Colton Haynes Exits Arrow Ahead of Final Season — Is Roy's Story Over?

Matt Webb Mitovich

Click here to read the full article.

Could it be that Arrow will wrap its eight-season run without putting a bow on Roy Harper’s past or future stories?

For the CW series’ 10-episode farewell run, Colton Haynes is not continuing as a series regular, the status he enjoyed in Season 7 when he reprised his role as Roy aka Arsenal. But “we hope to have him back,” showrunner Beth Schwartz told Green Arrow TV while making the rounds at the TCA press tour.

More from TVLine

Update: Haynes clarified via Twitter that the demotion was not his idea, while also hinting/hoping that Roy is “never gone for too long.”

Haynes’ possible vanishing act comes as a bit of a surprise, seeing as Season 7 and its flash-forward storyline left some holes to fill as to why Roy had exiled himself to Lian Yu, decades after his falling out with Thea.

Then again, Haynes’ “series regular” status in Season 7 was ultimately a bit misleading, seeing as he appeared in fewer than half of the 22 episodes. And as Schwartz allows, he hopefully will return in some capacity.

Like Haynes, series vet Emily Bett Rickards is not returning as a series regular (and possibly not at all), while Katherine McNamara (who plays Mia), Ben Lewis (William) and Joseph David-Jones (Connor) gll got bumped up to series regular status. Additionally, Charlie Barnett (Chicago Fire) has been cast in the series regular role of Future John Diggle, Jr., aka J.J.

Want more scoop on Arrow, or for any other show? Email InsideLine@tvline.com and your question may be answered via Matt’s Inside Line.

Launch Gallery: TV's Big Cast Changes (2019-2020)

Sign up for TVLine's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.