Arrow: Stephen Amell Brings Oliver Queen’s Hooded Justice to TikTok

Though he’s currently hard at work on the second season of his & Alexander Ludwig‘s pro-wrestling STARZ drama series Heels, we think it’s become pretty clear (as you’ll see later on) that Stephen Amell would be more than willing to throw back on the hood, go gravel voice again & grab a bow and some arrows for a return as Arrow hero Oliver Queen if the need arises. Well, apparently one of those “needs” arose a few days ago, and we have 26-year-old Texan Katey Lorrell to thank for bringing the Emerald Archer out of retirement (or pocket universe), If you know TikTok then you know that Lorrell became a serious social media sensation when she fell against her bedpost while showing off her outfit, letting out a scream (we think?) that ended up launching millions of wonderfully-crafted mash-up videos. And Amell was one of those who couldn’t resist, donning a green hoodie and rocking an “air bow-n-arrow” (like an “air guitar” only “air deadlier”) to lip-sync some very famous words before letting fly some pointy justice… thus leading to the (in)famous “scream.”

Here’s a look at Amell’s contribution to the TikTok zeitgeist (with additional props going to anyone or anything that gets Amell back under a hood and slinging arrows again:

@stephenamell #duet with @kateylorrell ♬ original sound – Kate ????

Back in August 2021 when he was a guest on the Hero Nation podcast with Deadline Hollywood‘s Dominic Patten and Anthony D’Alessandro, Amell was open and honest about the final two seasons. Basically, he didn’t want to come back for them. From a creative standpoint, he believed that the show had “done everything” it could after six seasons and that the filming structure had become too formulaic. Amell also found it “frustrating” how the series was always passed over for recognition and awards consideration. While Amell makes it a point of giving individuals their due, it was pretty surprising to hear just how creatively burnt out he was by the time the sixth season wrapped. So who convinced him to stay? Arrow producer Greg Berlanti– and it looks like it took Amell becoming “Green” Arrow in an entirely different way for it to happen.

“I just thought that I had another year, and I thought that I had more in the tank, more that I wanted to share with this industry and this career that I’ve chosen, and I wanted to be inspired again,” Amell explained. “So Greg Berlanti, who’s way smarter than I am, as evidenced by his prolific nature in film and television, convinced me… He basically put me to a place where it would’ve been fiscally irresponsible to not do a seventh season and then complete it with a truncated eighth season.” During his appearance on the Inside of You podcast with host Michael Rosenbaum in November 2020, Amell revealed that there was a time over that summer when production on Heels was riddled with huge question marks. But since Amell was already quarantining, wanting to work, and on stomping grounds that he got to know for eight seasons of Arrow, he decided to give Berlanti a call. Amell’s pitch: he’s already in the area and since The CW shows might be having issues getting American actors over the border, why not whip up another season of Arrow or at least keep it “on the radar,” as Amell asked Berlanti to do: