Lucifer's Tom Ellis Reveals Why He Lied About Crisis on Infinite Earths Cameo

A lot of mind-boggling things happened during Tuesday's "Crisis on Infinite Earths Part 3" leaving fans with a ton of questions as they head into a five-week break before the final two parts of the Arrowverse crossover continues, but the episode also made one thing very clear: you can't trust the Devil. Early in the episode Diggle (David Ramsey,) Mia (Katherine McNamara,) and Constantine (Matt Ryan) pay a visit to Earth-666 where they meet up with none other than Lucifer -- yes, Tom Ellis' Lucifer, from the Netflix series of the same name. It's a moment that took viewers by surprise since Ellis had previously said being part of "Crisis" was a "hard pass" for him. Turns out, it wasn't, and now the actor is explaining why he misled fans.

Back in October, reports emerged that claimed the actor would be appearing in "Crisis" with the reports indicated that he'd been spotted filming something in Vancouver. Just a few days later, however, Ellis told ET that the reason he was in Vancouver was not to film "Crisis". Instead, he claimed he had been there for a friend's birthday.

"Right, OK, see... this is what happens. I go to Vancouver for the weekend to visit my friend for his birthday and now suddenly, I'm in a different show!" Ellis told ET's Katie Krause, adding that an appearance by Lucifer Morningstar in "Crisis on Infinite Earths" was a "hard pass."

Since he clearly was there for "Crisis", Krause caught up with Ellis on Wednesday and gave the actor an opportunity to explain his lie and it turns out while he wasn't entirely dishonest about things -- he was there to see a friend for their birthday -- the misdirection was simply to keep things a surprise for fans.

"So yes, he is in the crossover. When I went to go and shoot the scene, we were talking on set beforehand -- myself and Matt Ryan -- and we were like, 'This is so exciting. Wouldn't it be amazing if we could keep this a secret for the fans until they actually see it onscreen that night?'" Ellis explained. "Of course, these days that's not that possible with social media at all. I think there were a few people hanging around the set who noticed that I was there and put stuff out that I was going to be in it, so I kind of was like, 'I would still really like to surprise some people.' So that is why."

Ellis also offered a bit more detail about Lucifer's appearance in "Crisis," revealing that this visit to Earth-666 takes place in the Netflix series' past -- roughly five years before the events of Lucifer.

"We're playing it as if it's in the five years before the show, Lucifer, started, so when Lucifer spent five years in L.A. before meeting the detective and all those things unfolding," Ellis revealed. "This is him in his proper playboy, don't-give-a-damn-about-anything stage in his life. He is very irreverent with our characters when they turn up in the scene and obviously, with Constantine, there is some history there."

Now that Lucifer is confirmed to be in the Arrowverse -- or at least in one pocket of its Multiverse -- Ellis joked that he wouldn't mind seeing the Devil Himself suit up as a superhero, should the opportunity ever present itself.

"I'd like Lucifer to be in a superhero costume at some point though, that'd be kind of fun. Lose the tux and all of a sudden he's in spandex, head to toe," Ellis said.

What did you think about Ellis' surprise Lucifer cameo in last night's episode of The Flash, "Crisis on Infinite Earths Part 3"? Let us know in the comments below.