Ruby Rose — who broke into the U.S. mainstream on Orange Is The New Black, went on to become the most fascinating part of John Wick: Chapter 2, and stars alongside a (possibly) shark-punching Jason Statham in The Meg — was cast earlier this week as the CW’s Batwoman, Kate Kane. While Rose had already teased the news on Twitter (“Today was a really really good day … tomorrow is going to be even better”), she appeared on The Tonight Show and told Jimmy Fallon why she skipped The Meg after-premiere party.
As it turns out, Rose was so overwhelmed by the Batwoman casting news that she could barely cope. While walking red carpet minutes later, she worried about accidentally blurting out the news or bursting into tears, both of which would have been dreadful slip-ups:
“It’s a game-changer. I found out an hour before I did the premiere for The Meg and I was so nervous doing the red carpet, so I basically skipped everybody because I kept spontaneously crying … I feel like the reason I got so emotional is that growing up, watching TV, I never saw someone on TV that I could identify with, let alone a superhero, you know?”
The openly gay actress continued while saying that she entered the industry after being inspired by Oscar Wilde’s advice to “be yourself because everyone else is taken.” She further explained her addendum to that motto, which is “be the person you needed when you were younger.” And when Fallon pointed out the gravity of being forever linked with Batwoman (to the point where kids will dress like her for Halloween), who was the first openly gay superhero to land a solo DC title, Rose became emotional. She fought tears once more, which should prove to fans that she’s determined to give Kate Kane her due as a masked vigilante fighting crime in Gotham.