The new Supergirl hate train is getting some superhero pushback.
Helen Slater, the original 1980s Supergirl, shared her thoughts on Milly Alcock’s performance in 2026’s Supergirl in a new interview with The Hollywood Reporter, following MAGA backlash over the 26-year-old’s politics and harsh critic reviews.
Slater, 62, who played the iconic heroine in the original 1984 film and reprised the role in the CW’s TV series version from 2015 to 2021, told THR on Wednesday, “I loved the new Supergirl film.”
As for its star, Slater added, “I thought Milly Alcock was astonishing—fierce, strong and great comic timing!”
The comments come after a Variety critic called the film “super-horrendous” and “inept.” Others called it “forgettable” and “shallow,” though most of the worst takes on the film are for its script rather than Alcock’s performance.
One faction that does seem to have it out for the actress is MAGA. Conservative commentator Megyn Kelly launched a tirade against the star on Tuesday. “We’re over the forced-upon-us girlboss era. It’s not authentic. It’s not organic. We’re no longer buying it,” she said on her web show. “It’s not that women can’t be empowered and fierce and all the great things. It’s just, stop forcing it on us in the form of Supergirl.”
Kelly went on to take issue with Alcock’s comments about navigating the industry as a woman. Alcock starred as the young Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen in the Game of Thrones prequel series House of the Dragon. Alcock told Vanity Fair, “That experience definitely made me aware that simply existing as a woman in that space is something that people comment on. We have become very comfortable having this weird ownership of women’s bodies.”
Kelly said in response, “You were in light porn. Game of Thrones... is soft porn. Who does she think she’s kidding?”
The star also drew fire from 59-year-old former Superman actor-turned-MAGA proponent Dean Cain, who circulated a meme mocking the younger star’s appearance, which one X user compared to a primate. He went on to reply to or interact with dozens of negative posts about the film.
Slater told the Hollywood Reporter that she enjoyed Alcock’s Supergirl, as she reflected on the grueling process of performing her own version of the character in the 1980s. “I was very scrawny when I got the part,” she said, recalling how she ultimately bulked up through fencing, horseback riding, and more, which caused her to put on 15 pounds of muscle before filming.
“The trampolining was wild,” she said. “I learned to do backflips on the trampoline, and then there’s an aerial ballet in the Supergirl film, which we practiced quite a lot.”
As 1984’s Supergirl also performed beneath expectations, Slater said she has struggled with how to reflect on her success and the fame that came with it. “I know it didn’t do well because we didn’t make the second and third film,” she said. “I felt shy about it. It wasn’t like, ‘Hooray, people recognize me. Isn’t this wonderful?’ It just feels so strange and unusual.”
Alcock responded to the negative commentary about her casting during her interview with Vanity Fair, telling the outlet, “I can’t really stop them. I can only be myself.”
