'Legends Of Tomorrow' Loses Brandon Routh And Courtney Ford
DC's Legends of Tomorrow is losing two of its Legends. Brandon Routh and Courtney Ford are leaving the CW superhero series, Routh after five seasons and Ford after two seasons on the show. Read more about the Legends of Tomorrow cast exits below.
One of the founding members of the Legends is leaving the ship. Brandon Routh, whose character of Ray Palmer (aka Atom) was introduced in Arrow, was a founding member of the Legends and a regular cast member since season 1. But he and his wife Courtney Ford, who joined the series as recurring character Nora Dahrk in season 3, are leaving the series in the upcoming Season 5, according to Deadline.
Series executive producers Phil Klemmer, Grianne Godfree and Keto Shimizu said in a statement:
"Brandon and Courtney have been invaluable members of the Legends family. They have always brought a level passion and collaboration to their characters and to the show — both on and off the screen – that we deeply admire and for which we are eternally grateful."
Routh and Ford's exit is explained as a creative one, with their storylines coming to a natural end. Both regular cast members, Routh and Ford aren't the first regulars to leave the series. By its time-traveling nature, Legends of Tomorrow has seen plenty of character turnover, with series regulars leaving as their stories wrap up, and new ones come on board. Only a handful of characters have remained on the show since season 1, and with Routh leaving, those numbers will be even further diminished.
"As one of the founding Legends of Tomorrow, Brandon is extremely beloved by the fans and everyone on the show," Klemmer, Godfree and Shimizu added. But don't worry: this won't mean the end for the Atom and Nora. This is a time-traveling superhero series after all, which means there are plenty of opportunities for Routh and Ford to come back for guest appearances. Routh himself is set to suit up as an alternate version of Superman in the upcoming Arrow-verse crossover event, in a sly wink at his big-screen turn as the Man of Steel in Superman Returns. Klemmer, Godfree and Shimizu said:
"Of course, when we have had main characters in the past whose journeys take them away from the Waverider, it's never truly goodbye. We love these characters and hope to check in with them in future seasons, to see how life off the ship has transformed them for better or worse."
Routh and Ford are expected to film their final episode in October of this year. It's unclear when that episode will air, but it will likely be during Legends of Tomorrow's Season 5 run, which is slated to start airing on The CW in January 2020.