Oliver Queen will not be wearing his wedding ring when Arrow Season 8 begins. That news will undoubtedly concern “Olicity” shippers. Hold on before you get too down in the dumps over the seemingly disheartening development. There is a reason for it, and none of it sounds like it has to do with Oliver moving on.
Oliver still has Felicity exactly where she should be: on his mind. As for his ever-symbolic wedding ring, there is a story to its absence. Discussing Arrow’s eighth and final season, Stephen Amell gave this update about how Oliver rings in Season 8, telling TV Guide:
She is ever-present in Oliver's mind. We found Oliver can't wear his wedding ring in the premiere for a very specific reason, but he can wear it in the second episode. And it wasn't built into the script, but I spoke to our director, Antonio Negret, and we built a moment of Oliver putting his ring back on and thinking about it. So Emily's gone, off the show, but Felicity and William and Mia are ever-present in Oliver's mind.
Oliver putting his ring back on should be quite a moment for Oliver and Felicity fans. Arrow will be without the power couple for the show’s final season, so this at least keeps her present. The huge question is why Oliver cannot wear his ring in the Season 8 premiere, yet he can in the next episode.
The mystery of Oliver’s missing ring goes even deeper. Arrow’s showrunner Marc Guggenheim took to Twitter to weigh in on its absence while responding to a fan. He also cleared up its status moving forward. Guggenheim wrote:
I don't know where you're getting this, but there's a very story-specific reason why Oliver CAN'T wear his ring in 801, but rest assured it'll be on his hand from 802 and beyond.
What is this “story-specific” reason? Arrow fans will have to tune in to learn for sure. Could it be an emotionally-charged decision? It makes sense that looking at it may be too painful for Oliver, who is separated from Felicity. It may serve as a reminder of the family he is missing, which also includes son William and daughter Mia.
Another possibility is there is something that makes it physically impossible. Could Oliver need to take it off for the sake of a fight sequence, or perhaps an undercover mission? Or could some kind of curse-like situation interfere with making it wearable? Magic does exist in the Arrow-verse nowadays! Stay tuned.
Fans knew that the husband and wife were going to be separated in Season 8. Emily Bett Rickards left Arrow last season, taking Felicity with her via a poignant ending storyline. Rickards’ absence is going to be felt. Talking about the direction of Season 8 at the 2019 Summer TCA Press Tour, Stephen Amell said:
I think that the show, as people have understood it and its structure I think it ended in our Season 7 finale. This year is fundamentally different. The episodes are events. And, to me, the show, as we constructed it, ended when Emily left.
Stephen Amell’s comments track with what David Ramsey (John Diggle), previously shared about making Season 8 without Emily Bett Rickards. Arrow will wrap up its storied run with 10 episodes, which include that epic “Crisis on Infinite Earths” Arrow-verse crossover. Here is hoping that Amell gets his top choice to appear in it.
The somewhat silver lining is that Oliver will not be miserable in Arrow Season 8, according to Stephen Amell. This, despite him being separated from his family. Ring or no ring, Oliver Queen is coming back for a final season of his solo series. Time will tell if it is really the end for him.
After this summer’s premieres, Arrow will return for its final season with its Season 8 premiere on Tuesday, October 15, at 8 p.m. ET on The CW. For now, you can watch the series’ past seasons on Netflix, among other premieres. Enjoy it while you can! It will not be possible forever.
