It's safe to say that Tom Cavanagh played one of the greatest villains in DC Comics history. But the actor is also in a very unique position, because he also played one of the best heroes, too. For when he took on the role of Harrison Wells in The Flash season 1, we couldn't have known that it would lead to a nine-season stint of playing Eobard Thawne, a.k.a. Reverse-Flash, in the Arrowverse as well as multiple different heroic versions of Harrison Wells.
It's true; while he recurred as Reverse-Flash throughout the show's run, his main role was alternate versions of Wells. Throughout his time on the show, he played Thawne-Wells, Earth-2's Harry Wells, Earth-19's H.R. Wells, Earth-221's "Sherloque" Wells, and "Nash" Wells from an unknown Earth (as well as his alternate persona of Pariah). He also cameoed as alternate versions of the character before bowing out with an extended stint as the original Harrison Wells, now known as Timeless Wells.
However, he chose to leave The Flash as a full-time cast member in season 7 along with castmate Carlos Valdes. Here's why.
Tom Cavanagh wanted to move on after playing multiple different Wells characters
It goes without saying that Tom Cavanagh had a heck of a run on The Flash. The initial Man in the Yellow Suit arc that the show's first season told is widely regarded as one of the best slow-burns in TV history. The reveal that Harrison Wells, Barry Allen's close trusted friend and ally, was actually his future archenemy the Reverse-Flash in disguise could have very well ended after one season. But the show found a unique way to keep Cavanagh on for multiple more seasons, having him return as completely different versions of the original Wells character while also recurring as Eobard Thawne.
Each of these roles presented unique challenges to Cavanagh, who felt that he wanted to make the most of each opportunity that each Wells offered him. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, he revealed that the decision to leave was "definitely" his, and that he only wanted to play the character for as long as he thought he could make the most of it.
"It was definitely my decision... You also have to keep in mind that the show you're doing is not called Wells. It's called The Flash. At a certain point I [thought] in the back of my head, "I'm going to do this for as long as I really feel challenged and it's enjoyable and that I'm contributing to Flash's story line."
He also revealed that he had planned to leave the show earlier than he ultimately did. Initial thoughts about a departure came about during season 5 when he played Master Detective Sherloque Wells, who was hunting down the Reverse-Flash. It's pretty ironic having one of your characters hunting down the other, so it's understandable that he felt that might have been a good place to close out his run. However, it turned out a little different than that.
He ended up staying on for season 6, when he played Nash Wells - who would become incredibly important to the Arrowverse's Crisis On Infinite Earths crossover. The events of that crossover - which brought The Flash, Arrow, Supergirl, DC's Legends of Tomorrow, Batwoman, and Black Lightning together - saw all of the versions of Wells merge into one as the multiverse was destroyed and rebooted. This served as the beginnings of Cavanagh's planned departure. However, the pandemic forced the plan to go on the back-burner again.
Season 6 didn't get completed due to the production shutdowns, so the actor agreed to return as a series regular for the first three episodes of season 7 before shifting to recurring / guest-star status after that. Nash Wells was killed off to make way for a new, final version of the Wells character. This one was the resurrected original Harrison Wells, who Reverse-Flash killed in season 1. Known as Timeless Wells, he could travel to wherever he wanted in time, and became a resource for Team Flash throughout the final two seasons.
Cavanagh also celebrated the seven seasons that he was a part of the show full-time, calling it "a joy", adding that "I think that was, for me, a very fun run." He's certainly not alone in thinking that, as fans responded extremely well to all of the main versions of the Harrison Wells character. While his chilling portrayal of Thawne is widely considered his greatest work, his turns as the grumpy, lovable Harry or the dorky, kind H.R. give that one a run for its money.
What a fun run, indeed! But his full-time stint would not mark the end of his presence in The CW's Arrowverse.
Cavanagh remained a part of The CW's DC family, returning multiple times
Although Cavanagh departed The Flash as a series regular early on in season 7, he continued to recur throughout the season. He continued to serve as an integral resource for Team Flash in the form of Timeless Wells, who offered up his wisdom and knowledge of the Speed Force and its counterparts whenever Barry Allen needed help. He then returned at the end of season 7 as the Reverse-Flash, who the team freed from his prison to help stop Godspeed.
Cavanagh then reprised his role as Thawne again across the first five episodes of season 8's five-part Armageddon event as he reinvented the timeline to make The Flash the villain and him the hero. He would return again in the final two episodes of season 8, as Barry faced off against him for the final time, with that battle resulting in the end of the character's stint on the show.
Cavanagh would then return for multiple stints in the ninth and final season, appearing as a variation of the Reverse-Flash in the final few episodes before playing Timeless Wells one more time in the closing act of the series finale. Although the final season itself left a lot to be desired, seeing both the Reverse-Flash and a Harrison Wells - the ultimate combination of all the Wells - back in the series finale was extremely fitting. Of course he had to be there for the end of the show; it simply wouldn't have been right for him not to be.
Cavanagh's partnership with DC / The CW also extended beyond those initial seven seasons of The Flash as he directed multiple episodes of the Arrowverse-adjacent Superman and Lois before going on to play Superman villain Gordon Godfrey in an episode of the final season of that show.
To say that Cavanagh carved out an incredible legacy in the Arrowverse is an understatement. His portrayal of the Reverse-Flash is considered one of the best comic book villains to ever appear on any screen, rivalling that of the iconic Joker, Lex Luthor, and Thanos portrayals that DC and Marvel Studios have produced on the silver screen. And, furthermore, as all of the Harrison Wells iterations, he gifted us with some truly unforgettable performances, ensuring that he was always delivering an original performance on each and every season of The Flash.
Some would say he's the Reverse, but we all would say that he's just legendary!