Arrow's cast and crew have made no bones about Oliver's time in prison being rough, and, apparently, those scenes are taking quite a toll on actor Stephen Amell. He took to social media to inform fans he's getting his butt handed to him, and that filming Season 7 thus far hasn't been the easiest time he's had on the show by a long shot:
Yikes. Stephen Amell's makeup (we're hoping its makeup, anyway) in the video shows that Oliver isn't having the best time in prison and appears to indicate he's gotten into quite a few scrapes in the first handful of episodes. Amell, who sounded exhausted, revealed that the first four episodes of filming have been more physically taxing for him than they've been throughout the entirety of the other seasons. Considering the incredible shape Amell is in, that's really saying something about Oliver's prison life!
Stephen Amell is looking slightly more healed than his worst appearance in the Arrow Season 7 trailer, although that's not saying much. The trailer showed lots of Oliver getting the better of quite a few would-be attackers in prison, but those black eyes appear to indicate someone gets the jump on him eventually. That's not really surprising, though, as we're guessing every villain he's had locked away wants a piece of him, so now it's just a question of who on the inside is capable enough to handle the Green Arrow in a fight.
That's assuming anyone is, of course, as Oliver Queen's bruises and gashes might be nothing compared to the battered criminals he's overcome. After all, Season 7 will pick up months after Oliver's initial confinement, which means he may have accumulated those various boo-boos and ouchies throughout the course of several battles. That said, Stephen Amell hinted that Oliver may not be so heroic upon his arrival in prison, so maybe those bruises are more of a result of him being a little bit out of practice and finally deciding to be a hero again regardless of his situation.
On another note, Stephen Amell's update could appear to hint that Oliver's prison stay will at least last 4 episodes. The constant prison battles and action scenes would justify the actor's exhaustion, although so would some elaborate prison break, even though fans probably aren't expecting Oliver to jeopardize Team Arrow's immunity just because of a few beatings. The positive side to all this is that the beatings aren't real, and while Amell might be wiped following each day's filming, it sounds like he's working hard to give Arrow fans the most action-packed opening episodes the series has seen in quite a while!
Arrow returns to The CW for Season 7 on Monday, October 15 at 8:00 p.m. ET. It's just one of the many superhero shows will air this year, so head over to our superhero premiere guide to find more. For a look at what other new shows are coming to television in the near future, visit our summer and fall premiere guides.
