DC TV News Round-Up: September 11th, 2014

Source: DC Comics

Warner Bros. TV reveal who'll be taking on the roles of two iconic DC constructs!
With their season premières nearing ever closer, The CW and NBC have this week revealed new guest stars who are set to feature in the début seasons of their respective superhero dramas The Flash and Constantine and at the same time, Fox have unveiled a plot synopsis for the second episode of their prequel-esque detective series Gotham. The former titular protagonist will be portrayed by Grant Gustin, who reprises his role as Barry Allen's speedy alter-ego after first appearing as the character in three episodes of Arrow Season Two, whilst the latter will be brought to life (literally, fans might argue) by up-and-coming British thespian Matt Ryan in a standalone narrative universe (sniff).

As ever, rather than burdening our readership with article after article of repetitive TV-orientated information, we've compiled together the latest fascinating news on both of these much-anticipated projects into one comprehensive guide. Read on to discover what's hot in the realms of Central City, Gotham City and the Underworld (if nothing else, it'd be a downright lie for us to claim that the televised DC Universe didn't allow for tonal contrasts aplenty!):

• NEW THE FLASH GUEST STAR ANNOUNCED - Joining the cast of the first full Arrow spin-off for at least one episode (the instalment in question being the as-yet-untitled Episode 10) will be Dominic Purcell. The Stateside actor, who's well-known for his portrayals of key characters in shows such as Castle and House (to name but a couple), will take on the role of Mick Rory - or Heat Wave, as the beloved long-running DC antagonist is known by his followers - a character who will apparently be represented as "a pyromaniac who finds an outlet for his obsession with fire" (according to The CW) after he becomes endowed with supernatural powers in the midst of the STAR Labs accident which bookended "Three Ghosts" (the instalment of Arrow in which Barry found himself struck by lightning, an event which lead to him entering a comatose state for the duration of Season Two and which thus put him out of action until the time of The Flash's pilot outing). We've yet to encounter Purcell's previous work in any substantial capacity, but The CW generally tend to know what they're doing when it comes to casting talented individuals for their superhero dramas, so we're willing to give them the benefit of the doubt...for now, anyway. The Flash premières on The CW this October 7th and will air its first season in the UK via Sky1 this Autumn.
• KEY CONSTANTINE RECURRING GUEST STAR REVEALED - NBC aren't performing too weakly on the casting front, either - they've just announced that Emmet Scanlan will join the budding ensemble of Constantine in a recurring capacity in the not too distant future. Fans of In the Flesh (such as yours truly) will undoubtedly recognise Scanlan's face thanks to his accomplished performance in the second season of BBC Three's immensely intelligent fantasy drama, yet appearing in one of DC's most ambitious TV projects to date will surely elevate the British star to intense new levels of fame, the likes of which he can't possibly dream of. He'll play Jim Corrigan, a detective who (if IGN are to be believed - they're usually a particularly reliable source) "doesn't let police procedure or red tape stop him from putting away the bad guys" (do feel free to groan and cringe at the horrendously clichéd official representation of the series' antagonists, as we certainly did) and who - just as importantly, if not moreso - is destined to transform into the DC Comics superhero known as the Spectre at some stage! Constantine will début on NBC this September 27th, although a UK broadcaster for the series has yet to be confirmed.
• GOTHAM EPISODE 2 PLOT SYNOPSIS RELEASED - Not ones to let their rivals get the better of them, Fox have gone ahead and unveiled the official plot synopsis for the second instalment of their increasingly potent detective drama Gotham. Titled "Selina Kyle" (no prizes for guessing who the central point of focus will be this time around), the episode in question's narrative will apparently go something like this: "Detectives [James] Gordon and [Harvey] Bullock investigate a child trafficking ring preying on Gotham's street kids, including Selena Kyle (Camren Bicondova). Meanwhile, Penguin (Robin Lord Taylor) resurfaces in the countryside and begins to make his way back to Gotham, leaving victims in his wake..." Gotham investigates its first deadly case on Fox this September 22nd and on Channel 5 (who were purchased by Viacom yesterday, for those interested in such things) later this Autumn.
• ARROW SEASON THREE EPISODE 8 TITLE ANNOUNCED - On top of all of those exciting tidbits of news, The CW have gone on to confirm that the eighth episode of Arrow (which will form the first instalment of a two-part crossover between the show and its recently-commissioned spin-off The Flash) will go by the all-too-apt name of "Flash vs. Arrow". In case you hadn't already heard, Arrow returns to US TV screens on October 8th via The CW and this Autumn via Sky in the United Kingdom.

Stay tuned to On-Screen for more gossip and verdicts on all of the latest DC TV projects, including (but by no means limited to) Arrow, The Flash, Gotham, Constantine and iZombie!