Behind the scenes of The CW epic crossover event hits a fever pitch when a supergirl reveals a caped crusader that is braver and bolder than anything fans have seen!
As if this week couldn’t get anymore exciting for fans of The CW hit shows The Flash, Arrowand Supergirl with the revelations that the cast of this season’s epic CW crossover event “Elseworlds” added recurring guest star John Wesley Shipp into the mix wearing a very familiar costume suggesting a “Flash” from the past will be suiting-up for the adventure, Supergirl headliner Melissa Benoist took to social networking to introduce what looks a braver and bolder pairing, guest star Ruby Rose in fall Batwoman gear!
Though the audience has known since it was announced late this summer at San Diego Comic-Con that the DC TV trinity would be heading out of the comfort zones of their respective home turfs and visiting neighboring Gotham City to introduce the newest caped wonder, little else has been exposed of the “Elseworlds” theme surrounding this year’s event. Along with the pics of John Wesley Shipp apparently in his classic 1990 Flash suit, fans have also glimpsed Stephen Amell and Grant Gustin wearing each other’s battle fatigues, and a black-clad Superman!
The anticipation surrounding this year’s crossover has never been more exciting, and given that it appears to have scaled down the story arc by excluding the crew from DC’s Legends of Tomorrow and perhaps even avoided working in the cast of the newest series Black Lightning it appears the showrunners are taking this opportunity to introduce through the proverbial “backdoor” the continuing adventures of Batwoman especially since FOX announced this would be the final season for their Batman prequel Gotham.
Check out the image of this World’s Finest pairing from behind the scenes here:
The roster of guest stars appearing in this year’s “Elseworlds” crossover event expands and includes a Flash from the past — 1990 to be precise!
It was the sonic boom heard round the world this week! As fans hungry for more information on the upcoming #DCTV crossover event that will once again bring together the casts of The CW hit series The Flash, Arrow and Supergirl over 3-nights beginning December 9 got more revealing pics from the set. This year’s theme is “Elseworlds” and as early indicators denote, the shows will be taking a page ripped right from the DC Comics imprint that relates alternative narratives depicting the brand’s most iconic characters.
In essence, “Elseworlds” breaks all the rules!
Fans have known for some time that this season’s story arc would finally take our heroes beyond the limits of their comfortable surroundings; with the introduction of Ruby Rose, the actress tapped to bring to life Batwoman, one of Gotham City’s own most popular defenders. Giving rise to much speculation that the Arrowverse would be adding to its canon of characters. With Tyler Hoechlin reprising his role as Superman it certainly appears like the DC TV landscape is quickly expanding its landscape to encompass the comic worlds biggest names.
What Da What?!
Another curveball was dealt to the enthusiast audience when the official “Elseworlds” teaser poster was released which shows our heroes Oliver Queen and Barry Allen have apparently borrowed one another’s secret identities. Stephen Amell who has long worn the mantle of Star City’s Green Arrow has assumed the scarlet suit most familiarly associated with Grant Gustin who stars as The Flash. Gustin was given a new ensemble this season which is the most streamlined version of his outfit, but most significantly, it springs forward from his newly acquired Flash ring!
Though it hasn’t been explained why the heroes have swapped places, one explanation more reside in the presence of another character that has been confirmed to be a part of the “Elseworlds” drama — fans familiar with The Monitor (who will be played by LaMonica Garrett) will recognize the name from the titular Crisis on Infinite Earths event which is perhaps the most defining publishing stunt ever undertaken by a comic book company. Effectively the 12-issue maxi series, released in the 1980s streamlined the then-50 year old DC Comics multiverse.
The addition of The Monitor to the “Elseworlds” storyline has definitely raised the stakes as the “Crisis” storyline has been teased as potential television continuity first glimpsed in The Flash pilot. The “disappearance” of Barry Allen has resurfaced as a major component of the new 5th Season of the series with the mysterious arrival of Barry and Iris’ (Candice Patton) daughter Nora from the future. Whether this is another indicator of The Monitor interfering in the affairs of our heroes has yet to be revealed!
On set of a pivotal moment from the upcoming CW crossover “Elseworlds”, Melissa Benoist as “Supergirl”, Stephen Amell dressed as “The Flash”, John Wesley Shipp in his 1990 “The Flash” suit and Grant Gustin in the hood of the “Green Arrow” are ready for battle.
And Then This Happened!
As if the crossover wasn’t already shaping up to feature the most anticipated moments of the season, this week it was revealed that The Flash recurring guest star John Wesley Shipp would be reprising his role, though not the role that fans of the show have come to associate him with. Shipp was spotted on set and first revealed publicly in an Instagram post released by Stephen Amell which showed the actor standing alongside the TV trinity suited up as The Flash from Shipp’s own 1990 where the 2-time Emmy Award winner headlined as the Scarlet Speedster!
The news has stunned social networking which is now eager to learn more about the 1990 hero’s appearance, and more importantly how The Flash (1990) will play into the narrative of “Elseworlds”. Both Amell and Grant Gustin (as well as Shipp himself) have since released more behind-the-scenes photos , including another still from Marc Guggenheim that shows The Flash (1990) appearing inside of ARGUS, suggesting that his presence in more than just a random cameo for fan-service.
A comic-con convention favorite Shipp has often elaborated on stories with his fans of the challenges of shooting the series in the 90s and especially how cumbersome the suit was, especially in comparison to his new uniform as Earth-3’s “Golden Age” Flash, Jay Garrick. The Flash’s team of costumers and wardrobe experts headed by Kate Main are responsible for rebuilding the iconic suit from the 1990s show (that’s right) which had to be reconstructed from scratch since few of the original components of the outfit were up to shoot standards.
John Wesley Shipp shared this photo on Instagram of himself in the recreated suit from The Flash (1990) along with designer Kate Main who was tasked along with her team to bring it into the present for the upcoming crossover event.
For Shipp, who had publicly proclaimed he’d never “get back in a super suit” this will now be the second time he’s had to eat his words, though it’s clear from the reaction on set as well as from fans across social networking, the reemergence of The Flash (1990) has inspired a new wave of nostalgia, as audiences welcome Shipp (1990) back especially just in time as the 30th anniversary of his own series in fast approaching!
Expect the unexpected this season when The CW DC TV crossover event takes its heroes to the edges of uncharted new frontiers when the limitless ELSEWORLDS of possibilities opens the flood gates to an all-new adventure.
The final frontier of superhero storytelling has just been breached! Cisco Ramon may be able to navigate the multiverse, but even he isn’t prepared to surf the wave of what’s about to hit! This season when the epic 3-night crossover event plays out on The CW it will take the primetime heroes to the farthest reaches and beyond of the multiverse as The Flash, Arrow and Supergirl venture into the depths of the “Elseworlds”. For fans familiar with the DC Comics publishing stunt, you know, all bets are off!
The “Elseworlds” storylines often explored in the books have included some of the most surprising and dynamic new spins on well established favorites. From steampunk universes, to vampiric legions of superheroes, under the “Elseworlds” banner DC creatives turned the multiverse on its ear and introduced unbelievable new possibilities. So how is that going to translate now that it has been revealed that when the primetime heroes unite for their annual crossover event they’ll be entering into the realm of “Elseworlds”?
It can mean anything! Since the debut of The Flash in 2014, the crossover stunt, then with its sister series Arrow, has become undoubtedly the most anticipated broadcast event of the season. Since then the DC primetime universe has expanded to include Supergirl and DC’s Legends of Tomorrow. The series have crossover and joined forces to face an immortal foe, repel an alien invasion, battle an alternate-earth’s Nazi regime in cinematic blockbuster style. And with the exception of the newest hero in the primetime lineup Black Lightning has featured an all-star cast!
Gotham Knights!
It was first mentioned as far back as this summer, during San Diego Comic-Con that this year’s crossover would introduce a new hero onto the scene and expand on the world of the Arrowverse. With Batwoman played by Ruby Rose featuring as a major player and Gotham City, the home of the Caped Crusader himself Batman, the backdrop onto which the crossover will play out, and it was also confirmed that this year’s event would focus solely on the primetime trinity, centered on The Flash (Grant Gustin), Green Arrow (Stephen Amell) and Supergirl (Melissa Benoist).
It has also been revealed that another antagonist from the DC Comics multiverse will be intervening on events when The Monitor makes his primetime debut. The character was of course instrumental to and at the center of the publishing company’s biggest comics event, 1985’s Crisis on Infinite Earths. The classic 12-part limited series was written by Marv Wolfman and George Pérez and marked a significant reboot (the first of many to come) in the DC Comics universe. What will that mean to the events about the spool out in the “Elseworlds” crossover?
LaMonica Garrett has been cast as “The Monitor” in this season’s crossover epic.
Entertainment Weekly reported LaMonica Garrett from ABC’s Designated Survivor has been cast in the role of and will be playing The Monitor, Mar Novu. How this character’s presence will impact the primetime series narrative going forward is yet to be determined, but the race of Monitors, tasked with keeping the multiverse intact, may be an indicator of what DCTV fans have always hoped, and that is the inevitability of the “Crisis” storyline playing out as was suggested in “The Pilot” episode of The Flash.
Former Lost alum Jeremy Davies will be playing the crossover’s main villain, Dr. John Deegan who is a dangerously unscrupulous physician in attendance in Gotham City’s Arkham Asylum For the Criminally Insane. Deegan in some way sets in motion a series of events that will bring our heroes to Gotham City and in the crosshairs of one of the city’s ardent defenders. The “Elseworlds” event will also incorporate some additional heavy lifting that will come in the form of Supergirl’s famous cousin, as the Man of Steel, Superman is reportedly joining the team!
“Elseworlds” The CW’s DC crossover event will air Dec 9.
The Flash Family welcomes a new speedster, but exactly what does it mean for Team Flash and especially Barry and Iris when the arrival of their “future daughter” opens up a whole new box of crazy in Season 5 of THE FLASH!
Congratulations! It’s a girl! Leave it to superheroes, not withstanding all the labor pains and all, the cliffhanger of Season 4’s The Flash revealed that newlyweds Barry (Grant Gustin) and Iris (Candice Patton) had been stalked all year by a “mystery girl” who finally introduced herself as Nora West-Allen — their daughter (wait for it) from the future! If it wasn’t for her timely intervention, Nora played by new series regular Jessica Parker Kennedy, the final outcome of The Thinker’s dastardly plan might have been drastically different!
So why did Nora, after revealing herself to her family, make that cryptic announcement that she’s made a “terrible mistake”? Certainly the dangers of time-traveling, or more specifically traveling back in time, have become a poignant plot thread in previous seasons of The CW hit series based on the DC Comics character. So why does time-travel keep creeping back into the series’ story arc, and how does the threat of a new villain, the long-lived cultist Cicada played by new series regular Chris Klein play into Nora’s arrival in The Flash’s present? Stay tuned!
Fans won’t have long to wait for the premiere of Season 5, of The Flash which launches Tuesday, Oct 9 and is promising to be one of the most dramatic and exciting seasons yet, raising expectations indeed. Among some of the threads that will be further explored this coming year is more of Caitlin Snow (Danielle Panabaker) and her backstory, which will include the introduction of her father. It is being speculated that Caitlin has in fact always been a super-powered metahuman and that she’s had control over the cold since she was a child.
The latest publicity art (as seen on E! News) from the upcoming season puts the West-Allen Family front and center and also further details Nora’s super suit and her alter-ego of XS. Many eagle-eyed fans may have also noticed that The Flash himself is undergoing some changes. Series show-runner Todd Helbing is promising that the super suit will be much more closely aligned with the character’s classic look from the comics, and will also introduce the hero’s ring which has been teased before.
Season 5, of The Flash premieres Tuesday, Oct 9 on The CW.
Guaranteeing a high-powered evening of crime fighting, The CW’s Tuesday night is raising the wattage on action and adventure when BLACK LIGHTNING returns for Season 2!
Though the mild-mannered alter-ego of high school principal Jefferson Pierce may have enjoyed some anonymity in the past, given the superhero’s popularity and longevity Black Lightning has proven a formidable ratings success in The CW’s primetime line-up. Starring Cress Williams in the title role, the one-time outsider arrived on the scene as a mid-season replacement, but will be rightfully paced after The Flash on Tuesday nights when the series returns for Season 2 in October!
In fact the artwork for the upcoming new season is properly situating the rising star and adapting the style of a slick 70s gangland cop feature to prove how electrifying Black Lightning really is. The legend of the Black Lightning unfolded in his premiere season as the once retired metahuman vigilante is forced back into action to defend the corrupt streets of Freehold. Black Lightning is not alone in his vendetta against the criminal Tobias Whale; he’s partnered up with his daughters Thunder (Nafessa Williams) and Lightning (China Ann McClain).
The series producers are insisting that Season 2 will have a more super-powered presence, with the hint that additional metahumans may be introduced challenging Black Lightning, or saddling up as new allies. This might suggest that members of the hero’s DC Comics team The Outsiders may make appearances; the sword-wielding Katana played an important part on a couple of seasons of Arrow. It has been hinted that Black Lightning is part of the DCTV Arrowverse, a cross-over is less likely, at least for the moment, though fans are still holding out hope.
Like its sister-series Supergirl — it is inferred that Black Lightning takes place on an alternate-Earth within the DCTV multiverse.
Black Lightning returns for Season 2 on The CW, Tuesday, Oct. 9 @ 9/8c. The Complete First Season is available now on Blu-ray, DVD and Digital Download.
The CW is promising to raise the capes promoting its 3-Night DCTV crossover event bringing together the most iconic characters! Just follow the signal!
The Arrowverse is about to get much bigger this season! When our DCTV heroes return from their summer hiatus to reclaim The CW primetime, they’re going to be bustling with all kinds of new adversaries and challenges to face! On The Flashafter facing off against The Thinker, Barry and Iris (Grant Gustin and Candice Patton) will have to deal with the mysterious arrival of their daughter — from the future! On Arrow Oliver Queen (Stephen Amell) finds himself in prison, and on Supergirl (Melissa Benoist) there’s a doppelgänger loose!
Although many of the details surfacing about the upcoming series appear to suggest that this season the stakes have never been higher, Arrow is entering into uncharted territory with its Seventh Season. After one of the most perilous attacks on his family and friends, the Green Arrow has had to fend off against attacks from all sides, but even Oliver (Amell) couldn’t escape the feds and at the conclusion of last season, our hero found himself incarcerated for his activities as Star City’s hooded vigilante, so how will the Arrow fair against the Bat?
The CW DCTV crossover events have become the most highly anticipated spectacles of the year, and every season the writing team has found themselves delivering on bigger, blockbuster storylines. The first big crossover event featured an “Invasion!” the second a “Crisis on Earth-X” and now it looks like our heroes will be heading into uncharted territory when the find themselves in Gotham City. The epic 3-night event will introduce Batwoman, the costumed alter-ego of Kate Kane who has been cast by Ruby Rose.
Arrow Crossover Credit: The CW
Caped Crusaders
This season’s 3-night event begins on Sunday, Dec 9 with The Flash on a special date and time, and continues on Monday, Dec 10 on Arrow and will conclude on Supergirl also airing on a special date and time, Tuesday, Dec 11. Noticeably missing from the line-up the additional CW DCTV shows DC’s Legends of Tomorrow and Black Lightning. The team series will be experiencing several shake-ups when it returns in the fall, including a shuffling of its roster which will now include the demonologist John Constantine (Matt Ryan).
As to how the story will unfold when the three titular heroes venture into the underworld of Gotham City, is still under speculation. The stomping grounds of DC Comics’ Dark Knight Detective have been mentioned in relation to their relevance in the Arrowverse on several occasions, including Bruce Wayne, though this will be the first time that characters connected to Batman will be appearing inline with The CW series. Gotham which is now entering into its fifth and final season on FOX has not necessarily suggested to exist inside the same continuity.
Whether Ruby Rose will be following suit (similarly to how Grant Gustin spun out of Arrow into headlining The Flash) and reprise the role of Batwoman in her own series is still being negotiated by the network, but the expectation is that Batwoman will be joining the line-up as a mid-season replacement. The actress has received mixed reactions to her casting as the openly gay character; Ruby Rose is herself part of the LGBTQ community, and among only a handful of actors working in Hollywood who identify as “gay”. Regardless she will undoubtedly slip beautifully into the role.
Among the heroes and guest stars that have been confirmed to join the cast and properly welcome Rose into the primetime family are Tyler Hoechlin who will be reprising his role as the Man of Steel, Superman first introduced on Supergirl. It has also been reported that Lois Lane will also be appearing in the crossover, though the actress to play the part has yet to be cast.
ICYMY | Crisis on Earth-X
While we sit and wait for December to roll around, the current Blu-ray releases of the latest releases of Arrow | The Complete Sixth Season and The Flash | The Complete Fourth Season feature all four-parts of the epic crossover “Crisis on Earth-X” from last season. The four-night event traversed all-four of The CW primetime series and featured the largest gathering yet of costumed heroes on television. The year will certainly prove to be something special. As to whether the additional series DC’s Legends or Black Lightning will connect is yet to be seen.
