Photo Credit: Luc-Richard Photography
The eighth and final season of The CW’s Arrow is officially here! We had the pleasure of chatting to actor Joseph David-Jones who stars as Connor Hawke, an agent of the knight watch and queen’s successor as the second Green Arrow.
Joseph speaks about what we can expect of the final season, his favourite episode, what a day of filming is like, and more!
When did you know you wanted to be an actor?
I was bitten by the acting bug a little later than most. A lot of the actors I meet tell me they’ve known since childhood that this was what they wanted to be, and I’ve always envied that. Unfortunately for me, I didn’t discover my passion for acting until my college years. I had competed in an acting competition/showcase in New York and had taken first place for the adult male division. Shortly after, I had taken what was meant to be a brief hiatus from school to try my hand as an actor in LA. After booking 4 films (lower budget of course) and a slew of national commercials, in the first year, I was hooked! And since then, my passion for acting has only grown stronger.
What drew you to the role of Connor Hawke?
Initially, I auditioned for the role of Connor Hawke on another show in the Arrowverse called Legends Of Tomorrow. After reading the breakdown for Connor Hawke, I was immediately attracted to the role. Here he was, this kid basically, trying to fill the shoes of a legend (Oliver Queen) because there was no one else to do it. He’s tortured by the loss of his father and ends up changing his name because he doesn’t feel worthy of it. There was just so much to love about his character. I couldn’t help but be drawn to it! So, when Arrow wanted to bring him back, I jumped at the chance to revisit the character.
The final season of Arrow has officially premiered. Can you tell us what viewers might expect?
Well, the theme of this season is A Hero’s Sacrifice. It’s going to focus on Oliver’s journey over the past seven years. We’re really going to dive into tying up the series as a whole, not just the story of the season. Oliver is going to be going on a mission sent to him by the Monitor that took him away from his family at the end of season 7.
Fans should re-watch the pilot…or the whole series. There’s going to be a lot of fun throwbacks throughout the season. We really want to honor the series as a whole. We asked ourselves – “What do we want to see on Arrow because this is the last time we can do it.” We’re going to revisit some familiar places and faces throughout the season: Nanda Parbat! Tommy, Moira, Malcolm, Thea, Adrian Chase, to name just a few.
Also, the flash-forwards are going to continue this season. We’ll see growing pains for Future Team Arrow. The old guard left them behind to protect the now united Star City and Glades, but we’ll see pretty quickly that they aren’t entirely sure how to do that.
Judging by your Instagram, you’re a ‘fitness lover’! What’s your training routine like and did you have to add anything in while filming Arrow?
I’ve really developed this love of fitness because of the show. The role requires a heavy amount of physicality and preparing for that has developed into a real passion for health and fitness. Now normally my routine, when I’m not shooting, is cardio in the morning and either conditioning or HIT training in the afternoon. However, when I’m filming, that becomes a bit tricky, and I have to work around whatever schedule I’m shooting.
Run us through what a day of filming is like.
Ok…
- Up at 6 am with a pre-workout on my nightstand and my gym bag already packed the night before.
- By the time I finish washing up and get to the gym, the pre-workout has kicked in.
- I stretch and run for an hour before showering and heading directly to set for my, let’s say, 8 am call time.
- Head through the works (Hair, Makeup, Wardrobe) then it’s off for a blocking—running through the scene so the cast and crew (camera, sound, etc.) can make adjustments and figure out the scene.
- After all of this, we film and depending on the day or the number of scenes I have that could take 2 hours or 12.
- After filming wraps for the day, if there is still time, I’ll hit the gym for my 2nd workout, then head home to work on my scenes for the following day.
That’s basically it in a nutshell and sometimes in-between that, I find time to eat and follow up on emails and stuff.
Do you have a favourite episode or scene coming up that you can tell us about (or hint at!)
Episode 802. I have a really powerful scene with my brother JJ that I’m really excited for people to see. I can’t reveal too much about it, but It was one of my favorites to shoot of the season.
What was it like being on-set for the final season of Arrow?
It’s a bit bittersweet, really. Here I am getting to work with some truly amazing people and having an amazing time doing it, but I know there’s a shelf life to it. And now that we’re getting to the end of filming there’s a lot of sadness. It’s the last days we’re shooting at certain locations with certain people, and you can kinda feel that.
Lastly, if you could have any role or type of role, what would it be?
I think I’d want to change it up a bit. I would love to just be a part of a character piece, maybe like a Biopic or something. You know? Something where I could truly explore the layers of a person. So much of the show is intense and high octane drama that sometimes you don’t get to really fully explore moments. There’s simply not enough time for it.
