After years of teasing, the series finale of The CW's Arrow finally paid off fan theories regarding David Ramsey's John Diggle and his connection to the Green Lantern Corps. Ramsey and Arrow co-creator Marc Guggenheim have now opened up about this big moment, with the former describing it as "very important."
In Arrow's final episode -- "Fadeout" -- Diggle is seen moving from Star City to Superman's stomping ground, Metropolis. Upon his arrival, an object falls from space, knocking him back. When Diggle investigates, he discovers a small box has fallen to Earth and opens it, with a green light illuminating his face -- the implication being it is one of the power rings worn by the Green Lanterns.
"Yeah, he did get a green box, and it was very exciting," Ramsey told Collider. I don’t know what that means, but he does go to Metropolis and he got a green box, and we’ll see. We’ll still see, believe it or not. We’ll find out."
"We’re just gonna continue to tease you guys," Guggenheim added. "I feel like a little bit like how, in Rocky IV, when Rocky did the press conference for his Ivan Drago fight and he said, 'It’s gonna be Christmas in Russia.' And people were like, 'Why?' And he was like, 'That’s what I was told.' So, every time David and I field questions about, 'What was in the box?,' basically it’s like, 'That’s what I was told.' What I mean by that is, this was something that was worked out, over a year ahead, with DC Entertainment. We very specifically negotiated and discussed the parameters, and I feel like, to say anything beyond what we have shown you, would violate our agreement with DC."
Theories regarding John Diggle's ties to the Green Lantern mythos go back years, when Arrow fans used the character's heroism and military career to draw comparisons to DC Comics' John Stewart -- one of Earth's most prominent Green Lanterns alongside Hal Jordan. Speculation ramped up in Arrow Season 4, when viewers caught a brief glimpse of Jordan. Things escalated during the Arrowverse's "Elseworlds" crossover event, with John Wesley Shipp's Flash seemingly confirming Diggle was John Stewart back on Earth-90, commenting that Oliver Queen's longtime comrade "wasn't wearing his ring." What's more Diggle's step-father, played by Ernie Hudson, was revealed to be named Roy Stewart. With Arrow having wrapped up after eight seasons, fans hoping for a definitive payoff to all the Green Lantern nods finally got their wish.
"That was very important," Ramsey explained. "I’m also just amazed that we compared Arrow and Green Lantern to Rocky IV, which was a very good movie."
"A long-running inside joke between me and [fellow producer Greg Berlanti] is how you can learn almost everything about story from Rocky III," Guggenheim chimed in. "It’s true, by the way. In a separate venue, I could give you a whole song and dance about it."
"It’s exciting," Ramsey continued. "This whole thing has been exciting. Yes, the tease has had a bit of a payoff, but we’ll see what all that means. I’m with Marc. Anything beyond that is violating these parameters that we’ve been given by DC, that we have to honor. But I think we’ve done some justice to the six-year tease that we’ve given."
At this time, it is currently unclear what the future holds for John Diggle and his apparent new status as a member of the Green Lantern Corps., as he and Guggenheim are keeping tight-lipped on the matter for the time being. That being said, a Green Lantern series is currently in the works for HBO Max and was teased at the end the Arrowverse's "Crisis on Infinite Earths" crossover. With Diggle now living in Metropolis, it is also possible he will play into the upcoming Superman & Lois series in some form or fashion. For now, however, we'll have to wait and see.