Arrow fans will get to say goodbye to Roy Harper after all, as Colton Haynes returns for the show’s 8th and final season. Haynes debuted on the superhero drama in its first season and quickly became a fan favorite. His on-again/off-again relationship with Oliver’s younger sister, Thea Queen, is a big part of Arrow, especially in the early seasons. After training with Oliver for a year, Roy takes on the nickname “Arsenal” in season 3 and becomes a part of the team. Soon after, he makes a sacrifice for Oliver by pretending to be the Green Arrow and faking his own death, and is forced to leave town. However, his name is cleared in season 6, first when someone impersonating Tommy Merlyn is believed to be the Green Arrow, and again when Oliver himself reveals the truth.
After guesting in seasons 4 and 6, Haynes returned as a series regular for season 7. In Arrow’s present-day story, he comes back to Star City to help his friends fight the Ninth Circle. He also shares that he died after leaving town, forcing Thea and Nyssa to use the Lazarus Pit. However, it causes a blood lust that leads him to kill two people, prompting him to leave town once more. Roy also played a key role in Arrow’s flash forwards to 2040, which showed Oliver and Felicity’s children, Mia and William, in the future. At the start of the season William finds Roy on Lian Yu, the island Oliver lived on at the beginning of the series.
Per EW, Haynes will recur this season, starring in an unspecified number of episodes. Speaking about the announcement, Arrow showrunner Beth Schwartz said, “We couldn’t have ended the show without having him back.” Over the summer, the CW announced that Haynes would no longer be a series regular, leaving his status this season up in the air. However, now fans know they’ll see Roy at least once, if not more, in the series’ final 10-episode season.
Haynes joins several others who will recur or guest in Arrow season 8, some of whom were shown in the trailer released last week. Willa Holland will be back as Thea and recur just like Haynes. Byron Mann will return as Yao Fei Gulong, Oliver’s mentor on Lian Yu at the start of the series. John Barrowman, who plays Team Arrow frenemy Malcolm Merlyn, will be back as well. As far as the show’s characters are concerned, Merlyn is dead after saving Thea from an explosion in the season 5 finale. However, other dead characters, such as Merlyn’s son Tommy and Oliver and Thea’s mother, Moira, are returning as well. This is because the Monitor’s presence this season will likely let Arrow visit different time periods and other Earths.
With both Haynes and Holland returning for Arrow’s last season, it’s possible that their characters will finally get the happy ending they deserve. Thea and Roy have been through many ups and downs since meeting in season 1 and have often sacrificed their relationship for Team Arrow. With Oliver’s possible death during Crisis on Infinite Earths, it’s safe to say that the series finale may be a bleak one. An easy way to lighten it up a little would be for Thea and Roy to get their happy ending and finish Arrow on a high note.
Next: Arrow Theory: How All The “Dead” Characters Return In Season 8
Source: EW
