We spoke with The CW’s Mark Pedowitz tonight and he didn’t let slip some big news that came today but Entertainment Weekly has managed to get a hold of – The CW is “edging close to a pilot order” for a Green Arrow television series, according to a report at EW.com.
The project will come from the same creative team behind Syfy’s Booster Gold project – Greg Berlanti and Andrew Kreisberg. Marc Guggenheim (Green Lantern) is also involved this time around.
Sadly, it will not star Justin Hartley, who played GA in the last few seasons of Smallville…. or at least, he is “not currently attached.”
The CW also has Deadman in development, and we’ll have a quote from Pedowitz on that in a little while.
What do you think? Would a Green Arrow series be “on target?” Who should play the Emerald Archer? Would you be okay with it not being Justin Hartley? Why didn’t a Green Arrow show spin off out of Smallville? Sound off at the KSiteTV Green Arrow forum thread!
UPDATE: Deadline is reporting that The CW is already “finalizing a deal” to shoot, and that the series title will be Arrow.
19 Comments
Why even make a Green Arrow show on the same network as Smallville if you’re not going to use the same iteration of the character. For starters, most people hadn’t even heard of Green Arrow before Smallville, secondly… If this were a different network like the Blue Beetle show, I could understand but this is the same network as Smallville, The CW. Why on Earth would they want to throw that kind of opportunity out of the window? Unless they’re just recasting, which I also think would be a massive mistake.
No Justin Hartley?–Me no watchy. No Chlollie?–Me no watchy. But thanks for getting half the idea right CW.
What? Why the dis on Justin? I hope this is his decision, because he is Green Arrow!
Yup, what Abby said.
OK… the idea is workable. Could be GA before he comes to Metropolis in Smallville or when he’s not there helping out Clark. So there’s plenty of good stories available. He’s got Star City already established as his burg. BUT after establishing the character so well SO RECENTLY, the CW will lose fans before they even start but not having Justin Hartley. Did they not learn from the recent WW debacle? You do not mess with things that work. They tried to change things for WW and what they got was completely ridiculous and unwatchable. Changing a character by changing the actor when the establishing show JUST BARELY ended would be a death sentence. The only reason there’s interest in using the character right now is because of Justin’s performance.
I’m fine with a no Chlollie thing because there’s so much story available before that relationship ever has to be mentioned. But to skip out on Justin is just stupid.
What abby and elizabeth said!
Was hoping for a smallville spinoff from the headline =/
Finally the CW is thinking outside the box and looking at what may work. its no brainer really Green Arrow is a character that can work on TV than the likes of Rave or Deadman. The more this is divorced from smallville the better, the show had a good run but time for a new fresh start. if its going to be a new show, it needs to be a new show. I dont think the show is doomed without Justin Hartley like some people want us to believe its the end of the world. It will be just fine with a good script.
If they did a show about “Chlollie,” that would be a guaranteed not-watch for me because that pairing ruined Smallville’s version of Green Arrow for me.
Then again, if it was a “Chlollie” show you wouldn’t even be reading this because I’d sooner blow my head off than face a world where we have to put up with more of that nonsense.
Without Justin Hartley and without the same characterization that he had in Smallville in the same network… WTH they think they are doing?
they had a almost done show, why throw it out the window?
without Chloe no me gusta but I can understand
I THOUGHT JUSTIN HARTLEY DID A GREAT JOB DOING THE GREEN ARROW. HE AND ALLISON MACK WORK WELL AS A COUPLE. IT IS RARE TO SEE A SERIES THAT WILL WORK. I HOPE THAT CW WILL CHANGE THEIR MIND AND HIRE BOTH ACTOR FOR THE NEW SERIES.
I’m open to it. As much as I love Justin, it would be a little difficult to cast him without backlash from all the Chlollie fans (shoot me if any more material of that couple is shot, it ruined both characters for me). If they go for more of an origins story, a la Smallville, I would watch it, goodness knows that I’m watching nothing on TV right now.
“Chlollie” ruined both characters for me, too. :(
WITHOUT JUSTIN GREEN ARROW WOULD NOT BE THE SAME. HE DID A GREAT JOB AND HE HAS ALREADY DEVELOPED A CHARACTER WE ALL CAME TO LOVE IN SMALLVILLE. IF THE CW IS GOING DO DO A GREEN ARROW SHOW THEY SHOULD CONTINUE IT AS A SPINOFF OF SMALLVILLE & POSSIBLY DEVELOP THE JUSTICE LEAGUE FROM THE EPISODE JUSTICE FROM SMALLVILLE.
I have mixed feelings about the Chloe character, i thought Allison Mack was great, however if the GA is going to be the “spin-off” then it must have Justin, will definately loose to much of a fan base, but not sure that you can have a long running series with the Chloe/Oliver thing. I wished the series would be more based on the Justice League characters but there is great potential and plenty of material to write for the GA series to be a hit. It was time to move Smallville onto something else, I agree with you LATTIE, im really stuck on what the writers started with the League, its a shame that the spin off wasnt named METROPOLIS(sp), I thought that there would be plenty of great comic book stories to carry that show through another 5 years or so. Petros L and Elisabeth ann- i like the way your thinking. Either way if they attempt to do GA with Justin H, IM IN. I already miss the Smallville Cast!
Without Justin, I won’t bother watching. CW is just stupid if they think this will fly.
I would only watch this if Justin plays Green Arrow
I think I’m the opposite of most of you – I’d be most interested if they go new with it. Which is not to say he wasn’t great… it just means there are a lot of complications to his character that I don’t think would be very appealing for his own show.
As much as I enjoyed JH as the Green Arrow, I would be fine if this new show were to be a reboot. I just need something to watch now that Smallville’s over! lol
The only way I would be okay with it not being JH is if it did what Smallville did- start at the beginning- then I would understand, but if it’s after Smallvile, then I would be upset for them to change what they have already created with the fandom! … make sense?? haha ;)