Oliver Queen's journey ends with the Arrow season 8 finale, but will Arrow's story continue with season 9? At the end of Arrow season 7, it was confirmed that Stephen Amell's Green Arrow would die in the 2019-2020 Arrowverse crossover, "Crisis on Infinite Earths", and that this would be the conclusion of Oliver's story in the Arrowverse.
The five-part event started off with a bang by killing Oliver in the first installment of "Crisis on Infinite Earths". In a twist, his friends tried to bring him back with a Lazarus Pit from an alternate Earth. Their attempt to restore Oliver's soul to his body was interrupted by Jim Corrigan (Stephen Lobo), who, with Oliver's consent, turned him into the Spectre from DC Comics. Like his comic book counterpart, the Spectre rallied the seven Paragons and brought them to the Dawn of Time for a final confrontation with the Anti-Monitor. Oliver died fighting the Anti-Monitor, but the multiverse was reborn and Earth-Prime was created.
Though Oliver died prior to the conclusion of the season, the character will appear one last time in the Arrow series finale, which will feature Oliver Queen's funeral, numerous guest stars, and the return of Felicity (Emily Bett Rickards). But is this really the end for the characters of Arrow?
Arrow Season 9 Isn't Happening
As soon as Arrow was renewed for an eighth season, it was confirmed that season 8 would be a ten-episode final season, so this is definitely the end for the series. Stephen Amell was under contract for seven seasons, and it was agreed that he would return for only one more season as the Emerald Archer. Amell says he's open to coming back as a guest star in other Arrowverse shows at some point in the future.
A Green Arrow Spinoff Is In Development Instead
Arrow may be over, but the CW has plans to bring back at least some of the characters. A spinoff, Green Arrow and the Canaries, is currently in development, with Mia (Katherine McNamara), Black Siren (Katie Cassidy), and Black Canary (Juliana Harkavy) as the lead characters. Arrow season 8 episode 9 served as a backdoor pilot for the series. It hasn't been announced yet if Green Arrow and the Canaries will go to series.
How Arrow's Story Can Continue In The Arrowverse
Green Arrow and the Canaries is the future of Arrow. Three key characters will have their stories extended, two of which being Arrowverse heroes who have been on the show for several seasons. The series could potentially make use of other members of Team Arrow as well, such as Wild Dog (Rick Gonzalez) and Curtis (Echo Kellum). But even if Green Arrow and the Canaries doesn't happen, the beauty of the Arrowverse is that it encompasses multiple shows. David Ramsay's Diggle is already confirmed for at least one post-Arrow episode, which will happen on The Flash [via CinemaBlend]. So even though Oliver's story is over, at least some Arrow characters can live on in other ways.