Arrowverse Star Offers A Retrospective About Their SAG-AFTRA Strike Controversy

The main star of The CW’s Arrow is moving on to other things these days, and he’s looking back on one of the few controversies that fans remember him being embroiled in when the franchise was still up and running.

Arrow was one of the most interesting and well-received superhero shows at its time and would eventually kickstart a whole multiverse of shows and crossover events based on the DC universe, eventually dubbed the Arrowverse as an homage to where it all began. None of that would have been possible without the show’s lead, Stephen Amell, whose portrayal of Oliver Queen has become almost inseparable from the character in the minds of most fans. The show and franchise benefitted greatly from Amell and his costars keeping their heads down and doing great work, but there would be some negative attention for Amell when he came out against the SAG-AFTRA strike in 2023.

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Amell would eventually walk back his reservations and the Arrow Star would even be Seen Picketing Afterwards, and fans and critics alike would forgive and forget the incident for the most part. More recently, Amell reflected on the incident in an interview with Variety concerning his career and lead role in the upcoming Suits spin-off/revival, and while the actor is still a bit stubborn about his position, he’s certainly learned from the experience. “Not everything that comes to my mind should be spoken into a microphone,” he says. “I still think that striking is the nuclear option — that was the point that I was trying to make. I just think I need to be a little bit more patient. I don’t subscribe to the whole idea of ‘You’re an actor — stay in your lane.’ But I think that I need to do a better job of really thinking about what I say publicly and the potential impact that it could have. It felt like the world was ending. To be at the eye of an internet storm like that — everything is really small, and you feel like everyone’s looking at you. I literally thought I was being side-eyed at the gym or dropping my kids off at school.”

It’s great that Amell learned a lesson from the backlash he got, especially seeing as it could be much worse than he got. Amell’s brush with controversy didn’t do too much to impede him, as he still got to work on Heelz, the production that the strike brought to a halt and led to the original comments. Amell also got to the Arrowverse as Green Arrow for the final season of The Flash, much to the delight of the franchise’s diehard fans and even some casuals familiar with the crossover events. His next project, the aforementioned Suits LA, already has a ton of fans excited to see what he can do (and keep their eyes peeled for cameos from the original show).

The impact of the Arrowverse can’t be understated, and the DC franchise is just now starting a slow slide into inaccessibility just in time for James Gunn and Peter Safran’s reboot plans on streaming as well as the big screen. While fans will certainly miss the old guard, they should be glad they’re on to new things and support Amell in his exciting new lead role in Suits LA if its the kind of thing they’re into.

Arrow and the rest of the Arrowverse are available to stream on Netflix.

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Source: Variety