Ruby Rose has explained why she exited Batwoman after one season back in May.
The actress initially chose to stay “silent” about her reasons, saying it was her “choice for now” to do so and, in turn, implied that she would expand on why at a later time.
Now, the former Orange Is The New Black star has revealed that “the challenge” of portraying a lead character was “sort of outweighed” by difficulties associated with filming the Arrowverse series.
It was always denied by Rose and the Batwoman creators that her decision to leave was not based solely on the serious injuries she suffered on the set of the show in 2019. She was rushed to hospital for emergency neck surgery after a stunt scene caused two herniated discs in her neck to nearly sever her spinal chord.
Instead, it was the emotional strain of shooting the show, the impact of the coronavirus lockdown and her rushed recovery to return to set that contributed to her quitting.
She told Entertainment Weekly: “Being the lead of a superhero show is tough. Being the lead in anything is tough. But I think, in that particular instance, it was a lot more difficult because I was still recovering from my surgery.
“I had my surgery and then 10 days later I went to work, which maybe wasn’t the best idea. Most people take about a month or three off before they return to work, so it was definitely made more difficult by that. But as far as being a lead of a show or a film — regardless if it’s action or if it’s emotional — in whichever ways it’s taxing.”
She continued: “The accomplishment and the trust that people put in you to do that role and then there’s also the vibrancy of being able to come on set and set the mood and the tone and the trust being put into it is something that’s been such an honour.
“And I love my experience in [Batwoman]. I’m so grateful that we got to achieve everything that we did and I’m proud of everyone that worked on it. I’m proud of myself for working under sort of interesting circumstances, you know, with the recovery and all. I would definitely do [TV] again. I just think that it was also time for me to take a break to fully heal and then return.”
When asked if her neck injury was the main factor, the actress responded: “It wasn’t so much [the injury], especially because after we wrapped up we didn’t get to finish the real finale because of COVID.”
Rose added that the lockdown made her reassess what she wants out of her life and career: “You know, you have time in quarantine and sort of isolation to just think about a lot of different things and what you want to achieve in life and what you want to do.
“I think for both [me and the producers], it was a great opportunity to have a dialogue about a lot of things. I respect them so much and they’ve been so respectful to me,” she said.
During her time on the show, Rose made history by portraying the first gay character to lead a live-action superhero series.
Since her departure, Javicia Leslie has been announced as the new Batwoman under a brand new alias, Ryan Wilder.
The actress will take over from Rose for the show’s second season on The CW, portraying a different character to Rose’s Kate Kane.
She said of the appointment: “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 honoured to join this groundbreaking show which has been such a trailblazer for the LGBTQ+ community.”
