At a recent panel, one Arrowverse actor confirmed his return for The CW franchise's upcoming final spin-off episode.
The CW's take on the DC universe has been airing for almost 12 years, with Superman & Lois being the last remnant of the franchise still releasing new episodes.
The Arrowverse itself technically ended with the series finale of The Flash, but Superman & Lois (which takes place in the larger Multiverse of the Arrowverse) still has one season left. Its upcoming series finale at the end of Season 4 will mark the end of the franchise as a whole.
[ Superman and Lois Season 4 Release, Cast and Everything We Know ]
Arrowverse Actor Returns for Franchise Finale
At a FAN EXPO Philadelphia panel on May 4, The Flash's Tom Cavanagh (Harrison Wells, Eobard Thawne/Reverse-Flash) revealed that he will have a role in the Superman & Lois Season 4 finale.
In the clip from the panel shared by @DevsMastani on X (formerly Twitter), Cavanagh did not clarify who specifically he would be playing. Throughout the Arrowverse's various shows, he has played several variations of Harrison Wells and Eobard Thawne.
At the panel, Cavanagh, also a director of several Arrowverse episodes, explained that he is not directing Superman & Lois' finale. However, screenplay writer Todd Helbing asked him if he "would play a role" in it instead.
Cavanagh said that it is "something [he's] happy to have done:"
"So the finale for 'Superman & Lois' was taken up already, and so I said, ‘Well, I’m happy to not do it,’ which is when Todd was like ‘Well, would you play a role?’ And so that’s coming up, for those of you that watch ‘Superman & Lois’ — something that I’m happy to have done."
Cavanagh's first Arrowverse appearance was in The Flash, where he was a series regular (as several variations of his character) through Season 6. He has also appeared in almost every Arrowverse series with at least a cameo role.
In fact, before this announcement, the only two he had not appeared in were the two Arrowverse-adjacent spin-offs, Stargirl and Superman & Lois. He did, however, direct the Season 1 finale and Season 3 premiere of Superman & Lois, along with several episodes in other Arrowverse projects.
Cavanagh said that he enjoys directing "finales and ... premieres" for Superman & Lois "because you get so much more money."
He explained that since "they don't have another episode to do after that," it's easier to find the funds for more expensive sequences:
"So what was interesting about the final season of ‘Superman & Lois’ — like, I like to do their finales and their premieres, because you get so much more money, you know? And you get to do- When you’re doing a finale it’s like, ‘All right, I just want them to fight on top of a thing and then land on a girder,’ and then they’re like, ‘We don’t have any of the money.’ I was like, ‘Well find it’ and they don’t have another episode to do after that, so they find it. They’re great."
Cavanagh praised Helbing for being "ridiculously accommodating," adding that Helbing "knows that he can trust what we're doing." This trust, a result of having worked together on successful projects before, gives Cavanagh "a lot of leeway:"
"Todd Helbing — the showrunner — is ridiculously accommodating. When you work for a guy that knows, you know, like, we did the hundredth together, he knows that he can trust what we’re doing, and the vision’s going to be something that Warner Bros. is going to love. And once you do that a couple times, and Warner Bros. likes it, then you’re like… You have a lot of leeway."
[ Superman and Lois Season 4: First Look at Main Actors Revealed ]
Who Is Tom Cavanagh Playing in Superman & Lois?
It's hard to tell who exactly Cavanagh will be playing in his Superman & Lois appearance, but fans have enough information to start speculating.
There are several different versions of Cavanagh's main Arrowverse character, making it plausible that he will at least play some version of Harrison Wells or Eobard Thawne.
Cavanagh did return as the latter for The Flash's series finale in 2023, so there is precedent for that option. Besides, there are so many options for different variations of Harrison Wells throughout the Multiverse that it would not be too difficult to either bring one back, or even possibly introduce an entirely new one.
There is also the possibility that he will be playing an entirely new character, who just happens to look a lot like the Arrowverse characters Cavanagh portrayed before. In a world of superheroes and comics logic, that would not be the strangest thing to see happen.
However, it may feel like a disservice to some fans for Cavanagh to return in the very last spin-off episode of The CW's Arrowverse, and not be playing someone fans are already familiar with.
It seems likely that this appearance — be it a short cameo or a larger role — will be a tribute, of sorts, to the vast Arrowverse Multiverse. At the very least, it could fans a chance to say goodbye to the franchise they love with one of the characters who linked it all together in the first place.
Though no specific date has been announced yet, Superman & Lois will premiere on The CW sometime this fall.
Read more about the Arrowverse on The Direct:
How to Watch All Arrowverse Shows In Order (Chronological)
How to Watch All Arrowverse Crossover Episodes In Order
Arrowverse's Final Spin-off Show Loses 7 Actors as Series Regulars
Gillian Blum has been a writer at The Direct since 2022, reporting primarily from New York City. Though she covers news from across the entertainment industry, Gillian has a particular focus on Marvel and DC, including comics, movies, and television shows. She also commonly reports on Percy Jackson, Invincible, and other similar franchises.
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