The Untold Truth Of Arrow

In 2012, Oliver Queen set out to save his city, but he ended up stealing our hearts. No one knew that "Arrow" would be the start of a new era, as its success helped to kickstart a golden age of superhero television. The Arrowverse branched out in different directions, as The CW created spinoff shows such as "The Flash," "Batwoman," "Black Lightning," and "Legends of Tomorrow." Make no mistake about it — Green Arrow crawled so that Beebo could run.

Like all good things, "Arrow" had to come to an end. Fortunately, it closed out on its own terms and not because some network executive got a trigger finger during renewal season. However, Oliver's journey to Star City by way of the island Lian Yu certainly wasn't without its challenges and backstage drama. From one actor disliking creative choices made with their character to another leaving the show because of a co-star, here is the merciless untold truth of "Arrow."

When the news broke that a Green Arrow project was in active development, some fans presumed that Justin Hartley would be reprising his role as Oliver Queen in a "Smallville" spinoff. It's understandable, especially considering how popular his character was on the show and how his "Aquaman" pilot sank to the bottom of the ocean in 2006. Hartley seemed like the logical and only choice to lead this new project, so imagine the surprise when it was announced that he wasn't even in the running.

"Arrow" co-creator Marc Guggenheim discussed why Hartley was never considered at a press conference (via Canada.com). "We wanted to chart our own course, our own destiny," said Guggenheim. "I don't think we felt any desire or need to let the ground lie fallow, especially since this is such a different take." But Hartley's time in the superhero game wasn't done, as he went on to voice Superman in 2021's "Injustice," the animated film adaption of the popular video game. 

While the Arrowverse launched a wider universe that introduced other DC characters such as Supergirl, the Flash, and Superman, the Dark Knight never appears on "Arrow." He's alluded to on the show in a winking-at-the-audience type of way numerous times; however, Batman brooded on a gargoyle in a Gotham City far beyond of the reach of any CW cameras.

Of course, that didn't stop "Arrow" executive producer Marc Guggenheim from dreaming about how Batman could be tied to the show. Appearing on the Fake Nerd Podcast (via SyFy Wire), he revealed his original idea for an "Arrow" endgame, stating that Oliver Queen would have died but his legacy would have lived on through other heroes. One of the scenes would have cut to a different city with a criminal being chased and punched by a vigilante. "And this pair of black boots would come down right in front of him, and there'd be a flutter of a scalloped cape, and the voice over would say something along the lines of 'Oliver Queen inspired a whole new generation of vigilantes,'" Guggenheim said. "The implication of course being that he inspired Batman."

Even though "Arrow" is based on characters established in the DC Universe, it takes many creative liberties with its various interpretations and storylines. Slade Wilson, aka Deathstroke, underwent a few significant changes, as his Arrowverse origin story differs from the original comic book version. In 2015, Manu Bennett told The Music that he was disappointed by the treatment of his character on the show and that's why the actor left "Arrow." "I think Deathstroke had a lot of possibilities with 'Arrow,' but I think they took it in the wrong direction," he said. "I think they should have honoured the Marv Wolfman character who was literally unstoppable."

When Bennett returned as Deathstroke years later, he spoke to Entertainment Weekly and explained how he had chatted to Marc Guggenheim about how to preserve the integrity of Deathstroke. He mentioned how paramount it was to maintain the creators' original vision and to please the fans with a comics-accurate representation. Bennett believed that the return of Deathstroke was more in line with what he wanted than what he was doing before.

"Arrow" wasn't co-creator Greg Berlanti's first rodeo with DC properties. He received both writing and producing credits on 2011's "Green Lantern," but he was fired from the movie before it entered production. The experience still disappointed the highly acclaimed showrunner and left the curse of the Emerald Knight hanging over his head. Because of his power ring-related disillusionment, he made one specific request when he took on "Arrow."

"My only request was to let us do it our way because I was so heartbroken by what had happened [on 'Green Lantern']," Berlanti told The Hollywood Reporter. "Being a part of something like that when you've loved those characters your whole life, and thinking you're not going to really get a chance to participate before you even start was very [tough]." Nowadays, Berlanti is much better known for the Arrowverse than anything remotely connected to the infamously terrible "Green Lantern" movie, though he could get a chance at a do-over through his involvement with the "Green Lantern" HBO Max series.

There's an argument to be made that Katie Cassidy was one of the more well-known actors in the first season of "Arrow." Having appeared in the likes of "Gossip Girl," "Taken," and the "A Nightmare on Elm Street" reboot, she had a significant amount of credibility in the industry before starring as Laurel Lance. However, Cassidy wasn't in the best mental space before the role presented itself, as she revealed to Horror Geek Life.

"I was actually in a really dark place in my life at the time, a breakup," she said. "I was just not in a good headspace, so I say in a way that 'Arrow' kind of saved my life because I was just not in a good place." Cassidy added that she read the "Arrow" script and told her agents that it was the show for her, refusing to accept any other pilot scripts afterwards. Despite feeling so strongly and confidently about the part, she still had to audition. Once she officially received the role, she moved to Vancouver and the rest is history.

In DC continuity, Roy Harper, aka Arsenal, is an important part of the Green Arrow mythology. As Oliver Queen's sidekick and trusted confidante, Roy became a fan-favorite hero and a frequent member of the Teen Titans. In the "Arrow" series, Colton Haynes played Roy and received acclaim from the fanbase for his portrayal. However, Haynes' time on the show was cut relatively short. He was only a regular for three seasons and made sporadic guest star appearances for the rest of the series.

In his autobiography, "Miss Memory Lane," Haynes disclosed the main reason for his departure from the show (via E! News). "I had walked away from my full-time job on 'Arrow' at the beginning of the year, supposedly because my contract had ended," he wrote, "but it was really because I was too depressed and I couldn't stand working with one of my castmates." Haynes never revealed the identity of the co-star who caused him to experience such a hard time on set, but that hasn't stopped the fans from speculating.