Inarguably, when asked to picture Green Arrow, most fans would unquestionably imagine Stephen Amell, who has portrayed the character for almost a decade now. The CW’s Arrowverse takes its name and earliest success from the adventures of their take on Oliver Queen, but many comic book fans see little resemblance between Amell’s bow-wielding hero and the character from the source material.
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Oliver Jonas Queen was created in 1941 by Mort Weisinger and George Papp. The character is and has always been heavily inspired by Robin Hood, but the earliest version also took inspiration from the film serials of the era. The character swiftly became a hero heavily reminiscent of Batman, even including a nemesis who was a clown. The big change came in the late 60s, thanks to artist Neal Adams and writer Douglas O’Neil. Queen gained his distinctive Van Dyke facial hair and best-known costume, as well as a newfound socially conscious angle. He toured the US with Green Lantern, debating the finer points of leftist political discourse. His personality was dialed up, shifting towards a good-natured and humorous figure. That element faded from Queen after the 60s, but has returned with some force in the most modern comic book iterations. While there have been many subtle changes in Queen’s character over the years, the one that takes up most public imagination of the character represents only a tiny part of the character’s history.
The Oliver Queen of Arrow has been compared to Batman since the pilot premiered. A lot of fictional characters and just about every hero without superpowers have to deal with a certain amount of minor comparisons to Batman, but Arrow’s Queen is not a cosmetic similarity. He’s grim, he’s brooding, he’s laconic, he comes across as tortured, and he never seems to be having any fun. His outfit bears only the slightest tint of the color that’s in his name, and it winds up looking pitch black in the show’s dark visual style. An episode of the show out of context could be confused for a series about any number of other minor heroes, save for the occasional appearance of a bow. Arrow gave audiences a version of Oliver Queen that tons of people like, but most recognize as radically different in tone, personality, and presentation from his source material. If given another chance, the character could shine as many fans already know and love him.
Green Arrow was set to be introduced into the DCEU as a supporting character of a perspective Black Canary film, which would have followed Birds of Prey. That deeply underrated film underperformed at the box office, leaving Black Canary’s solo project in limbo and Green Arrow’s DCEU fate unclear. The DCEU will undoubtedly be continuing forward undaunted as the years go on, so it feels like a matter of time before Oliver Queen joins the proceedings. However Queen makes his way into the larger DCEU, as a solo project or as a featured role in a future team-up, all eyes will be on the new version of the character who started the Arrowverse. Oliver Queen could be made a distinct and interesting character by leaning into the aspects of the character that made him distinct way back in the 60s. Having to exist in a world with a Batman, if not several, would be an uphill battle for TV’s Oliver Queen, but the movies can preempt that problem.
Social messaging is common to modern film, for better and for worse. Often, characters who don’t actually represent specific real-world themes are bent and broken to better fit the message. Oliver Queen is the perfect character to slot easily into a politically active and socially conscious superhero story. In addition, his classical Robin Hood design aesthetic and playful persona could place him amongst the more fun corners of the DCEU, millions of miles from Snyder’s gloomy Gotham, but substantially more grounded than Shazam. Green Arrow could find the perfect place in the DCEU, even with minimal screen time. His Marvel equivalent, Hawkeye, was a bit player in multiple films before his first solo project. Green Arrow could uplift the entire DCEU and carve out a solid groove for himself in the process.
Green Arrow has tons of fantastic stories, iterations, and unique spins on his character, so it’s a shame most people only know the hero for the TV version. The DCEU could introduce a more classic take on the character, update him for the modern-day, and let audiences fall in love with Oliver Queen all over again. There’s no telling when or if he’ll join the DCEU, but it’ll be interesting to see how Green Arrow finds the screen this time.
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