'Arrow' Producer Hints At Michael Emerson's Mystery Role

08/27/2017 12:32 pm EDT

Michael Emerson's character on Arrow might still be a mystery, but its clear that he's exceeding one executive producer's expectations.

In a recent interview with TVLine, Wendy Mericle teased the actor's recurring role in Arrow's sixth season. As she explained, the Lost and Person of Interest alum will be putting a new twist on a somewhat familiar Arrow archetype.

"This character that we're having [Michael] play," Mericle explained, "is somewhat similar to people has has played in the past. But we had many conversations with him about how to make it different, and what elements we could bring to the character to change it up."

This echoes fellow executive producer Marc Guggenheim's comments to ComicBook.com last month, which revealed that Emerson's Arrow role will be incredibly nuanced. And with the season being filled with villains - including Ricardo Diaz/Richard Dragon (Kirk Acevedo) - Mericle hinted that Emerson's performance will stand out.

"He is a dream to work with, and I think he's doing an amazing job," Mericle revealed. "We've seen some dailies of some of his episodes and he's just fantastic. He's a really understated, subtle actor, and that brings a different energy on set. It's great."

Fans will have to wait and see what Emerson's role ends up being - and how it will effect Team Arrow - when the show returns this October.

After a violent shipwreck, billionaire playboy Oliver Queen (Stephen Amell) was missing and presumed dead for five years before being discovered alive on a remote island in the North China Sea. He returned home to Star City, bent on righting the wrongs done by his family and fighting injustice. Oliver has finally solidified and strengthened his crime-fighting team only to have it threatened when unexpected enemies from his past return to Star City, forcing Oliver to rethink his relationship with each member of his "family".

Arrow will return for its sixth season on The CW on Oct. 12, 2017, with the season premiere episode titled "Fallout." The premiere will mark a move from its traditional Wednesday time slot to Thursday nights at 9 p.m. ET/PT.

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