As it turns out, finding the new Oliver Queen wasn’t so difficult. During a panel for Arrow today at the TCA (Television Critics Association) press tour, the executive producers were asked about finding their star, Stephen Amell, and Andrew Kreisberg replied, “It was actually very easy to cast. Stephen was the very first person who came in and auditioned.” Kreisberg said he and fellow EPs Marc Guggenheim and Greg Berlanti all instantly knew they had the right guy and that unlike most times when you’re casting such a crucial TV role, there weren’t multiple choices brought to the studio and network – just Amell.
This will be the second Oliver Queen on TV (and the CW specifically) in less than two years, with Justin Hartley portraying the character for several seasons on Smallville before it wrapped up in 2010. Guggenheim said he felt the audience was “savvy enough to understand” they were seeing a totally different version of the character, noting The Amazing Spider-Man doing a similar thing.
Guggenheim said they were taking a lot of inspiration from a couple of specific Green Arrow comic book stories – Year One and The Longbow Hunters. On the other hand, he also said they were taking some liberties as well, such as keeping Oliver’s mother alive and giving him a sister (nicknamed “Speedy”, in a nod to the comics). He added that he felt that unlike characters like Batman, Superman and Spider-Man, Oliver’s origin was not as cemented in stone and a bit more “subject to interpretation”, having been altered through the years.
It’s established in the pilot that Oliver is willing to kill his enemies, unlike some superheroes. But Guggenheim stressed Oliver, “Gives the bad guy the opportunity to do the right thing” before making such a call. “When he kills, he’ll do so for necessity. – It’s not random violence.” On top of that, “Other characters will question [Oliver’s choices.] We’ll face the issues of morality head on.”
Perhaps inevitably, a reporter brought up the recent shooting in Aurora, which is connected to another DC Comics adaptation and the questions that again raises in the media about the use of violence in entertainment. Said Guggenheim, “I think it’s incredibly imporant to be responsible, first and foremost. It came up in the writers room, of course, because we’re all human beings and it was a terrible tragedy.”
He said their intent with Arrow was to “Portray violence in a responsible way” and that he felt they had the chance to “Explore the consequences of violence in a way other shows cannot. We’re exploring all the facets of vigilantism and taking the law into your own hands and the consequences. Hopefully we can have helpful social commentary along with the action in the show.”
In the comics, Oliver Queen’s strong political beliefs play a part in the proceedings. While the producers didn’t say that would be explicit in Arrow, Kreisberg did feel Oliver’s beliefs are “Embedded in the DNA of the show. He’s targeting the wealthy and the corrupt. Going after moneyed people gives it that taking it back for the little guy [feel].”
Guggenheim said they didn’t want Arrow to feel repetitive and that while the pilot establishes that Oliver has a specific list of people he’s after, “You’ll see pretty early on that while he has this list and the list is the jumping off point for stories, the bad guys of the week are not always the same – the circumstances are not always the same. Part of his evolution of a hero is moving from a mission of revenge to a mission of redemption.”
The setup to Arrow involves flashbacks to how the rich, arrogant Oliver became an island castaway – and the mysterious events there that completely changed who he was and what motivated him, before his return and his decision to become Arrow.
Amell described playing Oliver as almost being like playing four roles – the Oliver Queen on the island, the costumed superhero, the Oliver in the present dealing with his one-time love, Dinah Laurel Lance (Katie Cassidy), and the Oliver from before he ended up on the island. “He’s coming back from this island and he clearly has post-traumatic stress disorder,” said Amell. “That’s a serious subject and that’s something well get into. I think the most imminent danger to Oliver is himself."
Amell -- who noted he grew up reading comics like Spawn and Lobo, but was primarily a big pro wrestling fan in his youth -- has gone through extensive training for Arrow, including learning Parkour from a trainer who was Henry Cavill’s double for Man of Steel. He also laughed at how his archery trainer, “Showed me all the ways archery had been done badly on TV and film.”
Said Berlanti, “It’s a little frightening when star is doing a quarter of his stunts, because there’s no second string. But that makes the show very unique and a lot of fun.”
Cassidy described Dinah Laurel Lance as a character with “a tremendous about of integrity,” with strong morals and values. Of course, the big question is whether this version of the character will become Black Canary. When Cassidy noted only her producers could answer that, Berlanti would only say, “Maybe!”
Said Cassidy, “I think getting in the action side of things would be very fun. I haven’t been in fight training, but you never know… “
Source : ign[dot]com
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