Farscape fans should be happy to see Ben Browder back on their screens next Wednesday night on Arrow when he guest stars as Diggle’s former… Read More »PROMOS: ARROW 1×11 Trust But Verify
Next Wednesday’s Sam-and-Dean-go-LARPing Supernatural is the one I can’t wait for. It has it all: Sam (Jared Padalecki) and Dean (Jensen Ackles) Winchester investigate the deaths of two players in an elaborate Michigan live-action-role-play game, Moondoor: The Battle of the Kingdoms, filmed mainly in Coquitlam’s Mundy Park. Here they find one of my favourite SPN characters, hacker Charlie Bradbury (Geek Goddess Feclicia Day), is Queen of Moondoor, and Dean goes undercover engaging in medieval cosplay. TVLine’s sneak peek at The CW promo images of the episode are the first look at the actors on set, which was closely guarded by Supernatural crew during the several-days-long shoot in the wet park. I got access only after filming wrapped and cleanup crew packed up the tent below and other props.
Here’s a promo image of Dean in medieval garb with chain mail, a tunic and a shield and my photo of a prop portrait on the grass of the Queen of Moondoor looking a lot like the promo image of Felicia Day below.
While the two Js — Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles — provided eye candy for the People’s Choice Awards cameras last Wednesday night, Supernatural crew set up a shoot in the alley next to Century House downtown. Is the young lady with the fishnet stockings and pink platform-heeled shoes, Supernatural’s Kill of the Week? The man she chats with does walk away after their encounter, leaving her still standing, so we will have to wait and see. When the Winchester brothers did return to Vancouver, happy with the show’s two PCA wins — for Favorite Sci-Fi/Fantasy TV show and Favorite TV Fan Following — Supernatural crew had moved out of the alley and into Century House for Thursday and Friday afternoon and night shoots. Nothing was visible from the outside of this heritage granite building so there are no clues as to what went down under its Victorian chandeliers.
Stephen Amell’s Oliver Queen stole a motorcycle last night in downtown Vancouver’s Portal Park. Afterwards, Amell’s stunt double turned the bike around in a couple of 360s before roaring off. The next leg of the stunt was the bike racing from the roof of a yellow Starling City cab down onto West Hastings below, dodging prop traffic as it rides the yellow line to the end of the block. You can see one camera on top of a ladder on the right of the photo below and another at the end of the block near the intersection with Thurlow. Other legs of the stunt included riding down the stairs at Oceanic Plaza and up over the yellow Starling City cab. And there was talk of another segment across the Hastings pedestrian overpass. Unfortunately I couldn’t stay to see it all.
Newly-married Arrow star Stephen Amell shot a scene last night in the winter cold at downtown Vancouver’s Portal Park of his character Oliver Queen dressed in a sharp suit and stealing a motorcycle. You’d think a billionaire like Queen could toss the guy a few bucks to borrow his bike but the owner refused to give it up and Queen had to adminster a beatdown. Amell did the fake beatdown himself from several different camera angles until his stunt double took over for the stunt riding and Amell waved goodbye to a fan from his departing star car. Not long after, news broke on Just Jared.com that Amell had married his longtime girlfriend Cassandra Jean over the holiday hiatus in a sunset Caribbean ceremony on Christmas Day. That might explain Arrow fight coordinator James Bamford and his wife’s Caribbean snaps over the holiday hiatus. Wonder how many Arrow cast and crew attended?
James Callis (best known as Gaius Baltar from Battlestar Galactica) filmed scenes for Arrow on the Vancouver Art Gallery roof today while star Stephen Amell and co-star Katie Cassidy attended the People’s Choice Awards in Los Angeles. [Updated: As TV Guide reported last month, Callis plays international jewel thief The Dodger, who forces innocent people to carry out his heists under duress. When the Sherwood ruby goes missing in Starling City, Amell’s Oliver Queen will try to catch this elusive thief.]
So how did Stephen Amell end up on so many Best-of-2012 lists? Yes, Arrow is a huge hit for The CW but it wasn’t the Vancouver-filmed show that got so many mentions. It was Amell’s abs, especially as displayed in the famous salmon ladder scene of the pilot. Entertainment Weekly paid tribute to Amell’s six-pack when they named him a Breakout Star of 2012. Amell confessed to the magazine that he wasn’t “ripped” before landing his star-making role but used Brad Pitt’s physical transformation for Troy as his inspiration to become the hooded vigilante.
Perhaps Amell’s abs will be on screen again on Wednesday, January 16th, in Arrow’s tenth episode called Burned. [Update: May be no abs in this episode since Amell’s Oliver Queen is thinking of hanging up his hood for good after being beaten by the Dark Archer. That is, until Laurel asks for his help investigating the suspicious death of a firefighter.]
Here’s the logline:
Oliver goes up against an injured firefighter who, psychologically traumatized, has decided to take revenge on Starling City by commiting acts of arson while calling himself Firefly.
And the promo images featuring Stephen Amell’s Oliver Queen, Katie Cassidy’s Laurel Lance and guest star Andrew Dunbar’s Firefly.