The CW Orders Pilot for THE FLASH - First Look at Barry Allen
We already knew that The CW was planning to bring The Flash to the small screen. The original plan was to introduce the character in three episodes of Arrow before giving him his own series. Well now according to Deadline the network has changed that idea up a bit, and they are pushing a pilot episode forward for The Flash, which will star Grant Gustin in the title role.
The Flash would have appeared as Barry Allen in Arrow episodes 8, 9, and 20. The last one would have served as a backdoor pilot, which is being directed by David Nutter. Here's an explanation of what the network is doing now, "Episodes 8 and 9, in which the superhero is introduced only as his alter ego Barry Allen, have already been shot. But now the CW has opted to film a traditional stand-alone Flash pilot instead of doing a backdoor pilot as Arrow‘s Episode 20. With Episodes 8 and 9 serving as an origin story, the plan was for The Flash character to make his debut — red costume and all — in Arrow‘s Episode 20. He will now do it in the pilot."
Apparently The CW is very happy with what they saw of Barry Allen with Episode 8 and 9. Filming a stand-alone Flash pilot would allow them to better "flesh out the superhero’s story and his world on a bigger budget, as pilot budgets are significantly higher than episodic ones." There's no word on if The Flash will still appear in episode 20, but it doesn't sound like it. Maybe they will reference him, though.
Barry Allen will be introduced in Arrow as "a Central City assistant police forensics investigator who arrives in Starling to look into a series of unexplained robberies that may have a connection to a tragedy in his past. A comic book fanboy, Barry is obsessed with the Arrow unaware that working with Oliver and Felicity to solve the crime has brought him right into the dangerous world of the vigilante."
Arrow has been a great series, and hopefully they can do the same thing with The Flash.
