more stunts without the suit this season, which has been cool.
I have stunt people, like Dalias [Blake] who does my stunts when I’m not in the suit. When I have a helmet on, 99% of the time, that’s not me. He is absolutely fantastic at doing that. Because it’s a lot; it is heavy and very cumbersome. But it hasn’t gotten easier. I’m actually going to get into it tomorrow, it’s going to be indoors. [laughs] There’s a lot of lights, and that suit is very hot. But hey, if you want to play a superhero? This is what happens.
You also have the big hammer. Is that a real prop or CGI?
Wolé Parks: That’s a prop, and there are multiple versions. There’s actually a lighter version which we can wheel around; it’s a little easier to use. Then there’s a heavier one, which the Golden One. It’s always needed for the shot to make it look really good.
There was one scene in season 2 where you were jumping in mid-air, and all the pieces were coming in together. That’s one of the coolest sequences I’ve seen in superhero media.
Wolé Parks: That is so cool you say that because when I read it, I was like, “Oh, this is really cool.” But then actually shooting it, what was interesting about that was that I had to physically run through all that and jump onto a platform, then jump off of the platform. That’s how we did that. But then we had to do the same thing and replicate it in the green screen back at the studios, [which is] a whole process.
I don’t do a ton of green screen work, so that was interesting to see that aspect of it. But it was super cool! I love that effect.
I want to talk a little about John and Natalie because I’ve always loved that father-daughter relationship. There’s a lot of emotional trauma they’ve gone through. Where are they going this season, especially now that they are both Steel?
Wolé Parks: The fascinating thing about last season was her starting her own independence. Basically, we’re going to see more of that. I don’t have kids, [and] it’s nuts to think that I actually can have teenagers; that I’m old enough to do that. But they want to fend for themselves and figure out their own destiny.
Especially someone like her who’s gone through so much trauma; both of them saw their Lois die, his wife and her mother in that world. They went through that whole battle between the evil Superman of that world. It’s for her to find herself and be like, “I’m not a child anymore. I’ve been through too much.” That was a really interesting arc, and I’m really glad that we got to do that. I’ll tell you, she’s going assert more independence this season, and she’s just going to be a headache. But kids! [laughs] What are they going to do?
The first thing that comes to mind is how John would deal with Natalie starting to date. You know how parents can be protective.
Wolé Parks: He would do the best he could. This is another fascinating thing about him, like when when Tayler [Buck] and Bitsie [Tulloch] get to work together. Because of that weird surrogate mother thing, John is now a single dad. That’s something he’s never had to deal with before. My guess is the Lois on that Earth was the one who had the more emotional aspects. He’s not the best with that, so to have that happen [where he] plays both mom and dad on the show. It’s interesting to see how that comes around.
One thing that I have hoped to see a payoff for, is John getting to take down the Evil Superman from his Earth. Is that something you’re hoping for as well?
Wolé Parks: 100%! I think it’d be cool. It’s interesting to see because, again, going back to comics… Did you ever watch Justice League and Justice League Unlimited?
I’m sensing you are about to talk about the Justice Lords.
Wolé Parks: Yes! Yes, I was gooing to say that I would love a Justice Lord thing [on Superman & Lois]. They came sort of out of nowhere. I remember that episode where it was a Doomsday fight, and Superman just lobotomized him! We have the Evil Superman already, so maybe that happens.
I remember thinking as a kid, “Can we do that on TV?!”
Wolé Parks: Yeah, I remember all that stuff was so cool. Remember the whole idea about The Flash being the key to it? But that shows how one incident can change everything. If it happens, I would love it. I’ll just say that.
I’m sure you have been following a little bit about what DC Studios are doing with film and TV. What are your thoughts on all of that, and are you hoping to work with James Gunn and Peter Safran?
Wolé Parks: I would love it. I’m a fan of James, I watched Peacemaker and I love The Suicide Squad. I think he’s amazing, I would love to, of course! To keep it real, I know probably as much as you know, this is all very fluid. But it’s not even just DC, it’s the entire studio landscape right now [including] network TV. So I don’t know, I would love to see where something goes.
Ultimately, our show is not going to go forever, of course, it’s just the reality of it. They’ve already announced that there’s going to be a 10 year plan where it’s all one unified universe like Marvel. I know our show will not go forever. Would I love to still be a part of it? Yeah and to keep it real there – the idea of that Green Lantern show with John Stewart and Hal Jordan, [Lanterns,] like a True Detective version of that? Would I be upset if I somehow got to play John Stewart? No! [laughs]
I’m sure fans would murder me if I didn’t ask this. Have you guys heard anything about a potential season four for you guys?
Wolé Parks: I’m not even trying to joke around literally; we know as much as you guys know. That is literally how fluid it is right now. Do I think we’re going to get another season? Yes, if I’ve had to put money into it, I do think we get one more season at least. But I don’t know; again, it’s out of my control. That’s something where I just have to, as a person, just accept that life is very fluid. I know that I’ll be okay regardless, and even if this somehow ends up being the last season, which I don’t think it is, if it does, I’m just happy to have been a part of this process. We have amazing fans, we truly do, and they’re great with the show. But for me, you guys don’t get to see the day-to-day of us working together.
I was literally on set with a bunch of people yesterday; we had a big family scene – I remember it was me, Tyler [Hoechlin], and Bitsie [Tulloch] doing a scene [where] I just told them in a moment of self-reflection, saying, ‘Guys, I’m just so thankful to get to work with you guys. Because you guys make this so much fun.’ People don’t know that it’s a lot to shoot a show in a different country, and it throws it off a little bit. But the friendships I’ve built on the show, I’m so happy for them Todd [Helbing] is amazing and the writers, it’s been a really good family unit to work with and I’m really happy about that.
I always have respect for all the people who work on this show. I’m hoping it’s not the last season, but if it is, I would say to James Gunn that he needs to pick up the phone and get you for John Stewart.
Wolé Parks: Your lips to God’s ears! We’re going to assume we’re going to come back. We’re going to hope for that and assume there’s going to be another season. I don’t know. That’s not me trying to throw you off; I truly don’t know.
I know you have said in other interviews that you hadn’t seen it yet. But now that you are three seasons in, have you watched the Steel movie?
Wolé Parks: No…[laughs] Now you make me feel guilty. I feel like I have to watch just to see it!
It’s for Shaq! I’ve seen it and it’s certainly a movie that exists…
Wolé Parks: Yes it does. And hey, Shaq did something. He played the first live action John Henry Irons! Everyone loves Shaq anyway, regardless of that. But I’ve not watched. I’ll tell you what, over the break, I’m going to promise you this: I will find time to watch the movie.
These shows sometimes do legacy castings, so let’s say you’ve got Shaq on the show. Who would you want him to play, maybe John Henry Irons Sr., John’s father?
Wolé Parks: I would love that. Here’s the funny thing when I think about Shaq – Shaq is so big and legendary that at this point, I think he would just do it for the fun of it. Like, can we afford Shaq? No! [laughs] But Shaq can probably do it for free just to be like, ‘Hey, man, what’s up?’ Like, this would be a weird cameo [when] I see how huge he is and that would be hilarious.
What’s coming up in season 3 in terms of other new dynamics that we haven’t talked about yet? Give us something because these fans are hungry, Wolé.
Wolé Parks: I know, they’re hungry, obviously. It’s weird, because our show has a lot of plot and characters. Here’s a good thing: we’re going to start getting a lot more integrated as a cast. Sometimes these people doing this while those people are doing this but we’re going to start having a lot more integration, which is really cool. I’m looking forward to that.
It’s going to be brutal. I’m just going to say Bruno mess up a lot of people! He’s involved. Obviously, Lois has her history with him, and Clark’s going to have one as well. But there’s going to be a lot of fireworks between Bruno and John. I think Tyler described at one time [as] an intense season. I think that’s very accurate description.
Do you and Diggle finally get to do more things this season? Because every season, he’s there for less than five minutes!
Wolé Parks: I know! But as you know, here’s the problem: David Ramsey is too high in demand! He’s doing all this other stuff. I’ve grown close to David, who is an amazing guy, and I really like him. He comes to direct again this season. Which is really cool.
But let’s keep it real; you’re not going to see him. There are just too many things happening. But I’m sure he’ll come back at some point; that’s above my paygrade. I love David, and I love getting to work with him, whether it’s in front of or behind the camera.
Once you are done with season 3, what do you have coming up that you can tease about?
Wolé Parks: It’s funny, nothing right now. I’m starting auditioning for some stuff right now because we’re winding down. But normally, it takes up such a huge chunk of time. That’s my priority. My primary focus but we’ll see, I’m looking forward to getting involved with maybe something a little more light! Maybe I’m going to do a sitcom for a minute just to lighten it up! [laughs]
Because again, I’m like, ‘Come on, give the man a moment, let him go on a date or hang out with Clark!’
Wolé Parks: I know, I know. This is the show, we got to get him through stuff. But we’ll see what happens!
It’s been an honor chatting with you. I’m hoping this won’t be the last time. What you’ve done with this character is so phenomenal, and I can’t wait to see where it all goes. I’m going to start manifesting you now as John Stewart. Play all the Johns!
Wolé Parks: If I play every single John, I don’t know what the next job after that will be. But I’m down. It keeps it easy for me if I’m just playing John! [laughs]
About Superman & Lois Season 3
Season three of SUPERMAN & LOIS opens weeks after Superman’s blowout defeat of Ally Allston. Clark (Tyler Hoechlin) and Lois (Elizabeth Tulloch) are now working at the Smallville Gazette together and enjoying small-town life. But the Kents’ romantic bliss only shines a light on how isolating “the secret” can be, as Chrissy (Sofia Hasmik) struggles to balance a new love interest and her friendship with Lois.
However, Lois’ own work-life balance is put to the test when an undercover assignment reveals a deadly foe that promises to change the Kent family forever. Superman would move heaven and earth for his family, but with a villain this merciless, even that might not be enough. Meanwhile, the Kent boys find themselves being pulled in opposite directions as Jordan (Alex Garfin) discovers what a superhero identity really means, and Jonathan (Michael Bishop) searches for purpose beyond the football field.
Amid all this upheaval, John Henry (Wolé Parks) is haunted by his doppelgänger’s past, leading to dangerous consequences for him and Natalie (Tayler Buck). Lana Lang (Emmanuelle Chriqui) and Kyle (Erik Valdez) redefine their family post-separation, while Sarah (Inde Navarrette) explores what the future holds for her and Jordan now that she knows the truth about his powers. Having learned the hard way that no one else can be trusted to work with Superman, General Samuel Lane (Dylan Walsh) reclaims his post at the Department of Defense, only to face his own conflict in working with his grandson, Jordan.
Superman & Lois season 3 premieres on Tuesday, March 14, at 8/7c on The CW.