Arrow: Stephen Amell Reflects on the First Table Read With Grant Gustin as Barry Allen

With Arrow having ended its run earlier this year, The Flash is left as the Arrowverse’s guiding show. That means that, in terms of the actual stories of The CW’s connected DC television series, Barry Allen is the de facto leader, stepping into the role left with Oliver Queen’s sacrifice — a role that Oliver was clearly confident his friend could handle. When it comes to the actor behind television’s Barry Allen, Grant Gustin, however, Arrow star Stephen Amell is similarly confident and has been impressed by Gustin since day one.

In the most recent episode of Inside of You with Michael Rosenbaum, Amell made a special appearance before Gustin sat down with Michael Rosenbaum and reflected on the very first table read with Gustin as Barry Allen revealing that he knew right away that the actor was the perfect choice for the iconic DC character.

“I will always remember the first table read when we meet Barry Allen,” Amell said. “It’s gotta be intimidating because we’re doing this table read, he’s coming in, he’s playing the Flash and I’ve always known that the Flash is a much bigger, has a much bigger following, is a much bigger character than the Green Arrow and that, you know, everyone jumped at the opportunity to make The Flash because they got some success from Arrow so they got the green light from DC.”

“And this guy comes into the table read and it’s his episode and he comes in and he f*cking nails it in the table read,” he continued. “I didn’t even need to see what he was going to do on set. At the table read I knew, ‘oh my god, they made the right decision.’”

Amell went on to talk about from that moment on, working with Gustin was something special, with their relationship evolving into an honest friendship while the work itself continues to be a highlight for Amell.

“And then it was just really cool on a yearly basis, aside from the two of us becoming friends, aside from us enjoying working together, aside from us both being able to be very honest with one another, we had that ability, which is not super common, it was really nice just going to his show once or twice a year,” he said. “It was a change of pace, it was nice. Honestly, I’ll just never forget working with him.”

As it turns out, Gustin himself has long been impressed with Amell. Last year when news broke that Arrow would end its run with Season 8, Gustin had nothing but glowing words for Amell and his work on Arrow, even noting how intimidated he himself felt on that first day playing Barry Allen.

“It’s always been clear to me how much it means to Stephen to have the privilege of getting to go on this journey as Oliver Queen,” Gustin said at the time. “And how much care he’s always put towards it. I will never forget oh so many memories we shared together during our hundreds, if not thousands of hours of crossover filming.”

“I’ll never forget binge watching season one and being scared sh*tless my first day on set, seeing you all in person,” Gustin said. “Stephen, you’re a legend. Maybe this means we can hang out more?”

What do you think about Amell’s reflection on the first table read with Gustin as Barry Allen? Let us know in the comments below.

The Flash airs Tuesdays at 8/7c on The CW.