While audiences got their first look at the live-action Amanda Waller of the DC Extended Universe in the form of Suicide Squad’s Viola Davis, the character already had a loyal live-action fandom as presented on The CW series Arrow. Cynthia Addai-Robinson portrayed the popular morally-ambiguous DC Comics government agent on the series in seasons past, but departed when the character was unexpectedly killed off in one of the show’s more unexpected plot turns.
Arrowverse co-creator Greg Berlanti has since confirmed that the appearance of the Suicide Squad and Amanda Waller on Arrow was indeed a test run for the eventual movie. However, Addai-Robinson has now indicated that she might return to the role of Waller if asked - and that such an event is not impossible.
In an interview with Screen Rant relating to her co-starring role in the upcoming Ben Affleck action/thriller The Accountant, Addai-Robinson was asked if she would consider joining the ranks of former CW superhero stars who’ve made returns despite their characters having been effectively killed off. She had this to say on the matter of CW’s returning-actor policy and here willingness to take part in a hypothetical revival of the character:
If a return of some sort for Waller was in the offing on Arrow, it would likely have to accomodate Addai-Robinson’s newly busy work schedule. In addition to The Accountant - in which he plays a U.S. Treasury Department analyst tasked with hunting down Ben Affleck’s character, an autistic mathematics prodigy - she is set to co-star with Ryan Phillippe in the TV series reboot of 2007’s Shooter. There, she is portraying a Special Agent in a gender-inversion of a character played by Michael Pena in the original Mark Wahlberg star vehicle.
“Absolutely! They have quite the open door policy in terms of bringing people back to life or back from dead through flashbacks, and I had a great time on that series. I know they’re about to reach their 100th episode, so they’re still chugging right along, and I get stopped all the time for my Amanda Waller portrayal – so I’m very open to the prospect of going back.”
It’s currently unclear what the plans are for the DCEU’s Amanda Waller and/or the rest of the Suicide Squad in the future, beyond the Harley Quinn film spinoff currently in development (and, though it has yet to be confirmed, a Suicide Squad movie sequel). However, for the time being, it seems as though Waller is more likely to return on the big screen next instead of the small screen - though that could change.
The Flash season 3 airs Tuesdays at 8pm on The CW, Arrow season 5 airs Wednesdays in the same timeslot, Supergirl season 2 debuts Monday October 10, and Legends of Tomorrow season 2 on Thursday October 13.
- The Accountant Release Date: 2016-10-14
