‘Black Lightning’ Lands CW Debut Date, Will Follow ‘The Flash’

Greg Berlanti’s latest will bump “DC’s Legends of Tomorrow” to a new night

black lightning
The CW

The CW’s latest DC Comics superhero show has finally set its start date: “Black Lightning” will debut on Tuesday, Jan. 16 at 9 p.m., following “The Flash.”

That means “Flash’s” regular partner, the less-successful “DC’s Legends of Tomorrow,” is getting bumped to another night. The modestly rated series’ new evening has yet to be announced; the back-half of “Legends” will wait until February.

You can find CW’s existing midseason schedule at the bottom of this post. Premiere dates for new series “Life Sentence” and the upcoming seasons of “The 100,” “The Originals” and “iZombie” will be announced at a later date.

As “Black Lightning” begins, Jefferson Pierce (Cress Williams) is a man wrestling with a secret, per Berlanti and The CW. As the father of two daughters and principal of a charter high school that also serves as a safe haven for young people in a neighborhood overrun by gang violence, he is a hero to his community.

Nine years ago, Pierce was a hero of a different sort. Gifted with the superhuman power to harness and control electricity, he used those powers to keep his hometown streets safe as the masked vigilante Black Lightning. However, after too many nights with his life on the line, and seeing the effects of the damage and loss that his alter ego was inflicting on his family, he left his Super Hero days behind and settled into being a principal and a dad.

Choosing to help his city without using his superpowers, he watched his daughters Anissa (Nafessa Williams) and Jennifer (China Anne McClain) grow into strong young women, even though his marriage to their mother, Lynn (Christine Adams), suffered. Almost a decade later,

Pierce’s crime-fighting days are long behind him… or so he thought, the TV show’s official description continues. But with crime and corruption spreading like wildfire, and those he cares about in the crosshairs of the menacing local gang The One Hundred, Black Lightning returns — to save not only his family, but also the soul of his community.

Based on the characters from DC, “Black Lightning” is from Berlanti Productions and Akil Productions in association with Warner Bros. Television, with executive producers Greg Berlanti, Salim Akil (who is also showrunner), Mara Brock Akil and Sarah Schechter.

Here’s The CW’s midseason schedule, all in one handy-dandy place:

MONDAY, JANUARY 1
8:00-9:00 PM             SUPERGIRL (Encore)
9:00-10:00 PM           VALOR (New Episode)

FRIDAY, JANUARY 5
8:00-9:00 PM             CRAZY EX-GIRLFRIEND (New Episode)
9:00-10:00 PM           PENN & TELLER: FOOL US (Encore)

MONDAY, JANUARY 15
8:00-9:00 PM             SUPERGIRL (New Episode)
9:00-10:00 PM           VALOR (New Episode)

TUESDAY, JANUARY 16
8:00-9:00 PM             THE FLASH (New Episode)
9:00-10:00 PM           BLACK LIGHTNING (Series Premiere)

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 17
8:00-9:00 PM             RIVERDALE (New Episode)
9:00-10:00 PM           DYNASTY (New Episode)

THURSDAY, JANUARY 18
8:00-9:00 PM             SUPERNATURAL (New Episode)
9:00-10:00 PM           ARROW (New Episode)

FRIDAY, JANUARY 26
8:00-9:00 PM             CRAZY EX-GIRLFRIEND (New Episode)
9:00-10:00 PM           JANE THE VIRGIN (New Episode)

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