Arrowverse: Elseworlds Photo Revives John Wesley Shipp’s ’90s Flash
This year’s upcoming Arrowverse crossover event, titled “Elseworlds,” will be in no shortage of surprises and crowd-pleasing appearances. So far, we know that Ruby Rose’s Kate Kane, aka Batwoman, will join the ever-growing cast of The CW’s superhero universe alongside Green Arrow, The Flash and Supergirl. But that’s not all — it was recently confirmed that Tyler Hoechlin’s Superman would also appear in all three episodes of the crossover… and he will be joined by none other than Lois Lane, who will be played by Grimm‘s Elizabeth Tolloch.
Now, thanks to a new picture from the set of “Elseworlds,” we can add a new character to the list of superheroes who will appear in the highly-anticipated crossover event: John Wesley Shipp’s The Flash. And no, we are not talking about Jay Garrick, the role Shipp is currently playing on the current, Grant Gustin-starring The Flash television series. We mean the Scarlet Speedster that Shipp played in the ’90s television series, The Flash, where he played Barry Allen.
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The picture, which was posted by Stephen Amell on the Arrow star’s personal Instagram account, features Shipp in his old Flash costume, standing side-by-side with Supergirl, Oliver Queen’s Flash and Barry Allen’s Green Arrow (a body swap which is, in and of itself, a central mystery to “Elseworlds”). Fans will instantly recognize Shipp’s old Flash costume, which appears to be lifted straight from the 1990 series.
While we don’t yet know how Shipp’s Flash will become involved in the events of the crossover, his mere presence retroactively makes the ’90s series a part of Arrow, The Flash and Supergirl‘s multiverse.
The title of the event itself, Elseworlds, is a reference to out-of-continuity comic book stories that partially constitute the DC Multiverse. Therefore, the world of the 1990 The Flash television series has now become an official part of the Arrowverse, like NBC’s Constantine before it.
Shipp’s inclusion in the crossover comes as a genuine surprise, and it only adds to the excitement surrounding the big event.
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DCTV returns to The CW this fall with The Flash leading the charge on Tuesday, October 9 with its Season 5 premiere at 8 PM ET/PT, followed by Season 2 of Black Lightning at 9 PM. Supergirl will follow the next week on Sunday, October 14 at 8 PM, with Arrow the next day on Monday, October 15 at 8 PM. Finally, DC’s Legends of Tomorrow will return on Monday, October 22 at 9 PM. The highly-anticipated “Elseworlds” crossover will air over three nights, from Dec. 9 to Dec. 11.