'Arrow' season 8: Release date, cast, plot and everything you need to know about the Emerald Archer's final installment
It has been that kind of a year for Oliver Queen and team Arrow. But come the eighth season (confirmed by CW), the team will push forward and continue to fight evil and crime. Since its premiere in 2012, the show has spanned seven seasons and has had crossovers with fellow DC series- Supergirl, The Flash and Legends of Tomorrow. Here's what we know so far about the upcoming season.
Release date
The eighth and the final installment of the series is slated to premiere on October 15, 2019.
Plot
Season 7's final episode saw Mar Novu aka The Monitor (LaMonica Garrett) make an appearance in the final few minutes to collect Oliver Queen aka The Green Arrow (Stephen Amell) to hold up his end of the bargain. (In exchange for saving Barry "The Flash" Allen and Kara Danvers, aka Supergirl, Oliver promised to give " whatever the multiverse requires to survive the crisis that is looming when it is time."
This means that the final season would see Oliver and The Monitor traveling to other worlds to warn of the upcoming crisis and with his death foretold by Mar Novu, the last act of defiance during the crisis and a supreme sacrifice would certainly be an apt send-off to the Arrowverse's original hero. Connor Hawke is expected to have a bigger role in the final season so we can probably hope to see more of the future introduced in Season 7 as well. Oliver's daughter Mia Smoak will also have a bigger role to play this season.
Cast
Stephen Amell is back as the titular Arrow aka Oliver Queen for the latest outing, while Emily Bett Rickards, who plays Felicity Smoak will not be appearing for the final season. The recurring cast includes Echo Kellum as Curtis, David Ramsay as John Diggle, Rick Gonzalez as Rene Ramirez/Wild Dog, Juliana Harkavy as Dinah Drake, Colton Haynes as Roy Harper, Kirk Acevedo as Ricardo Diaz, and Katie Cassidy as Laurel Lance. Joseph David-Jones, who plays Connor Hawke, John Diggle's adopted son from the future, has been promoted as a series regular for season eight of 'Arrow'.
On July 4, former 'Arrow' showrunner Marc Guggenheim shared a new costume design that he confirmed was not for Oliver Queen, suggesting that a new character might appear in the new season.
Katherine McNamara, who plays Oliver's future daughter Mia Smoak, is also expected to return for the final season. McNamara has been promoted to series regular for the final season. Oliver’s mother Moira Queen, played by Susanna Thompson, has also been confirmed to be returning for Season 8.
Rila Fukushima, who plays Tatsu Yamashiro aka Katana on the show, has been confirmed to be returning for Season 8. Meanwhile, Haynes revealed he has not been asked to return as a series regular for the final season, though he may still make guest appearances in a few episodes.
Josh Segarra, Colin Donnell, John Barrowman and Susanna Thompson will be appearing in the final season, reprising their roles as Prometheus, Tommy Merlyn, Malcolm Merlyn and Moira Queen, respectively. Manu Bennet, who played Slade Wilson/Deathstroke on the show, revealed he was not asked to return for season 8.
Byron Mann is another familiar face who will be returning to the series in its final season. He will be reprising his role as Yao Fei, one of Oliver's earliest mentors. Willa Holland will also be returning to the series in her role as Thea Queen / Speedy, Oliver's younger sister.
Director/writer
The series is based on DC Comics and will be developed by Greg Berlanti, Marc Guggenheim, and Andrew Kreisberg.
Trailer
A teaser for 'Arrow' season 8 was unveiled during SDCC 2019. The video pays tribute to Oliver's journey from being a rich brat to becoming the hero of Star City. Many of the greatest moments in the show's history are highlighted and the teaser ends with Oliver saying "Just one more thing I gotta do."
The final trailer for the upcoming season was released on September 24. It shows Oliver struggling to come to terms with his impending death. The trailer features scenes from moments in Oliver's past and also a glimpse at the future with an army of Deathstrokes led by Diggle's son John Jr. Willa Holland returns as Speedy in the trailer as do a lot of other familiar faces including Tommy Merlyn and Katana. Finally, we hear a voice saying 'This year is repeating itself', suggesting some sort of time loop, before the clip ends with Oliver greeting his mother with teary eyes.
The final trailer for the upcoming season was released on September 24. It shows Oliver struggling to come to terms with his impending death. The trailer features scenes from moments in Oliver's past and also a glimpse at the future with an army of Deathstrokes led by Diggle's son John Jr. Willa Holland returns as Speedy in the trailer as do a lot of other familiar faces including Tommy Merlyn and Katana. Finally, we hear a voice saying 'This year is repeating itself', suggesting some sort of time loop, before the clip ends with Oliver greeting his mother with teary eyes.
News
The show developers revealed that the final season of Arrow will consist of ten episodes. The final season’s abbreviated run means Arrow will wrap up shortly after this fall’s “Crisis on Infinite Earths” crossover with The Flash and Supergirl (and possibly Legends of Tomorrow). CW President Mark Pedowitz hinted at the Television Critics Association Winter Press Tour in January that the special event will take "some big swings".
Stephen Amell shared the following post to announce that the shooting for the final season has begun:
According to The Wrap, executive producer Beth Schwartz confirmed during the Television Critics Association summer press tour that despite the season's multiverse-hopping theme, most of the action will take place on Oliver's home of Earth-1.
Amell revealed some dialogue from season 8 on Twitter through posts shared on August 26 and September 3. The first one was reportedly from the season premiere. The first tweet read: "Dialogue from the Season 8 Premiere of Arrow: If I let you help me, you will get hurt or you will get killed and it will be because of me. You don't know that. I do know that. #ACrisisIsComing"
The actor doesn't specify which episode the second tweet is from but it deals with family and loss, familiar themes for 'Arrow' that have been reiterated quite a few times. The tweet reads: “I need... my family... to live. Which means... that I need this to work.”Judging from the samples, it would seem there are some truly heartbreaking moments coming up for Oliver and his family in the final season.
Watch this space for more updates on 'Arrow' season eight.
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