The Flash: Tom Cavanagh Pitched A Reverse-Flash Spin-Off That Featured A Love Story
"The Flash," starring Grant Gustin as the titular speedster, ran for nine seasons on The CW, concluding with a four-part finale that finished out on Sunday. Now that pop culture has been thoroughly saturated with superheroes, it's hard to recall how unique "The Flash" once felt on the airwaves. It wasn't grounded like its sister show "Arrow" often tried to be, nor did it shy away from the weirder elements of "The Flash's" comic book mythos.
There are, however, still plenty of ways it could have been weirder, including a Reverse-Flash love story pitched by series actor and director Tom Cavanagh. Speaking to Deadline, Cavanagh revealed he once pitched a storyline for his character, Eobard Thawne, in which the arch-villain would be trapped not by the Speed Force but by the greatest of all powers, love.
"I pitched ['The Flash' producer] Greg [Berlanti] ... this idea that was like, 'Look at him as one of those Dragons of Yore that are impenetrable but for one weakness that is a scale and that is the vulnerability. What if Reverse-Flash fell for some paramore on Earth, and that created the obstacles for him getting back because, much against his will, he'd fallen in love.' That's a human story." Although fans never got to see Cavanagh's love story for Reverse-Flash, he appears hopeful it can come about in another form.
Cavanagh teases a possible Reverse-Flash spin-off
While Tom Cavanagh's pitch for a Reverse-Flash love story has not come to life, the actor concedes that it probably wouldn't have worked on "The Flash." After all, the show isn't called "The Reverse-Flash."
"You can't really tell that complicated of a Reverse-Flash story on a television show called 'The Flash' because you have to serve 'The Flash,'" Cavanagh said. Interestingly, Cavanagh didn't rule out the possibility of exploring a story in that vein somewhere down the line, despite "The Flash" having reached its conclusion. "As a cast member," he said, "I've always been more than willing and ready to do that, but now that 'The Flash' is done, there's always room to explore that story."
While "The Flash" is over, there is always a chance for other characters, like Reverse-Flash, to come back into play on The CW in someway. Afterall, there are still a few DC shows on the network, like "Gotham Knights." A new series could also pick up this idea; although, nothing has been officially teased for this character after the final season of "The Flash." Regardless, Cavanagh has some aspirations for his character, along with a potent storyline that many fans would love to see play out.