Remember that sort of half-rumor that spread like wildfire recently after the dude who plays Arrow on The CW program said he’d talked to somebody about a possible Justice League movie, and through a game of telephone, it became fact that D.C./Warner mapped out a massive crossover event between its television properties and the developing cinematic universe? Yeah, it turns out that’s all pretty much bullshit.
Or so Stephen Amell would like to clear up. In a refreshing bit of celebrity honesty, the star of the TV program Arrow took to Facebook to clear up the way his admittedly vague quote about a JLA movie was handled by irresponsible members of the fanboy press. Here’s Amell’s statement. We’ll discuss below:
When I do press, I try and be open, honest and thoughtful. That being said... I find it incredibly discouraging to see a headline like the ones I've been seeing this morning. Headlines that aren't just a stretch, they're totally fabricated. At no point, have I had 'studio level' discussions about any feature films at Warner Bros.In this particular instance, when I read articles that take a pretty straightforward answer and slap a title on it that has little to no correlation to what I've actually said, it makes it seem as though I'm disrespecting my current position. Which is bullshit. And why would I do that? I mean... I'm not the smartest dude in the world. (After all... I picked a career in acting.) But would I really just casually subvert a process cloaked in secrecy? A process - by the way - being run by the company who currently employs me. C'MON!We're making a kick ass show. We will continue to make a kick ass show. And I will continue to interact and provide interesting content for our fans. Because I love our fans. If every once and a while, some dickweed wants to pull a headline out of thin air to generate page views, then that's the price we pay.
We’ve all seen movie news Web sites chase the fumes of a potential story. Hell, we’ve been guilty of it here at CB. A star says something in context of an interview, and we interpret. But the original Amell quotes about his "meetings" struck us as vague from the get-go. We had discussions about how to handle it. Ultimately, we left it alone (partly because our beloved TV guru, Kelly West, vehemently opposes an amazing show like Arrow having to change its strategy to accommodate a feature film that’s still years away).
But Amell’s wrist slap delivers a healthy dose of, "Slow the hell down." Not every quote uttered by a star selling a television program is a confirmation of a casting decision.
Part of the reason we entertain these notions at all is because we have so long to wait for the actual D.C. movie to reach theaters. As you know, Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel sequel has been delayed. And even though it has Batman and Wonder Woman in it, there have been no concrete indications that this will morph into a Justice League of America movie. Arrow is safe on TV. And Amell, no doubt, will be more cautious the next time he sits down with a media member.
