IGN TV: Was there any difficulty for you getting back into this role for Season 2, either mentally in terms of where Ollie is at now, or just the physical demands of the role?
Stephen Amell: Physically, it was actually quite a challenge. There's no way to prepare yourself for a 23-episode shoot, which is just shy of 200 days of production, plus all the different outside demands that came with it. By the time I was at the end of the first season, I was totally burnt. And I got sick for about six weeks. So once I let myself get better, I tried to get a bit of a mental recharge. Like a month before we started shooting this season, I was probably 25 pounds overweight, because I needed to relax. My body was really tired. So it's important that I did that, and that I thought about new ways to approach this year, just mentally and physically. Because we're in this for the long haul. We don't want to do two seasons; we want six. I don't ever want to be sick again after we finish production when I'm supposed to be taking time to relax. So physically, it was challenging, but I'm glad I went through the experience of the first season, because it's just given me all the knowledge on how to pace myself. Right now, we're nine episodes in. We're pretty close to halfway down the season, it feels like, and I feel fantastic.
City of Heroes
IGN TV: And that was going to be one of my questions - just how far into the season you guys are right now. And it sounds like you're moving at a pretty good pace.
Amell: Yeah, we're at a great pace. We're halfway through episode 9. It's a holiday up here in Canada today, so we have the day off. But halfway through episode 9. And the end of the ninth episode is the unofficial halfway point of the season for us. We came on the air last week, and we'll be on the air for nine consecutive weeks. The ninth episode is the last one before our Christmas break. Last year it was when we revealed the identity of the Dark Archer and set in motion the end-game for our season, and that's very much what happens this year too. It's also the second half of our introduction of Grant Gustin as Barry Allen. These are prime episodes that we're shooting right now. [laughs]
IGN TV: Barry is something I want to touch on in a little bit, but first I figured we could touch on the premiere episode a little more. One of the things that episode showed us is just how badly Ollie is taking Tommy's death, even after several months.
Amell: Mmhmm.
IGN TV: Is that something that's going to be casting a shadow over him for the entire season?
Amell: Yes, but not always in the negative sense. He's taking it very hard, but the declaration he makes in the premiere, and one that we hope honor, not just in this season, but through any subsequent seasons of the show, is that he's going to try and be a better person to honor Tommy, and because of what happened to him. The shadow of Colin's character will always be with the show, but I'm really hoping it's not just in a mournful, negative, sad way, but in a positive, character-building way.
Read full interview at IGN
Stephen Amell: Physically, it was actually quite a challenge. There's no way to prepare yourself for a 23-episode shoot, which is just shy of 200 days of production, plus all the different outside demands that came with it. By the time I was at the end of the first season, I was totally burnt. And I got sick for about six weeks. So once I let myself get better, I tried to get a bit of a mental recharge. Like a month before we started shooting this season, I was probably 25 pounds overweight, because I needed to relax. My body was really tired. So it's important that I did that, and that I thought about new ways to approach this year, just mentally and physically. Because we're in this for the long haul. We don't want to do two seasons; we want six. I don't ever want to be sick again after we finish production when I'm supposed to be taking time to relax. So physically, it was challenging, but I'm glad I went through the experience of the first season, because it's just given me all the knowledge on how to pace myself. Right now, we're nine episodes in. We're pretty close to halfway down the season, it feels like, and I feel fantastic.
City of Heroes
IGN TV: And that was going to be one of my questions - just how far into the season you guys are right now. And it sounds like you're moving at a pretty good pace.
Amell: Yeah, we're at a great pace. We're halfway through episode 9. It's a holiday up here in Canada today, so we have the day off. But halfway through episode 9. And the end of the ninth episode is the unofficial halfway point of the season for us. We came on the air last week, and we'll be on the air for nine consecutive weeks. The ninth episode is the last one before our Christmas break. Last year it was when we revealed the identity of the Dark Archer and set in motion the end-game for our season, and that's very much what happens this year too. It's also the second half of our introduction of Grant Gustin as Barry Allen. These are prime episodes that we're shooting right now. [laughs]
IGN TV: Barry is something I want to touch on in a little bit, but first I figured we could touch on the premiere episode a little more. One of the things that episode showed us is just how badly Ollie is taking Tommy's death, even after several months.
Amell: Mmhmm.
IGN TV: Is that something that's going to be casting a shadow over him for the entire season?
Amell: Yes, but not always in the negative sense. He's taking it very hard, but the declaration he makes in the premiere, and one that we hope honor, not just in this season, but through any subsequent seasons of the show, is that he's going to try and be a better person to honor Tommy, and because of what happened to him. The shadow of Colin's character will always be with the show, but I'm really hoping it's not just in a mournful, negative, sad way, but in a positive, character-building way.
Read full interview at IGN
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