One reason why I think Tom Cavanagh has remained on The Flash for so long is that it truly allows him to explore what he can do as an actor. After first debuting as a Harrison Wells impostor in the form of Eobard Thawne AKA the Reverse-Flash, Cavanagh has gone on to portray a variety of Wells from alternate universes, namely Earth-2’s Harry, Earth-19’s H.R. and Earth-221’s Sherloque.
Now, if you tuned in for last night’s season premiere, “Into the Void,” then you may have noticed how Cavanagh is still credited as being a series regular, though he didn’t actually appear in said episode. Then again, various iterations of Wells don’t often show up in premieres to begin with, but it sounds like we’ll meet the next in line before long.
When executive producer and new showrunner Eric Wallace chatted with Entertainment Weekly, he revealed what makes the new Wells so special, saying:
“He’s cool. He’s suave. This is a man of adventure. This is a man who can kind of get in a fight and hold his own. We haven’t seen a Wells like that, but there’s this completely unexpected side to him, which I will not spoil.”
By and large, most of Wells’ doppelgängers have proven to be trustworthy allies to the STAR Labs crew, but we must always wonder if these fellas are on the up and up. In fact, what Wallace had to say next makes me suspicious:
“He has a secret that will be slowly dripped out in ‘Graphic Novel #1,’ but which will really mess with his mind, literally — that’s a spoiler right there — in ‘Graphic Novel #2,’ and it’s going to lead him to an emotional place that’s similar territory to one of the other Wellses, which I don’t want to give the spoiler away, but it takes it in a completely opposite direction…. It’ll be very apparent, I think by episode 6, what the hint is and what his secret is.”
Before I continue, let me just say that Wallace bringing up “Graphic Novel #1” and “Graphic Novel #2” in interviews is becoming the standard. The reason he’s doing this is because the current season will be divided into two distinct pre- and post-Crisis halves, each with their own big bad.
Getting back to the big twist regarding this new Wells, I’m still wondering if, in fact, he’s Pariah, even if we’ve been told the Pariah that Cavanagh will be playing in “Crisis on Infinite Earths” is someone altogether different. Those familiar with the comic book should recall how Pariah was forced to watch his world and countless others perish, and I’d certainly say that could mess with someone’s mind.
The Flash airs on Tuesday nights on The CW.
