'Glee' Cast News: Melissa Benoist Cast As 'Supergirl' By CBS

Actress Melissa Benoist has just become the second "Glee" breakout to land a starring role in another DC Comics adaptation for TV, CBS has announced.

CBS revealed her casting as Kara Zor-El in its series version of the classic comic book story of Supergirl, the Hollywood Reporter said.

After an extensive search, the network and Warner Bros. Television signed Benoist, who edged out Claire Holt from "The Vampire Diaries' The Originals," among others.

The hour-long drama about Supergirl, which still needs an official series order, will focus on Kara, Superman's cousin who was born on the planet Krypton and escaped amid destruction.

"Since arriving on Earth, she's been hiding the powers she shares with her famous cousin. But now at age 24, she decides to embrace her superhuman abilities and be the hero she was always meant to be," the show's official description said, according to the Entertainment Weekly.

At the Television Critics' Association (TCA) press tour earlier this month, CBS Entertainment Chairman Nina Tassler told critics the new Warner Bros series version of "Supergirl" will be a crime procedural.

"The beauty of it is now with shows like Good Wife and Madam Secretary, you can have serialized story elements woven into a case of the week. She's a crime solver, so she's going to have to solve a crime. She's going to get a bad guy," Tassler said.

She also described the CBS version of the DC Comics icon as "a very strong, independent young woman" who is coming into her own as she deals with family and work issues.

Tassler earlier said they were looking for an actress who can carry the new superhero show, which received a hefty series commitment.

"She's got to be an every woman. She's got to be specific. She's got to be a terrific actor ... it's looking for someone who embodies both the freshness and the exuberance of being a young woman in today's challenging climate and being someone who can carry this kind of series on her shoulders. It's a big, big show," Tassler explained, according to Hollywood Reporter.

The executive added that Supergirl's costume design is "awesome."

Benoist played Marley Rose in seasons four and five of Fox's "Glee" and was also in the 2014 indie film "Whiplash."

"Supergirl" is the first super-hero show on CBS in 25 years since 1990's short-lived The Flash.