Katie Cassidy’s character Laurel Lance was the second character to don the mask of Black Canary in The CW’s superhero show Arrow. At the end of season 4, Laurel Lance died heroically, setting an impossible example for every Canary that comes after her and breaking Oliver Queen’s (Stephen Amell) heart at the same time. The effects of Laurel’s death can be felt in the current season of Arrow in the way that Oliver is treating his latest batch of recruits, as well as in the changes to his relationship with Felicity. Star City even commemorated Canary with a statue in her likeness on the waterfront.
There have been speculations swirling about whether or not Katie Cassidy will be returning to the Arrowverse. We have seen her in the role of the Black Siren (her evil Earth-2 counterpart) on The Flash and she even returned to Arrow for the fifth season’s premiere and the 100th episode. All of this has left fans to guess whether or not she will be returning to any of the shows in either a permanent or temporary fashion. After all, nobody stays dead in comics, right?
As reported by CBR, Arrowverse executive producer Greg Berlanti confirmed during the Television Critics Association winter press tour that CW superhero show fans have not seen the last of Laurel Lance:
“We made a deal at the end of that season to bring her back for a bunch of episodes. Katie is a part of the fabric of the show. Because the show, like a comic book, can move in different ways, and characters go and come, everybody that’s ever been a part of the key and core ensemble has always had a place at the table for our show. There’s the capacity for her to be [in all four shows]. At this moment, she’s in three of them.”
It seems that there is a definite possibility for Laurel is crop up in Flash, Supergirl, Legends of Tomorrow - she will be in season 2 of Vixen! - in addition to her appearance on Arrow that we know is coming up in the midseason premiere.
One of the most interesting things about Laurel potentially cropping up across the board is the possibility for characters to play in other sandboxes outside of big events and crossover episodes like Invasion. It expands the universe and the chance for working relationships (team ups!), between the respective bubbles that each show exists between.
If Laurel is going to be cropping up in the entire slate of CW superhero shows it begs the question: Why bother killing her in the first place? There is a feeling of taking a step backward in order to soften the blow of her death from last season. It’s the same question that arises every time a character is brought back from the dead on one of the television shows or the comic books that inspire them. However, it remains unknown whether or not Katie Cassidy will be playing Laurel Lance, Black Siren, or even someone else across the CW slate of shows. Perhaps she will be the first character that we will see four different versions of across four different television shows.
Arrow season 5 resumes with ‘Who Are You?’ Wednesday January 25 at 8 pm on The CW.
Source: CBR
