Heroic actor of the week (1/13): Stephen Amell

In 2020’s first installment of Heroic Actor of The Week, we take a look at how Stephen Amell’s powerful performance made us all emotional in Crisis On Infinite Earths.

Welcome back to Heroic Actor Of The Week – a new weekly column here at Bam! Smack! Pow! that we kicked off last year to honor the talented performers from the live-action comic book world that just don’t get the appreciation they deserve.

Though most TV shows are still on their winter hiatuses – while some are still in between seasons – the Arrowverse made a dramatic return to television this week to air the final two installments of its five-part Crisis On Infinite Earths crossover between shows Supergirl, Batwoman, The Flash, Black Lightning, Arrow and DC’s Legends of Tomorrow.

Those final two episodes took place across the latter two of those shows, and saw the seven Paragons stand against the Anti-Monitor at the dawn of time as he tried to destroy the multiverse once and for all. But it was the person who inspired them to win that ultimately won our hearts with his performance.

Stephen Amell – Arrow

Oliver Queen’s journey throughout Arrow‘s final season was always destined to lead him to this point, but as he had cheated death already, we hoped he wouldn’t suffer the same fate twice. However, it was Stephen Amell’s differing performances throughout the penultimate installment that ensured we remained engaged and compelled no matter what outcome was inevitable.

He played The Spectre like a more stoic and reserved version of his original Arrow persona, calling on the early days of The Hood to reinforce that this figure was no longer just Oliver. There’s an irony in that because that’s exactly what Oliver wanted us to know in Season 1; he wasn’t just Oliver anymore; he had become something else. And as that’s what happened here, Amell’s nostalgic performance was inspired.

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But as gloriously ghostly as he was as The Spectre, it was his emotional turn in the closing moments of that installment – as Oliver lay dying looking up at the multiverse he had rebirthed – that stood out from everything else that the Crisis had given, just because of how darn melancholic it was.

Amell played the scene with a reserved calm, breaking his voice every so often to convey that Oliver was in physical pain, but ensuring that the glimmer in his eye reminded us that he wasn’t in any emotional pain… for this hero had completed his mission and it was now finally time to rest.

Stephen Amell, you have been nothing short of wonderful throughout Arrow‘s tenure, and it has been a pleasure to watch you bring Oliver Queen to life.

You Sir, did not fail this universe… you built it.

Be sure to catch Arrow’s installment this Tuesday, Jan. 21, as the special backdoor pilot episode for Green Arrow and The Canaries airs on The CW. You can rewatch Crisis On Infinite Earths on CWTV now.

Come back next Sunday to find out who our next Heroic Actor of The Week will be. In the meantime, you can check out our previous installments here.