The Flash Boss Teases Oliver’s Return, Says Stephen Amell Requested One Storyline Add-On Before Saying Yes
Stephen Amell requested just one “extra” storyline add-on before agreeing to reprise his role of Arrow‘s Oliver Queen during The Flash‘s final season.
It was announced in early January that the ninth episode of The Flash‘s ninth and final season (which premieres this Wednesday, Feb. 8 at 8/7c) will bring back Amell as well as David Ramsey and Keiyan Lonsdale (as John Diggle/Spartan and Wally West/Kid Flash), while Sendhil Ramamurthy in the same episode reprises his role as Flash foe Ramsey Rosso/Bloodwork.
How was Amell’s encore facilitated? Does The Flash showrunner Eric Wallace make that phone call, or does it come from longtime Arrowverse architect Greg Berlanti?
“It’s a two-pronged answer,” Wallace shared with TVLine on Friday. “I called up Greg and said, ‘I have a crazy idea. What if Oliver Queen came back….,’ and I pitched the story. He was like, ‘I love it, let me call Stephen.’ So he called Stephen, then called me back: ‘Stephen loves it! Talk to him, pitch him the idea.’
“So I got on the phone with Stephen — and this is all happening within a span of 18 hours, mind you — and I walked him through it,” Wallace continued. “He said, ‘I love it. But can we do this extra thing…?'”
Amell proceeded to pitch a storyline add-on, to which Wallace said, “‘Let’s do that! That’s fantastic.’ And the call ended with [Amell saying], ‘I’m in. Let’s make this happen.’ It happened that fast.”
As for how the very dead Oliver Queen manages to come back for the episode, Wallace was mum on specifics, though he did maintain, “We don’t change what has happened in the eight seasons of Arrow.” Rather, “we honor all of that.”
And the end result of this unexpected yet super-apropos reunion between Barry Allen (played by Grant Gustin) and Oliver?
“There won’t be a dry eye in the house at the end of that episode,” Wallace avowed. “It’s extremely emotional.”
Want scoop on The Flash, or for any other show? Email InsideLine@tvline.com and your question may be answered via Matt’s Inside Line.
Coming up with a fitting way to bring Oliver back is tricky, but not impossible.
I’m curious to find out what they have planned, but if it apparently got Stephen Amell so excited, I’m optimistic.
I wonder if the “extra thing” is a surprise appearance by Mia or Felicity or possibly William?
No because the producer wouldn’t be able to promise him the participation of a third party.
Maybe the third party was already willing to participate?
Maybe this whole thing is made up.
Probably time travel to bring Oliver into it without the retcon. Probably takes place during Arrow season 7 (which was Flash season 6, explaining bloodwork as the villain.) My guess for the add on is either a sparing session between Oliver and Barry or some other call back to their relationship (a quiet drink at the end, or something like that.)
A kiss
I was thinking something similar along the lines of the original arrow/flash crossover final few minutes where they were seen in a warehouse abut to see who was better.
The fact that Bloodwork is in the same episode suggests to me that it could be somehow set pre-crisis.
There was a time when Flash and the Arrowverse were amazing. That time was several years ago.
“Oliver! I thought you were dead.”
“Nope.”
ICYMI, Stephen Ammell replied at 10:11 PM ET on 3 Feb 2023 to TVLine’s tweet for this article sharing this reply:
.
“Asked for one.
Got like five or six.
What a treat it was.”
.
I’d be curious in a post-mortem to find exactly what he means!
What’s up Oliver it’s Brandon Lamar Green Good morning saulations.
Final season (9) THE FLASH new Rogue villain Amar – WOW! Signing and killin’ the episode. Have watched scene with Pied Piper (fantastic Andy Mientus) three times so far. Looking forward to epi 4. Congrats All!
CW – you seriously need to rethink and add Season 10! Lots more story to tell!
Aggiornamenti Flash Arrow ma soprattutto, dove vedere episodi completi in lingua italiana? Sono fan ma scrivo dei supereroi.
Grazie