DC Studios co-CEO James Gunn addressed Green Arrow's potential role in the DCU reboot. Green Arrow has only been adapted twice before in live-action, both of which took place on The CW across Smallville, played by Justin Hartley, and the Arrowverse, where he was brought to life by Stephen Amell. The latter Canadian-born actor starred as billionaire-turned-vigilante Oliver Queen in eight seasons of Arrow and featured in crossover events with The Flash, Supergirl, and more.
Many were eager to see Green Arrow appear in the DCEU and Zack Snyder's Justice League saga, with Rebel Moon star Charlie Hunnam reportedly turning down the role from "some people in suits" (via ComicBook). Of course, those movies were developed similtaneously with Amell's tenure on The CW, which culminated with Arrow Season 8 and the "Crisis on Infinite Earths" crossover event in January 2020 when Oliver Queen sacrificed himself to rebirth the Multiverse.
James Gunn and the 11th Street Kids cast completed their journey of clearing up Peacemaker canon questions in a recent episode of the show's official podcast, and, in turn, commented on Green Arrow's canon status in the DCU.
Oliver Queen is just one of many DC superheroes that John Cena's Peacemaker pokes fun at in the HBO Max show's freshman outing, stating that he "goes to Brony conventions dressed as the back half of Twilight Sparkle." As Peacemaker Season 1 took place in the old DCEU, while this year's second exists in the new DCU, many have been eager to uncover what remains canon.
Addressing whether Peacemaker's Green Arrow reference is canon and confirms the Emerald Archer's existence in the DCU, Gunn stated he is "not willing to say yet," noting that "maybe he exists, maybe he doesn't:"
“I don't know, I'm not willing to say yet. We don't really know. We don't have Green Arrow as part of our system right now. So maybe he exists, maybe he doesn't."
The DCU boss seemingly referenced Green Arrow when explaining why he nerfed Superman in an interview with CBS Mornings. He that as they are "building a whole universe," he wanted to avoid any one character being too strong that "a guy with a bow and arrow didn't matter:"
"As a child, the reason I liked Batman better than Superman was because Superman was just too strong at times. We're building a whole universe of characters, and I didn't want to have one guy who was so much stronger than anybody else, that a guy with a bow and arrow didn't matter."
The last live-action Green Arrow actor, Stephen Amell, addressed the future of his DC superhero when the reboot was announced, saying that he will eventually be recast and it will be "new and cool and exciting." He also noted that whoever plays Green Arrow next will "do an amazing job:"
"There will be another Oliver Queen. There will, and it'll be new and cool and exciting and however much the internet hates it is probably a direct indication as to how good it's going to be. You've got to remember that these people aren't picked at random. Very, very smart people think long and hard about how they're going to go about this, and I'm sure that whoever they pick, if in fact they do, maybe they don't care about the character, I don't know, will do an amazing job."
With James Gunn refusing to make any commitments on Green Arrow's status, it seems doubtful that John Cena will be delivering any more references to Oliver Queen when Peacemaker returns for Season 2 on Thursday, August 21.
How Will Green Arrow Join James Gunn's DCU
James Gunn seems eager to remain non-commital on whether Green Arrow is already active in the DCU with his "maybe he exists, maybe he doesn't." That decision makes plenty of sense, as his note that Green Arrow "isn't part of [their] system right now" indicates he isn't currently in development.
By leaving the door open on Green Arrow's canon status, Gunn has left the door open to his inevitable DCU reboot being an origin story or picking up years into his superhero career, as he already did with Superman and will again with Batman.
While one Lanterns actor hinted at his potential Green Arrow casting, it seems Raising Hope actor Garret Dillahunt will instead play conspiracist cowboy William Macon. As such, the jury is still out on when Green Arrow will join the DCU, with no clear place for him in any of the confirmed upcoming projects.
Whenever Green Arrow joins the DCU, hopefully, he will lean more into his comic roots than The CW's Batman-esque adaptation. One unique path could be a romantic-comedy movie that pairs him off with Black Canary, given that they are one of the most iconic superhero couples in history.
Regardless, DC Studios has enough projects announced to carry its slate for several years and Green Arrow is unlikely to be a priority. This means fans may not see him until 2030 and beyond, provided the DCU keeps on winning.
