For fans of comic books, Floyd Lawton, also known as Deadshot, has been one of the most popular fixtures of DC’s Suicide Squad comics, possibly eclipsed only by the popularity of Harley Quinn. The character has become so well known that he also took part in The CW’s Smallville, where he was played by Bradley Stryker; and in an upcoming film adaptation of Suicide Squad due in 2016, where the role will be played by Will Smith.
Michael Rowe‘s take on Deadshot in Arrow has been arguably the most popular adaptation to date. He made his first appearance in the show’s third episode back in 2012 and has appeared in a handful of episodes since. With every episode, we seem to learn more about Floyd Lawton, and in a new Arrow episode airing on The CW tonight at 8PM ET, titled “Suicidal Tendencies,” we will learn even more.
We spoke with Rowe yesterday to find out what we can expect from the episode, especially considering Floyd Lawton’s past with the Arrow’s right hand man John Diggle.
KSITETV’s CRAIG BYRNE: At this point, are Lawton and Diggle at a place where Floyd might get an invite to Diggle’s wedding?
MICHAEL ROWE: You know what? I think in Floyd’s mind, maybe they are; but he definitely didn’t get one, so he does the opposite thing and shows up to ruin the honeymoon.
I hear we’re going to learn a bit more about Floyd this week. Is there anything you can tease about that?
One of the cool things about these bad guys, especially when you get the chance to play them, is getting into their backstory and seeing what makes these guys tick. I always looked at Floyd as somebody who’s damaged; not evil, so I wanted to see what damaged him, and you get to see a bit of that this week. You get to go back before Floyd was Deadshot, and see some of the events that changed his life and sent him on that trajectory through life and made him realize what he thinks his life should be, and how he was going to cut himself off from society.
When you first got the role of Deadshot, did you expect it to be a role that would be able to grow like he has over the years?
When I first read the script and I read that Deadshot gets a arrow to his face, I had my doubts. The only thing I had to go on was that under the audition, it said “potential recurring.” Everybody on set had their theories about it, and they were suspecting that I would come back. I think Stephen Amell himself said “I think you’re gone for good, man.” Like, “see you later!” But then when they aired it, the fans started having all these conspiracy theories, like “if you replay that scene again when he’s lying on the ground, you can see his jugular flexing, so his heart’s beating… so he’s not dead!”
Nobody told me one way or another. I just ended up getting the call near the end of the season, saying “we’re going to bring him back for another round,” and I was like “all right! Sweet! Let’s do it.”
And it just built from there.
Yeah. I’m just a guy who’s lurking around in the shadows all the time. You never know when he’s going to pop up, and to be honest, for me as an actor, it’s kind of the same thing. I’m never under contract with the show, but if I get a call saying “it’s time to suit up and get back into action”… that phone rings, I answer it, and game on.
How does the Suicide Squad factor in to this story?
Basically, it starts out with the wedding. Floyd doesn’t really get down with all this lovey-dovey bullcrap, so the fact that there’s a wedding going on… he really just loves that moment of showing up to spoil it for them. He and Diggle have an interesting dynamic, but Floyd really loves giving it to Diggle.
Diggle tends to have the ability to accidentally make Floyd give up his truth; his emotional stuff, and Floyd doesn’t like that.
We are killers. We have a mission. Life is dark. Life is nasty. [Diggle needs to] get suited up. It’s time to ride into the darkness together.
How does Floyd get along with Cupid (Amy Gumenick)?
Floyd’s got his problems, but Floyd’s a smart guy. He’s got a code that he applies to life. He’s got these principles, although it may be way out of the norm, but he operates by this system. When he meeds Cupid, he sees her in a way that “this chick’s crazy.” She’s off the charts nuts. He finds little moments to point that out, but at a certain point, he does save her, and so all of this stuff that he’s been listening to about her obsession with the Arrow… it’s all put on him instantly after that moment. How he deals with that is pretty hilarious.
This interview is long, so navigate below to read more:
1 Comment
Really like this guy. You know he got away. He lied about not having an escape. He will always have an escape plan. He will be back.