Stephen Amell played the role of Oliver Queen a.k.a Arrow in the CW’s Arrow. The project spawned the Arrowverse which included shows such as The Flash, Legends of Tomorrow, and Supergirl, among others. However, Amell’s Arrow was the one that started it all and has an enduring legacy as it introduced many DC characters to the mainstream.
While the show ended in 2020 after eight seasons, creator Marc Guggenheim reportedly had a different idea for the ending of the series. Guggenheim mentioned that while he always intended for Oliver Queen to die in the series, he wanted him to be a legendary presence, inspiring other vigilantes in the DC universe including Batman.
Arrow’s Original Ending Included An Appearance From Batman
The CW produced a host of shows based on DC characters, beginning with Arrow. The show starred Stephen Amell as Oliver Queen, the billionaire playboy who masquerades as a vigilante in Starling City. The show ran for eight seasons, receiving positive responses for its treatment of the characters and ambitious storylines.
The ending of Arrow sees Oliver Queen sacrifice himself to save the world and become a legacy. Co-creator and showrunner Marc Guggenheim mentioned that he always wanted Oliver to die at the end of the series and become a symbol, inspiring countless others to pursue to vigilantism. This reportedly included another billionaire in a city called Gotham.
Guggenheim mentioned during the Fake Nerd Podcast that he wanted to introduce Batman into the Arrowverse at the end of the show, depicting him as a vigilante who was inspired by the actions of Oliver Queen. He said,
I kind of had a little bit of a fantasy that Oliver would die and you’d end with some sort of news broadcast talking about his legacy and that would sort of become the voice-over…And then you would go to this rooftop in a whole other city, and on the cut a thug or some bad guy would crash into the frame, having been punched off-screen. And these 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.’
Though Batman was never shown in Arrow, his existence was implied multiple times in the Arrowverse, including in shows such as Titans. The CW show Batwoman also had allusions to the Caped Crusader.
The implication is, of course, that [Oliver] inspired Batman. So that, of course, didn’t happen for a variety of different reasons – not the least of which is Batwoman came along – but that was my original conception.
However, the ending went in a different way, showing Felicity Smole reuniting with Stephen Amell’s Oliver in an alternative universe.
Stephen Amell Wanted To Quit Playing Oliver Queen Earlier
Stephen Amell had a career breakthrough when he starred as Oliver Queen in Arrow. The actor had only played supporting roles and cameos in TV shows before he was cast as the titular vigilante. The actor went on to reprise his role in other Arrowverse shows and even voiced the character in games such as Injustice: Gods Among Us.
While Amell hung up his quiver in 2020 after an eight-season run, the actor reportedly wanted to quit a season earlier. The actor was reportedly annoyed with the intense scheduling of all the shows’ crossover episodes and was ready to leave the show before he was convinced by the executives to stick on. He said on the Inside of You podcast,
“I looked at it, and it would have been fiscally irresponsible for me to say no. Just fiscally irresponsible. I loved the s–t out of Season 8, I had a blast, but I was there for the money. More so than I had ever been.”
The actor mentioned that he was given a better offer from the studio which he could never refuse and hence decided to go ahead and give the fans an ending they deserved.
Arrow is streaming on Netflix.
