The end is truly near for Arrow.
Not only is the series finale nearing the end of filming, but The CW has now given that finale an airdate of Tuesday, January 28, less than three months away.
On November 6, Stephen Amell posted a pic of him in costume, writing “Tonight is the last night I wear the Arrow suit.” A few hours later, he posted a Kevin Hart gif. “Just took my boots off for the last time,” he wrote.
Amell was also the one to announce the biggest news of the finale: the fact that Emily Bett Rickards will return as Felicity Smoak one last time, after leaving the series at the end of season seven.
That’s all a lot for longtime fans of the series to take in, but it seems like it’s a particularly and understandably emotional time for Amell himself.
Back in August, when the season had just started filming, we sat down with Amell to talk about the show ending and he admitted he was crying pretty much constantly.
“I’m full of emotions. And my daughter just turned 17, but she was five last year. I’m not in a great spot,” he told us. “I cry every day. I’ve cried every day since the season started.”
At the time, he claimed he didn’t know exactly how the show was going to end, but he was (jokingly) rooting for a death that would get some serious fan reaction.
“I want it to be really sad, like catch people off guard. Not because I think it’s the best path for the character, but because I love reaction videos on Youtube. And I want to make people, like, really angry, like yelling and stuff like that at their TVs. Throwing a remote, maybe? Ugly crying. Stuff like that. I want it to be like the Red Wedding.”
Hopefully Amell wasn’t serious, but we’ll find out in a few months.
The show is currently anticipating Oliver’s death in the impending Crisis, but took a break from that problem for a moment to welcome Oliver’s kids from the future, who were suddenly brought back in time by the Monitor with grim news of what Star City eventually becomes.
The crisis will play out over episodes of Batwoman, Supergirl, and The Flash in December, then will pick up with Arrow and Legends of Tomorrow in January.
Arrow airs Tuesdays at 9 p.m. on The CW.