ARROW Executive Producer On The Show's Depiction Of Laurel Lance

ARROW Executive Producer On The Show's Depiction Of Laurel Lance

"You know, it’s been somewhat hard, I think, for Katie and us to hear some of the criticisms of her character because we don’t do anything without thinking about it," said Arrow EP Andrew Kreisberg.

By MarkJulian - Jan 15, 2014 02:01 AM EST
Filed Under: Arrow

Arrow executive producer Andrew Kreisberg spoke with TV Line about the back half of season 2 and touched on some of the criticism fans have of the show's depiction of Laurel Lance, played by actress Katie Cassidy. "You know, it’s been somewhat hard, I think, for Katie and us to hear some of the criticisms of her character because we don’t do anything without thinking about it," said Kreisberg. Fans (myself included at times) have commented that it seems Laurel is often an after thought on the show and that it seems she is very far from becoming her costumed alter-ego, the Black Canary. But Kreisberg says to have patience. "One of the great things about having as much success as we had in Season 1 was the freedom to allow things to unfold the way that they should. We’ve always had a fantastic plan for Laurel’s character, and I know that there’s impatience out there in the world to see her “strap on the fish nets” [as Black Canary] but everything we’re doing is all about leading up to that in a the way that we feel keeps it the most realistic and grounded. To take somebody who is a public interest lawyer and turned her into a super hero… you have to go through the paces. So this season we’ve really been putting her through her paces. We always think of these things as chapters, and these next four episodes are really about Laurel. She’s taking center stage as she begins to suspect that Sebastian is not exactly who he seems."

The next four episodes of Arrow are said to be very Laurel-centric. All new episodes for Arrow resume tonight on The CW at 8PM EST/PST.

RELATED CONTENT:
ARROW's Colton Haynes On Suiting Up As Arsenal
ARROW's Colton Haynes Getting A Costume Soon?
Steven McQueen For Nightwing On The CW's ARROW?

The CW Arrow season 2


ARROW season one is available on blu-ray and dvd now.


Running Time: 60 min
Release Date: (Season Two) October 9th, 2013
MPAA Rating: Tv-14
Starring: Katie Cassidy, Stephen Amell, David Ramsey, Byron Mann, Colin Donnell, Colin Salmon, Paul Blackthorne, Emily Bett Rickards, John Barrowman, Roger R. Cross and Willa Holland
Creators: Greg Berlanti, Marc Guggenheim, Andrew Kreisberg
Characters: George Papp (character) and Mort Weisinger (character)

"After a violent shipwreck, billionaire playboy Oliver Queen was missing and presumed dead for five years before being discovered alive on a remote island in the Pacific. When he returns home to Starling City, his devoted mother Moira, much-beloved sister Thea, and best friend Tommy welcome him home, but they sense Oliver has been changed by his ordeal on the island. While Oliver hides the truth about the man he’s become, he desperately wants to make amends for the actions he took as the boy he was. Most particularly, he seeks reconciliation with his former girlfriend, Laurel Lance. As Oliver reconnects with those closest to him, he secretly creates the persona of Arrow – a vigilante – to right the wrongs of his family, fight the ills of society, and restore Starling City to its former glory. By day, Oliver plays the role of a wealthy, carefree and careless philanderer he used to be – flanked by his devoted chauffeur/bodyguard, John Diggle – while carefully concealing the secret identity he turns to under cover of darkness. However, Laurel’s father, Detective Quentin Lance, is determined to arrest the vigilante operating in his city. Meanwhile, Oliver’s own mother, Moira, knows much more about the deadly shipwreck than she has let on – and is more ruthless than he could ever imagine."
ARROW Star Stephen Amell Claims They Tried To Make A GREEN ARROW Movie But Warner Bros. Killed It
Related:

ARROW Star Stephen Amell Claims They "Tried" To Make A GREEN ARROW Movie But Warner Bros. "Killed" It

ARROW Star Stephen Amell On Why He Didn't F***ing Appreciate James Gunn's Jab At Green Arrow In PEACEMAKER
Recommended For You:

ARROW Star Stephen Amell On Why He "Didn't F***ing Appreciate" James Gunn's Jab At Green Arrow In PEACEMAKER

DISCLAIMER: As a user generated site and platform, ComicBookMovie.com is protected under the DMCA (Digital Millenium Copyright Act) and "Safe Harbor" provisions.

This post was submitted by a user who has agreed to our Terms of Service and Community Guidelines. ComicBookMovie.com will disable users who knowingly commit plagiarism, piracy, trademark or copyright infringement. Please CONTACT US for expeditious removal of copyrighted/trademarked content. CLICK HERE to learn more about our copyright and trademark policies.

Note that ComicBookMovie.com, and/or the user who contributed this post, may earn commissions or revenue through clicks or purchases made through any third-party links contained within the content above.

1 2
Kurne
Kurne - 1/15/2014, 3:00 AM
I don't care about her suiting up and I honestly forgot about her eventually becoming Canary because of how annoying she is atm.

I can wait for the Laurel-centric episode.
bazinga85
bazinga85 - 1/15/2014, 3:13 AM
At least they're not rushing her transformation. They really do need to improve the writing of her character though, it's the one flaw this season.
Firgosaurus
Firgosaurus - 1/15/2014, 3:24 AM
They should send her to jail. Get her hardened and shit. Nah mean. This way she'll also get exposed to gangs and shit.
tricklove187
tricklove187 - 1/15/2014, 3:26 AM
I just like looking at Katie Cassidy. She could be the janitor for all I care.
Freek
Freek - 1/15/2014, 3:27 AM
So he is telling us to have patience. That truly is quite encouraging. Afterall, the producers are all about fan service and having our faith in them rewarded. I just hope she gets fishnets if she doed become the canary. Awesome show!
SuperSomething616
SuperSomething616 - 1/15/2014, 3:29 AM
Nice way of saying...

"Yeah we've dropped the ball with Laurel so far but are planning on sorting that out"
Freek
Freek - 1/15/2014, 3:30 AM
@Firgosaurus-lol exactly. Cuz the way things are going for her, she needs MAJOR hardening. Something faar worse than the 5 years Oliver suffered on the island
6of13
6of13 - 1/15/2014, 3:40 AM
I actually like the idea of Laurel becoming Black Canary. But even though Sarah used a sonic device, I would like to see Laurel as Black Canary with the voice sonic cry.
Freek
Freek - 1/15/2014, 3:50 AM
@6of13-Amen!
GUNSMITH
GUNSMITH - 1/15/2014, 3:53 AM
I HAVE FAITH HE'LL MAKE IT HAPPEN.
CaptainPresley
CaptainPresley - 1/15/2014, 3:57 AM
Love Laurel. Live Katie. Bring it!
GUNSMITH
GUNSMITH - 1/15/2014, 3:58 AM
GUNSMITH
GUNSMITH - 1/15/2014, 4:00 AM
LOOK AT HER SHE FOINE.
Shaanyboi
Shaanyboi - 1/15/2014, 4:01 AM
It's not about her not being Black Canary. It's that her character is basically a black hole. Not one, but I suppose now two dumb love triangles. Ridiculous flip-flopping about "he's a killer, he's a hero, he's a killer, he's a hero" just gives you no reason to believe anything she says. Her being the most un-fun, uninteresting soap opera character on the show... The writers aren't doing anything good with her.
Freek
Freek - 1/15/2014, 4:01 AM
@jollem-wow that's a badass pic. Now if Ollie could loolh just like that in Arrow. *sigh* accurate character adaptation; my one and only problem with Arrow...
mgeoff88
mgeoff88 - 1/15/2014, 4:01 AM
Laurel will become the second Black Canary. I doubt she'll be rocking the famous fishnet stockings considering Laurel mentioned she hates them in season 1.

I think something happening to Sara will cause Laurel to take up the mantle.

@AutoFreek She has taken some self defense classes, so she isn't completely harmless.
batmanvsuperman
batmanvsuperman - 1/15/2014, 4:05 AM
I love Katie and her character but just keep caity lotz as canary she really know how to fight and she really fit the profile of black canary
GUNSMITH
GUNSMITH - 1/15/2014, 4:17 AM


GUESS:::SARAH REVEALS HERSELF TO LAUREL, LAUREL IS AT A LOW AN LOSES EVERYTHING, SARAH TRAINS HER TO REFOCUS HER, LAUREL FINDS OUT SHES CANARY, SOMETHING HAPPENS TO SARAH..LAUREL TAKES UP HER SISTER'S MANTLE OF BLACK CANARY.
Freek
Freek - 1/15/2014, 4:24 AM
@shaanyboi- she's looking for someone to blame for the death of Tommy and Arrow, in her mind, is the best person to fill in.
As soon as I realised that she started to make more sense to me
Freek
Freek - 1/15/2014, 4:47 AM
Gliderman. I bet u said that after u saw the pic above u
Freek
Freek - 1/15/2014, 4:50 AM
@jollem think about it. Ollie in comics, tv shows(hell even a little bit of him in smallville) all share the key personality that Ollie in Arrow evidently lacks. Don't get me wrong tho, ARROW RULES!
Freek
Freek - 1/15/2014, 5:18 AM
@Jollem-lol. Billy Madison?
Supershadowbat
Supershadowbat - 1/15/2014, 5:18 AM
I'm glad Kreisberg and company are being patient and careful in developing characters on Arrow.I've hear all the time on other shows from fans that when a character all of a sudden changes " Oh that doesn't make sense". Here they want to give you reasons and a progression of incidents that will show why a character went to the next step. That is good character development and world building. Arrow is a great show.
RikerDonegal
RikerDonegal - 1/15/2014, 5:40 AM
Sounds good to me.
So far, Laurel hasn't really worked for me, but that's not Katie Cassidy's fault. I've been a huge fan of her in everything she's done. So far, Laurel has been kept in isolation, interacting with nobody except Oliver in a 'love story' that hasn't worked. The writers need to give her something to do, somewhere she she interacts with others in a storyline that isn't (a) romantic, (b) one where she's in danger. There are many ways they could make her heroic and interesting to the audience. A downward spiral (like the one this year) isn't it. The sooner she becomes heroic and selfless (like all the other characters) the sooner we will embrace her. Her defining characteristics, up to now, have been her conflicted, but mostly negative feelings towards Oliver and his alter-ego. Once they drop that, perception of her will change.
patrat18
patrat18 - 1/15/2014, 6:23 AM
I have faith in them.
Gamera623
Gamera623 - 1/15/2014, 6:39 AM
Wow I feel stupid.
I thought Laurel was to become Black Canary... But once season 2 revealed her sister as the character I just assumed thats the way it is on this show.

So this news that Laurel will eventually become Black Canary is surprising to me.

Arrow IS the best comic book TV show out there. Better than SHIELD, Smallville or Walking Dead.
megabatfan
megabatfan - 1/15/2014, 7:01 AM
I don't mind the waiting process of Laurel becoming Black Canary. The thing is, up to now, the way they've written the character, she's so boring & annoying i hav no interest in her. Therefore none in her becoming Black Canary. I wudn't mind if Felicity became BC, because her character is more interesting
megabatfan
megabatfan - 1/15/2014, 7:13 AM
@RikerDonegal
Well said. Thats exactly the prob with Laurel. Hope the next Laurel-centric episodes really work on that
1 2
View Recorder