Before being tapped by DC Studios to write Supergirl, Ana Nogueira had written two versions of the movie for Warner Bros. Neither moved forward, and before that, her only credits were the short film We Win and two plays, Empathitrax and Which Way to the Stage.
Nogueira is also an actress, having appeared in The Michael J. Fox Show, The Vampire Diaries, The Blacklist, and Hightown.
Her work on Supergirl impressed James Gunn enough that Nogueira has been tapped to write Teen Titans and, more recently, the Wonder Woman reboot. Negative reviews for Supergirl have singled out the script as the biggest issue, but that doesn't necessarily mean Nogueira will be taken off those upcoming DCU projects (despite any social media backlash).
After all, The Flash received a middling response, but Christina Hodson and Andy Muschietti remain attached to The Brave and the Bold. Gunn even went to great lengths to keep Hodson's name under wraps to protect her from fan backlash until the trades named her as its writer.
Talking to Variety, Nogueira revealed how work is progressing on her next two DC Studios movies. "Oh, they’re so early. They’re in very different stages, I’ll say that," she explained. "They’re all just such great characters, and I can’t believe I get to figure out what I would do with them the way that we did with Kara and Supergirl. But it’s still early days on both."
Asked how it felt to be handed the keys to the DC kingdom with two major projects (Wonder Woman is reportedly being fast-tracked), the writer said, "It’s a huge compliment and a vote of confidence. It’s honestly quite overwhelming. I can’t even think of the size of it. I just really try to keep my head down and make sure that I like the work that I’m doing, and that I think that it’s good work."
"I can’t write something that I don’t like. I can’t write something that I don’t see. I don’t have that gear," Nogueira explained. "So, taking in how big it is is something I actually try not to even think about. I just try to stick to the script."
DC Studios put a lot of trust in Nogueira with Supergirl, tasking her with bringing Lobo into the DCU. The character had once been set to appear in the Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow comic book, with him taking on Supergirl's role and Kara essentially in Ruthye's place. Writer Tom King ultimately decided against that.
Reflecting on bringing Lobo into this big-screen story, Nogueira said, "That was brought to me. [Gunn and Safran] were like, 'We want to do Woman of Tomorrow, and we want you to find a way to put Lobo in. We think Lobo has a place in this.' I think their thinking was we know Jason Momoa is interested in this, and how can you turn that down?"
Neither Teen Titans nor Wonder Woman has a confirmed release date, though no new titles have been announced by DC Studios beyond next summer's Man of Tomorrow.
Supergirl is now playing in theaters.