During the TCA Winter Press Tour, David Ramsey (Diggle) spoke to Collider about where Team Arrow is at, how difficult the absence of Oliver Queen is for everyone, what it’s like not to have Stephen Amell around, why Diggle needs a mask, and his desire to see Oliver Queen and Bruce Wayne together.
Here are some of the highlights that stood out to me during this interview (be sure to check out the full interview yourself on Collider)
About where the team is currently at without Oliver around
DAVID RAMSEY: Nothing. No. Well, I can say that we’re emotionally crazy. We’ve lost our leader and captain, so we’re all a little crazy. We all have to ask ourselves, “Why are we doing this? Will we continue doing this?” The big question is why. This was Oliver’s crusade, but it has become our crusade, and our meaning myself, Felicity, Arsenal/Roy and Black Canary/Laurel. We just have to ask ourselves why we’re doing this, and that becomes a big emotional journey during Oliver’s absence.
How the team is finding themselves battling without Oliver alongside them
RAMSEY: We’re finding our feet. It’s a little bit of fish-out-of-water. It doesn’t go smoothly, at first. Our head is not quite in the game, as it should be. The man who was running point is now dead, so someone else has to run point. It doesn’t go smoothly, but we find out legs. We find out why we’re working for the city and why we’re here, and we end up being okay. Team Arrow is more than just Arrow, hence the team part. There is no Arrow in team.
The Dynamic between Diggle and Arsenal
RAMSEY: Colton is my little brother from another mother. He’s great. Working with Colton is fantastic. Working with Arsenal is great. The Diggle and Arsenal team-up is fantastic. He and I have some great scenes together, out in the field, as we’re fighting together. There’s a great big warehouse scene that we have together, where we’re both fighting a big bad guy in Oliver’s absence, and we have to find out how we work together. The writers have really done a great job at putting together these combinations that normally don’t have to work together.
Will Diggle get some kind of mask?
RAMSEY: That’s the question. It’s all over the internet. Everyone is asking, “Does Diggle get a mask?” I get it. We’re in a big warehouse, the crime is going on, there’s fire, you see Canary run in and she’s clad in black leather, Arrow has got his bow and green leather, Arsenal has got his red leather and mask, and Diggle comes in, in a bomber jacket. Yeah, I get it! There’s a great line that Oliver had where he said, “The mask isn’t just to protect you. It’s to protect the people you love.” If there’s anyone who has people he loves, with a potential wife and child at home, it’s Diggle. If anyone has something to protect, it’s him. So, the writers aren’t blind to this, nor is the audience, or the critics, or myself. We see it. I think it will be addressed. But, I also think that you have to be careful with Diggle because his appeal, I think, and I think everyone agrees with this, is his normalcy. He’s just a guy who came up through the ranks. He’s a normal guy who went to the military, served his country, did three tours, got married and had a child. He’s you and me. Everyone else is extraordinary, even Felicity. She’s in the top 5% of the world, in terms of her intelligence. Everyone is extraordinary, except for Diggle. What makes him extraordinary is his normalcy. So, you’ve gotta be careful. But yet, he does absolutely need to protect his identity in the field, no doubt about it. We just haven’t figured out how to do that yet.
What other DC Character Ramsey would like to see on the show
RAMSEY: You know I am. You know what I would like? It’s never going to happen, or maybe it will. I don’t want to see Batman, but I would love to see Bruce Wayne. Maybe he’s part of the League of Assassins, right now. Maybe he watched in horror as Oliver Queen was pushed off the cliff, or maybe he watched and it wasn’t so much in horror. Maybe he’s just joined the League, or maybe he’s been part of it for years. Who knows? Maybe he’s a billionaire who visits Starling. I don’t know. But, I would love to see that. As big as Ray Palmer is, with his billionaire persona, it ain’t Bruce Wayne. I would just love to see Bruce Wayne and Oliver Queen together.
It's nice to see that Ramsey shares the same sentiment that many of us have been hoping for. Bruce Wayne, especially in the way Ramsey describes, would be a welcomed cameo/addition to the show.
Arrow airs Wednesday nights on The CW.