Big Things Coming To Arrow In Season 3

As we draw closer to the Season 3 premiere of Arrow, more and more details are coming to light about the highly anticipated season.

Many questions are being asked of course, and CBR had some answers given to them by the cast of Arrow.

First up, what’s Ra’s role in Season 3?

“For Season 3, we wanted a new challenge for Oliver. [Ra’s] really speaks to the emotional theme of the season, which is, ‘Can I be both the Arrow and Oliver Queen at the same time?’ The villain says to Oliver, ‘The reason you’re not able to fully be the Arrow and do the things you should be doing is because you’re still holding on to Oliver Queen. I’ve left my identity behind to full commit to my cause. If you did that, you could rise as high as I am.’ Knowing that was emotionally what we wanted to do, that was how we landed on [Ra’s].”

Cool, definitely different than what we’ve seen before with Merlyn and Slade. And definitely something that Ra’s has been in the comics.

Another question that arises is the role of Ray Palmer, who in the comics is superhero The Atom who is able to adjust his size. We know he’s in the show and being played by Brandon Routh, but will he suit up by seasons end?

“Last season, with the Mirakuru and obviously with ‘The Flash,’ it’s given us a little bit more license to have some less grounded stuff on ‘Arrow.’ That being said, Ray is actually coming in with a very grounded story,” Like a lot of the characters we see on the show, him actually putting on a costume and doing whatever it is that they do in the comics might be a long time coming. Right now, we’re a lot more focused on Ray Palmer — who he is and whether he’s good or bad. The backstory will actually tie into things you’ve already seen that you might not have realized, and it does feel very real and very grounded.”

And what of Roy Harper? Who has been confirmed to be doing the costume and name Arsenal this season? What development will he have? And how much history will they pull from the comics?

“I’ve asked about that myself, and I’ve asked about the drug addiction and the possibility of things like Cheshire,” the actor teased. “They haven’t ruled any of it out, but they have reminded me that it’s very expensive to CGI someone’s arm out, and I really don’t want to cut mine off. So I don’t think we’ll see any of that very soon, but we will see a lot of people from Roy’s past that are prominent and give the other characters a run for their money. We’re going to see and hear about some of Roy’s family this year.”

Also he has some fun with Felicity…

“He has this real funny thing with Felicity. They’ve turned into this thing where it’s like that scene in ‘Bridesmaids’ where they’re all trying to one up each other. That’s basically Emily and I this season. It’s nice to see the lighter side, because if you go back to the cartoons and comics, Roy is a little quippy.”

Between that and all the excitement that the flashbacks (now in Hong Kong) will bring, a new twist in the tale of Diggle, and the no doubt innumerous surprises we’ll have along the way, Season 3 of Arrow is shaping up to be something special.