As Arrow season 5 approaches, the news has begun picking up. We round up the recently influx of Arrow-related news.
John Barrowman
Perhaps the biggest news to come out is that John Barrowman, who plays villain Malcolm Merlyn, will have series regular status on all of the Greg Berlanti-produced shows — meaning Arrow, The Flash, Legends of Tomorrow and Supergirl. In other words, all the superhero shows on The CW.
Barrowman is following in Wentworth Miller’s footsteps by signing a contract that crosses the Berlanti shows.
Casting
First, Tyler Ritter joins Arrow season 5 in the recurring role of Detective Malone, the newest addition to SCPD, THR reports. With Quentin Lance leaving the police force, it makes sense new cops would be stepping into his place — especially with the apparent rise of vigilante activity in Star City.
Second, Carly Pope has been cast in the recurring role of Susan Williams, TVInsider reports. Susan is a journalist from Coast City who arrives in Star City intent on making “a name for herself” by getting a big story out of Oliver Queen — who took over as mayor at the end of season 4.
This is particularly noteworthy because in the DC Comics, Susan Williams is the sister-in-law of Green Lantern Hal Jordan.
Additionally, TVLine reports that Cody Rhodes — aka Stardust, the former WWE wrestler who shared an on-screen rivalry with Stephen Amell — will have a guest spot in Arrow season 5, episode 3.
Rhodes tweeted the following image, indicating the rivalry will continue on Arrow:
Walk up in the gym like. . .#StarCityTraining @CW_Arrow pic.twitter.com/UgI6fJOg4E
— Cody Rhodes (@CodyRhodes) July 9, 2016
Season premiere
The Arrow season 5 premiere will be titled “Legacy,” according to a tweet by EP Marc Guggenheim:
Arrow Season 5 begins production today. @MericlesHappen @GBerlanti @JamesBamford pic.twitter.com/LbCvVfsMrZ
— Marc Guggenheim (@mguggenheim) July 5, 2016
Diggle is in for an upgrade
Despite him leaving to reenlist in the military at the end of season 4, John Diggle will be getting a new mask, according to David Ramsey — indicating he won’t be gone for long once the season picks up.
He teased at a convention that Diggle would get an upgraded mask made by Cisco at S.T.A.R. Labs in Central City. Considering Diggle’s Spartan mask hasn’t been the most well-received costume piece on the show, an upgrade will likely be welcomed by many fans.
Oliver’s physique
And finally, Amell tweeted out an image from Arrow season 5 that had something of a Fight Club vibe:
Here's your S5 poster.
????? pic.twitter.com/uFlGzx7IwI— Stephen Amell (@StephenAmell) July 12, 2016
My best guess here is that this is Oliver — looking bulked up — in Russia during the flashbacks. We still need to find out how Oliver obtained his Bratva connections, after all.
Arrow season 5 premieres Wednesday, October 5 at 8:00 p.m. ET on The CW.