The CW treated fans of their DC primetime lineup to a massive info-dump about upcoming seasons of Supergirl, The Flash, Arrow, and Legends of Tomorrow on Thursday during their TCA Press Tour presentation.
The Flash, Supergirl Musical Crossover Episode
Among the big reveals comes word that The Flash and Supergirl will have a musical crossover episode (yes, you heard right) later in the season — that’s in addition to the epic 4-night crossover that’s planned.
Executive Producer Greg Berlanti gathered on stage with his fellow DC show producers (Andrew Kreisberg, Marc Guggenheim, Phil Klemmer, Aaron and Todd Helbing, Ali Adler, Sarah Schechter, and Wendy Mericle) where he told press that the musical crossover would include “mostly pre-existing” songs, but that the writers would like to create one original song for each episode.
Supergirl Casts Miss Martian and Mon-El
Sharon Leal (Grimm) is joining the cast of Supergirl as Miss Martian this season. The character — no relation to Martian Manhunter — is best known as a member of the Teen Titans.
Chris Wood (Containment, The Vampire Diaries) will play Mon-El. Kreisberg confirmed that he’s the one inside the Kryptonian pod revealed during the final scene of the last season’s finale. Mon-El’s arrival is instrumental in the much-hyped emergence of Superman (Tyler Hoechlin) on the show.
Savitar Is the New Flash Villain, and Flashpoint
We’ve known for a while that Tom Felton would be playing Doctor Alchemy on The Flash this season, but the identity of another villain was revealed. “The other big bad is Savitar, another speedster,” Todd Helbing told the audience. Savitar, who’s costume design and story seem like they’re going to be a departure from the source material, is primarily Wally West nemesis in the comics.
We also learned more about the “Flashpoint” event and how long it may impact the show. Kreisberg: “The events of ‘Flashpoint’ are going to not only reverberate throughout the rest of the season but throughout the rest of the series. Part of Barry’s journey is learning that you can’t mess with time without [there being consequences], and sometimes you can’t put everything back again the way it was. There are going to be permanent changes — some big, some small. The show will still look like The Flash, but there are changes that we’re really excited about.”
How Will Flashpoint Impact Other Shows?
While we won’t know all of the specific ways in which “Flashpoint” impacts all of the other shows in the Arrowverse until they premiere in October, Greg Berlanti did provide fans with a little clarity.
“Supergirl, it doesn’t — in that she is on another planet in another universe,” he explained. “Legends… the Legends are dealing with an unmovable timeline that they’re working on week to week until they make their first appearance in the crossovers. Arrow… you’ll find out over the first couple of episodes a few of the mild [changes]. They’re not significant, but they become a little bit more emotionally significant,” Berlanti said.
Dolph Lundgren Joins Arrow for Last Season of Flashbacks
“This is the last year of the flashbacks. We always said that Oliver had a five-year journey when he was marooned,” Guggenheim said. “This year, Oliver spends his time in flashbacks in Russia. The flashback story in the first half of the year is going to involve Oliver’s introduction in the Bratva.” And the flashbacks will feature Dolph Lundgren, star of Rocky VI and Universal Soldier.
Wendy Mericle says that this season will be a bit of a reset with the shakeup of Team Arrow. “Diggle had left the team, Thea had left the team. In a way, we’re kind of starting over, going back to our roots,” she said. “Oliver will still be out there, so we’re exploring him as a hero in both a traditional sense as a mayor and also as the Green Arrow.”
Obsidian Joins Legends of Tomorrow
Lance Henriksen (Aliens, Millenium) will join the cast of Legends of Tomorrow during their upcoming season. He’ll play Obsidian, a member of the Justice Society of America. In the comics, Obsidian is the son of the original Green Lantern, Alan Scott. If the show stays true to his origin, fans might get some Green Lantern Corps easter eggs this season.
Henriksen will star alongside other new Legends cast members including Patrick J. Adams as Hourman, Matthew MacCaull as Commander Steel, Sarah Grey as Star Girl, and Maisie Richardson-Sellers as the new version of Vixen (see below).
Legends of Tomorrow’s Vixen first look. @maisie_rs pic.twitter.com/F3MSQpVH4j
— Marc Guggenheim (@mguggenheim) August 11, 2016
Other DC CW News
- The four-way crossover will feature a global threat that brings the heroes together.
- A significant character will be coming out as gay this season, and CW Seed will debut a new animated series, Freedom Fighters: The Ray, about a gay hero.
- Supergirl, The Flash, and Arrow will each have 22 episodes this season — that’s down one from 23 last year. And Legends of Tomorrow will have 13, though more could be added if the network orders them.
