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Kryptonite isn’t Superman’s only weakness. It turns out the Man of Steel is vulnerable to budget cuts.

Superman and Lois premiered on the CW in 2021, but by the time the show began its fourth season in 2024, the network was a different place. Warner Brothers no longer had partial ownership of the CW, which was now owned by Nexstar. Under Nexstar’s ownership the CW shifted its strategy, moving away from scripted dramas and investing in reality television.

The CW gave Superman and Lois a fourth season to finish up their story, but there were conditions. The superhero drama was given a reduced budget, forcing Warner Bros. Television to cut down on cast members and other expenditures.

Despite the challenges, Bitsie Tulloch feels the series was able to overcome the obstacles and put together a kickass final season. “I don’t know if you guys know this, but a lot of the cast was cut,” Lois Lane actress Bitsie Tulloch says during a panel at C2E2 2026. “Maybe they had a contract where you’re on all the episodes produced, and then for the final season we had such major budget cuts that you have a guaranteed three episodes, and that must have been very hard for the writers to navigate. Making the show feel like somebody who’s been in every single episode leading up to it is still there kind of in spirit or present. And they did a really great job with that.”

Tulloch also addressed a rumor she’s seen online about HBO Max funding the show’s VFX. According to Tulloch, that wasn’t true. “We did not have an HBO Max budget. They created this gorgeous VFX out of love for the IP, out of love for the show, out of love for the writing. But there was not some crazy budget that we had. And even in the final season when it was slashed even further, they brought it. And we all kind of came together and we made it work.”

Superman and Lois is currently streaming on HBO Max.