‘Arrow,’ ‘Flash’ join forces in new CW spin-off

Anne Lima

As the “Arrow”/ “Flash” spin-off series is currently in development, fan anticipation and curiosity rises.

The CW network has teamed with creators Marc Guggenheim, Andrew Kreisberg and executive producer Greg Berlanti for DC’s “Legends of Tomorrow.” The spin off has officially been picked as a series for the 2015-2016 TV season and will feature previously seen heroes and villains from both shows.

Photo from cwtv.com Grant Gustin as Barry Allen in “The Flash.”
Photo from cwtv.com

“Our plan for it is that it’s like the crossover (episodes between Arrow and The Flash) every week,” Kreisberg told entertainment website Imagine Games Network (IGN) during Wonder Con. “On both ‘Arrow’ and ‘The Flash’ there are teams in the sense that there is Team Arrow & Team Flash but to have a team fully comprised of heroes and villains is going to be pretty epic.”

The spin off will include “Arrow’s” Brandon Routh as Ray Palmer/The Atom and Caity Lotz in an unknown role. From “The Flash,” Victor Garber as Dr. Martin Stein/one half of Fire storm (Ronnie Raymond is the other half of Fire storm played by Robbie Amell, who was not announced as part of the spin off lineup).

The show will also star Wentworth Miller as Flash villain Leonard Snart/Captain Cold along with Dominic Purcell as his partner in crime and Mick Rory/Heat Wave and Arthur Darvill (“Doctor Who”) as Rip Hunter.

“We start filming in August and it will be on in January,” Garber told Broadway World.

This lineup is followed by newly named cast members Broadway actress Ciara Renee as Kendra Saunders/Hawk girl and “Edge of Tomorrow” British actor Franz Drameh, who will play Jay Jackson on the show.

The show will also introduce at least three major DC Comics characters who have never been in a television series before.

Stephen Amell, who plays Oliver Queen/The Arrow, says that he will be appearing on the show for sure. In his visit to the Fan Expo in Vancouver, he talked about what he thinks the show will feature.

Photo from cwtv.com Stephen Amell as Oliver Queen in “Arrow.”
Stephen Amell as Oliver Queen in “Arrow.” Photo from cwtv.com

“I would imagine that we will be sprinkling characters in,” Amell said.

There is also a high possibility that characters from both shows will cross over to the new spin-off.

“For us, first and foremost, with all of (our shows), it’s about ‘how is it its own thing?’ Because we don’t just want to do it to do it,” Berlanti explained before the casts of “Arrow” and “The Flash” hit the stage at PaleyFest on March 14.

Both “Arrow” and “Flash” have already featured some of DC’s most iconic villains, including Ra’s al Ghul, Death stroke and Reverse Flash and so it was important for Berlanti to find someone equally worthy for the new spin off, which is what he found in the time-traveling rogue Rip Hunter who assembles the band of both superheroes and villains.

“For me, it honors all of the great team up movies, whether it’s ‘Ocean’s Eleven’ or whether it’s the superhero books,” Berlanti said.