Arrow, the flagship series in The CW’s DC TV line-up, is returning for a short eighth and final season and it’s pulling out all the stops for its last 10 episodes.
Not only is much of the season building toward the highly anticipated Arrowverse crossover “Crisis on Infinite Earths,” the final episodes will pay homage to past seasons of Arrow and welcome back a myriad of returning characters in guest-starring roles.
Here’s what we know about Arrow’s final season.
When will Arrow’s final season premiere?
Arrow will be the last Arrowverse show to premiere this fall. The first episode of the final season will debut on Tuesday, October 15 at 9/8c on The CW.
Arrow will run on the same night as one of its spin-off series, The Flash, and will premiere on the same night The CW broadcasts the second episode of The Flash’s fifth season.
A new poster promoting Arrow’s last season was recently released, reminding fans to tune in to witness the end of the show that started a franchise.
Where it all began. #Arrow’s final season premieres Tuesday, October 15. Stream free next day only on The CW App! pic.twitter.com/BHjKexxdsB
— Arrow (@CW_Arrow) September 20, 2019
Arrow’s Cast
Stephen Amell returns to star as Oliver Queen/Green Arrow in the final season and much of his team is returning with him. That includes David Harewood as John Diggle/Spartan, Katie Cassidy as Earth-2 Laurel Lance/Black Siren, Rick Gonzalez as Rene Ramirez, and Juliana Harkavy as Dinah Drake/Black Canary.
In addition, Willa Holland, who plays Oliver’s sister, Thea, will be returning for the final episodes in a recurring capacity. Holland left the series in Season 6 after she began scaling back her involvement in Season 5, so her return for the final season will be an exciting addition for fans.
The second-generation characters who appeared in the flash-forward segments to Star City 2040 in Arrow’s seventh season will also be back. Katherine McNamara plays Oliver’s adult daughter Mia Smoak, Ben Lewis plays Oliver’s adult son William Clayton, and Joseph David-Jones plays Diggle’s adopted son Connor Hawke. The trio has been promoted to series regulars for the show’s final season.
In addition, Charlie Barnett will be joining the cast as the adult version of John Diggle’s Flashpoint-born son, John Diggle Jr., known as J.J.
One character who won’t be returning as a series regular is Emily Bett Rickards, who played Felicity Smoak since Season 1. She exited the series at the end of the seventh season. However, it’s always possible she’ll make a guest appearance at some point during the season.
Similarly, Colton Haynes, who plays Roy Harper, is not returning as a series regular for the final season, although that doesn’t rule out an appearance as a recurring character or guest star.
Returning Stars Galore
One of the most exciting parts of Arrow’s final season is all the stars it will be welcoming back as guests. So far we know we can look forward to seeing four long-deceased characters in the season premiere: Susanna Thompson as Oliver’s mother Moira Queen, Colin Donnell as Oliver’s best friend Tommy Merlyn, John Barrowman as Tommy and Thea Queen’s father Malcolm Merlyn, and Josh Segarra as former big bad Adrian Chase/Prometheus.
The second episode will see the return of Rila Fukushima‘s Tatsu Yamashiro/Katana. Byron Mann, who played Oliver’s mentor Yao Fei on the island of Lian Yu, will also reprise his role.
This season’s story
The details of the story for Arrow’s final season are largely being kept under wraps but we still have some information. Actor Stephen Amell has said that each episode of the final season will pay homage to a past season of Arrow. He noted, “Episode 1 is an ode to Season 1, and Episode 2 is an ode to Season 3. We’re playing our greatest hits.”
In addition, the episodes before the “Crisis on Infinite Earths” crossover will help set up the event. Furthermore, according to executive producer Marc Guggenheim, the episodes will see Oliver coming to terms with his pending demise.
As fans will remember, at the end of Season 7 after saving Star City, Oliver retired to a safe house to have his baby with Felicity. They lived a peaceful, isolated existence until the mystical Monitor came to collect Oliver to make good on his agreement to do whatever the multiverse required, a deal he made during last season’s crossover “Elseworlds” to save the lives of fellow superheroes, Supergirl and The Flash. The Monitor also broke the news that Oliver would die in the pending “Crisis.”
“Oliver [is told] he’s going to die, so each episode in the run-up to ‘Crisis’ has Oliver dealing with the various stages of grief that come with that discovery. So the theme really is coming to terms, acceptance,” Guggenheim explained.
Due to his work with The Monitor, Oliver will leave Star City in Season 8 to travel the world, and presumably other places and times in the multiverse as well.
Meanwhile, in Star City 2040, Mia, William, and Connor will work to form a new superhero team of their own. This will bring them into conflict with J.J. who is the villainous leader of the Deathstroke Gang.
Trailer
The CW shared a sizzle reel promoting Arrow’s final season during San Diego Comic-Con.
A series of photos providing a closer look at the season premiere was also released. They can be found here.
Arrow’s last season will air on Tuesdays at 9/8c on The CW. The season premieres on October 15.