Stephen Amell
Amell at the GalaxyCon Raleigh convention in 2021
Born
Stephen Adam Amell

(1981-05-08) May 8, 1981 (age 42)
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Alma materSt. Andrew's College
Occupations
  • Actor
  • producer
Years active2004–present
Known forOliver Queen / Green Arrow in Arrow
Spouses
Carolyn Lawrence
​
​
(m. 2007; div. 2010)​
​
(m. 2012)​
Children2
RelativesRobbie Amell (cousin)
Signature

Stephen Adam Amell[1] (born May 8, 1981) is a Canadian actor. He came to prominence for playing the lead role of Oliver Queen on The CW superhero series Arrow (2012–2020) based on DC Comics. Amell also appeared in subsequent Arrowverse franchise media, along with reprising his role in various video games. Following the conclusion of Arrow, Amell landed the lead role of Jack Spade on the Starz drama series Heels (2021–present). Outside of television, he portrayed Casey Jones in the superhero film Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows (2016).

Early life

Stephen Amell was born on May 8, 1981[2] in Toronto, Ontario, the son of Sandra Anne (née Bolté) and Thomas J. Amell.[3][4] He is a first cousin of actor Robbie Amell.[5] He attended St. Andrew's College, a private independent school for boys, and graduated in 2000.[6]

Acting career

2004–2012: Early career

Amell appeared in two episodes of the fourth season of Queer as Folk as the Liberty Ride spinning instructor in 2004. Amell played Adam in the first season of the television series Dante's Cove; he was replaced in the second season by Jon Fleming. In 2007, Amell won a Gemini Award for his guest-starring role on ReGenesis.[7] The same year he was also nominated for a Gemini Award in the Best Ensemble Cast Category for Rent-a-Goalie.[8]

He had recurring roles in the TV series Da Kink in My Hair and Heartland. On December 3, 2010, Amell joined the cast of The Vampire Diaries as werewolf 'Brady' for season 2.[9] Amell starred as the real life criminal Joran van der Sloot in the Lifetime film Justice for Natalee Holloway which originally aired in May 2011.[10]

On October 2, 2011, season 3 of HBO's series Hung premiered with Amell starring as busboy-turned-prostitute Jason, a younger rival "ho" to Thomas Jane's Ray Drecker.[7] He also appeared as Jim in the fourth season of 90210.[11] Amell announced on October 28, 2011, that he had just finished filming the Christmas episode of New Girl with Zooey Deschanel and Max Greenfield. He touches on the experience of filming his first "network half-hour comedy" in an interview with Daemon's TV.[11] On November 9, 2011, Amell was announced for the recurring role of Scottie, a paramedic on ABC's Private Practice.[12] He also played the role of Travis McKenna in Blue Mountain State.

2012–2020: Arrow

Amell on the set of Arrow in September 2014

In January 2012, Amell was cast as Oliver Queen in The CW series Arrow, based on the DC Comics superhero of the same name.[10] This series and role led to Amell appearing as the character on other superhero series on the network as part of the growing Arrowverse, including The Flash, Legends of Tomorrow and Supergirl, as well as the CW Seed webseries Vixen.

Amell co-starred in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows (released on June 3, 2016) as vigilante "Casey Jones".[13] Amell announced in May 2017 that he would be participating on a special celebrity edition of American Ninja Warrior.[14] Amell demonstrated great physical abilities which was reflective of his athleticism in his portrayal of Oliver Queen.[15] In 2017, he took part in the directorial debut of former Heartland co-star Michelle Morgan, a short film entitled Mi Madre, My Father, playing the estranged father of a six-year-old girl. Morgan raised funds for the production through a crowdfunding campaign.[16] The film premiered at the 2018 Cannes Film Festival.[17]

In March 2019, Amell announced the end of Arrow with its eighth and final season, which premiered in October 2019 and concluded in January 2020.[18]

2020–present: Post-Arrow

His first post-Arrow project was announced in August 2019 as Heels, a Starz drama series set in the world of independent professional wrestling.[19] In December of the same year, it was announced that short-form streaming platform Quibi were developing a spin-off series starring Amell and his cousin Robbie Amell, developed from their crowd-funded film Code 8.[20]

Professional wrestling career

WWE (2015)

As an avid professional wrestling fan,[21] Amell campaigned for a guest appearance on WWE's weekly Raw program.[22]

In May 2015, it was reported that he was tentatively set to wrestle Stardust (Cody Rhodes) at WWE's SummerSlam pay-per-view in August.[21] Amell made his first WWE appearance on the May 25 episode of Raw, where he had a confrontation with Stardust.[23] Amell returned to Raw in early August; after being assaulted in the audience by Stardust, Amell got into the ring to attack him until being contained by security. Following a backstage segment with Triple H, it was announced that Neville would team with Amell to face Stardust and King Barrett at SummerSlam.[24]

At the event on August 23, 2015, Amell and Neville defeated Barrett and Stardust in a tag team match. Amell participated in the wrestling, and, behind the scenes, wrestlers were said to have been impressed with Amell's performance.[25][26] Amell became friends with Rhodes, with whom he later also worked on Arrow.[27]

On December 21, 2015, Amell was awarded a Slammy for the "Celebrity Moment of the Year" for his dive onto Stardust during the match.[28]

Ring of Honor (2017)

Amell returned to professional wrestling for Ring of Honor on November 17, 2017, at Survival of the Fittest.[29] On the day of the show, Amell joined the Bullet Club faction, and teamed with Cody Rhodes, Kenny Omega, and The Young Bucks (Matt and Nick Jackson) in a five-on-four tag team match. They defeated The Addiction (Christopher Daniels and Frankie Kazarian), Flip Gordon, and Scorpio Sky, and Amell again participated in the wrestling, including being put through a table by The Addiction.[30]

All In (2018)

On August 6, 2018, it was announced that Amell would be competing at All In, in his first-ever singles match, where he was defeated by Christopher Daniels.[31]

All Elite Wrestling (2020)

On February 29, 2020, Amell made an appearance at All Elite Wrestling's Revolution, he accompanied Cody Rhodes alongside Rhodes' Nightmare Family for his match against MJF.[32]

Philanthropy

Amell has hosted a number of successful fundraising campaigns via the crowd funded merchandise platform Represent.com.[33] In 2014, Amell partnered with the charity Fuck Cancer to raise almost a million dollars with the release of a T-shirt featuring his face on the front (with a Post-it note on his forehead and featuring the organization's name). He ended up selling over 60,000 shirts from this campaign.[34][35] In January 2015, Amell launched his second Represent.com campaign featuring a word he made up, Sinceriously, to benefit two mental health charities: Paws and Stripes and Stand For The Silent.[35] In August 2015, Amell used his guest appearance on WWE Raw with Stardust to raise funds via his third campaign for children's hospice Emily's House in Toronto. The campaign raised $300,000, and Amell and Stardust presented a cheque together at Emily's House.[36] During the Red Nose Day special of American Ninja Warrior, Amell donated $35,000 for completing all six obstacles, and an extra obstacle, the Salmon Ladder.[37]

Personal life

Amell married his first wife, fellow Canadian Carolyn Lawrence, on December 8, 2007, in Toronto.[38] The couple divorced in 2010.[39] Amell married actress and model Cassandra Jean on December 25, 2012, in a private ceremony in the Caribbean,[40] and for a second time in New Orleans on May 26, 2013.[41] The couple have a daughter Maverick, nicknamed Mavi, who was born on October 15, 2013. They welcomed a son, Bowen Auguste Amell, on May 13, 2022.[42]

Controversies

Amell's personal statements and behavior have occasionally drawn controversy. In September 2015, he came under scrutiny after commenting on an incident in Irving, Texas where a Muslim student was arrested for bringing a disassembled digital clock to his high school. Amell posted a tweet saying that "[s]tereotyping Texas isn't any better than stereotyping Ahmed," referring to the name of the student.[43] The tweet sparked backlash on the internet, prompting Amell to take a break from social media.[44][45][46]

In 2018, Amell faced accusations of disrespecting Black names when he tweeted "my âpölògīés" to respond to comments criticizing his failure to use the accent aigu while tweeting singer Beyoncé's name.[47] Amell later clarified that his omission of the accent aigu was due to being "lazy in the midst of a mediocre joke."[48] Initially, Amell mentioned Beyoncé in the context of missing her Coachella performance to watch an André the Giant documentary.[49]

In 2020, during the Black Lives Matter protests, Amell garnered criticisms, including from comic book writer Tee Franklin, after admitting that racism is a systematic problem, but he had not personally "seen it in action."[50]

In 2021, Amell was asked to leave a Delta Air Lines flight traveling from Austin to Los Angeles because he was yelling at his wife.[51] Amell later explained on a podcast hosted by Michael Rosenbaum that he was intoxicated when the incident took place.[52][53]

In July 2023, Amell was criticized for comments he made at a fan convention regarding the 2023 SAG-AFTRA strike. While he expressed the support for SAG-AFTRA as his union, he called striking a "reductive negotiating tactic" and "myopic", and seemed to criticize that the strike banned him from promoting the second season of Heels.[54][55] In an Instagram post he later clarified his opinion, saying that while he does not like striking, he "[understands] fundamentally why we’re here" and stated that his support for the union was unconditional and that he stood with them.[56]

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role Notes
2007 The Tracey Fragments Detective
2007 Closing the Ring Teddy Gordon
2009 Screamers: The Hunting Guy Direct-to-video
2011 Stay with Me Travis Short film
2016 Code 8 Drone Operator Short film
Also producer
2016 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows Casey Jones
2018 Mi Madre, My Father Hal Nelson Short film
Premiered at the 2018 Cannes Film Festival[17]
2019 Code 8 Garrett Kelton Also producer
TBA Code 8: Part II Garrett Kelton Also producer

Television

Year Title Role Notes
2004 Queer as Folk Spinning Instructor 2 episodes
2004 Degrassi: The Next Generation Doorman Episode: "Ghost in the Machine: Part 2"
2005 Missing Ian Harrington Episode: "Paper Anniversary"
2005 Tilt Bellboy Episode: "Rivered"
2005 Beautiful People Jason 5 episodes
2005 Dante's Cove Adam 2 episodes
2006 The House Next Door Buddy Harrelson Television film
2006–08 Rent-a-Goalie Billy Main role; 18 episodes
2007 ReGenesis Craig Riddlemeyer 2 episodes
2007–09 Da Kink in My Hair Matthew 4 episodes
2007–12 Heartland Nick Harwell 6 episodes
2009 Flashpoint Peter Henderson Episode: "Exit Wounds"
2010 Blue Mountain State Travis McKenna 2 episodes
2010 CSI: Miami Peter Truitt Episode: "Sleepless in Miami"
2010 NCIS: Los Angeles Marine Gunnery Sergeant Andrew Weaver Episode: "Bounty"
2010 The Cutting Edge: Fire and Ice Philip Seaverm Television film
2011 The Vampire Diaries Brady 2 episodes
2011 CSI: Crime Scene Investigation A.J. Gust Episode: "73 Seconds"
2011 Justice for Natalee Holloway Joran van der Sloot Television film
2011 Hung Jason Main role (season 3); 10 episodes
2011 90210 Jim 2 episodes
2011–12 New Girl Kyle 2 episodes
2012 Private Practice Scott Becker 7 episodes
2012–2020 Arrow Oliver Queen / Green Arrow Lead role; 169 episodes
2013 When Calls the Heart Wynn Delaney Television film
2014–2019, 2023 The Flash Oliver Queen / Green Arrow 10 episodes
2015 Reelside Himself Episode: "Superheroes"
2015 WWE Raw Himself 2 episodes
2016–2020 DC's Legends of Tomorrow Oliver Queen / Green Arrow 6 episodes
2017 American Ninja Warrior Himself Episode: "Celebrity Ninja Warrior for Red Nose Day"
2017–2019 Supergirl Oliver Queen / Green Arrow 3 episodes
2019 Batwoman Oliver Queen / Green Arrow Episode: "Crisis on Infinite Earths: Part Two"
2021–present Heels Jack Spade Main role

Web

Year Title Role Notes
2015 Dudes Being Dudes in Wine Country Himself Also co-creator
2015–16 Vixen Oliver Queen / The Arrow / Green Arrow (voice) 5 episodes
2017–present Being The Elite Himself Cameo
2021–present Shot of Brandi Himself Cameo

Video games

Year Title Role Notes
2013 Injustice: Gods Among Us Green Arrow Arrow skin
2014 Lego Batman 3: Beyond Gotham Arrow
2020 Fortnite: Battle Royale Arrow skin; likeness only

References

  1. ^ Amell, Stephen (July 7, 2015). "Adam". Twitter. Archived from the original on June 3, 2023. Retrieved July 7, 2015.
  2. ^ Chase's Calendar of Events, 2018. Lanham, Md.: Rowman & Littlefield. 2017. p. 266. ISBN 9781598889253.
  3. ^ Horner, Rachel (October 5, 2015). "Stephen Amell: 10 Reasons We Love the 'Arrow' Star". MSN. Archived from the original on October 5, 2015. Retrieved October 5, 2015.
  4. ^ "Bolté, Auguste Armour". Globe and Mail. February 25, 2014.
  5. ^ Bierly, Mandi (September 16, 2013). "Amell Invasion: A Q&A with The CW's best bloodline". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on April 4, 2023. Retrieved October 16, 2019.
  6. ^ "I am Andrean". "St. Andrew's College". Retrieved January 20, 2017.
  7. ^ a b Harris, Bill (September 29, 2011). "Amell has big role on 'Hung'". London Free Press. Retrieved May 18, 2012.
  8. ^ Goodman, Lee-Anne (October 25, 2007). "Winning ensemble; Rent-a-Goalie star vows to le... | Entertainment". Welland Tribune. Archived from the original on February 18, 2014. Retrieved October 18, 2012.
  9. ^ Arrow, Jennifer; Dos Santos, Kristin (December 3, 2010). "Casting Scoop: Meet the Newest Vampire Diaries Hottie!". E! Online. Retrieved May 18, 2012.
  10. ^ a b O'Neal, Sean (January 31, 2012). "Here is the guy who will play Green Arrow for The CW". The A.V. Club. Retrieved May 18, 2012.
  11. ^ a b Ngwije, Americ (October 28, 2011). "Exclusive Interview: HUNG's Stephen Amell Opens Up About Jason's Trouble With Women, Fun Sex Scenes & Larry David". "Daemon's TV". Archived from the original on October 9, 2019. Retrieved May 18, 2012.
  12. ^ Goldberg, Lesley (November 9, 2011). "'Private Practice' Taps 'Hung' Star for Recurring Role". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved May 18, 2012.
  13. ^ Kroll, Justin (March 31, 2015). "'Arrow's' Stephen Amell to Star in 'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2′". Variety.
  14. ^ M, Lainee (April 7, 2017). "Stephen Amell Accepts 'American Ninja Warrior' Challenge, 'Arrow' Actor Joins Coach Kacy Catanzaro". "Celebeat". Retrieved April 19, 2017.
  15. ^ Cabin, Chris (May 28, 2017). "Watch: Stephen Amell Runs the 'American Ninja Warrior' Course for Red Nose Day". Collider. Retrieved February 21, 2020.
  16. ^ Morgan, Michelle (September 9, 2017). "Mi Madre, My Father – A film by Michelle Morgan". indiegogo. Retrieved December 13, 2017.
  17. ^ a b Cannes Film Festival. "Festival Corner". Retrieved May 22, 2018.
  18. ^ Prudom, Laura (March 6, 2019). "Arrow Ending After Season 8 With Shortened Final Season". IGN. Archived from the original on March 7, 2019. Retrieved August 20, 2019.
  19. ^ Andreeva, Nellie (August 19, 2019). "'Arrow' Star Stephen Amell To Headline Starz Wrestling Drama Series 'Heels'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved August 20, 2019.
  20. ^ Pedersen, Erik (December 10, 2019). "'Code 8' Spinoff Series Starring Robbie Amell & Stephen Amell Set At Quibi". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved August 24, 2020.
  21. ^ a b Real, Evan (May 28, 2015). "Stephen Amell Wrestling In SummerSlam Against WWE Superstar Stardust – Hollywood Life". Hollywood Life.
  22. ^ Johnson, Mike (May 26, 2015). "Stardust challenges Amell". Pro Wrestling Insider. Retrieved August 23, 2015.
  23. ^ Caldwell, James (May 25, 2015). "Caldwell's WWE Raw results 5/25: Complete "virtual-time" coverage of live Raw – Memorial Day, final Chamber PPV hype, Cena's Open Challenge, "Entourage," more". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved August 23, 2015.
  24. ^ Caldwell, James (August 10, 2015). "Caldwell's WWE Raw results 8/10: Complete "virtual-time" coverage of live Raw – WWE Title match, D-Bryan returns, Summerslam hype, TV actor guest-stars, more". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved August 14, 2015.
  25. ^ Caldwell, James (August 23, 2015). "Caldwell's SummerSlam report 8/23: Ongoing "virtual-time" coverage of Lesnar vs. Taker, Title vs. Title, more big matches". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved August 23, 2015.
  26. ^ Johnson, Mike (August 24, 2015). "Why Foley was at SummerSlam, Stephen Amell-WWE update and more backstage notes". Pro Wrestling Insider. Retrieved August 24, 2015.
  27. ^ Johnson, Mike (November 17, 2017). "'Arrow' star Stephen Amell joins Bullet Club & ProWrestlingTees.com". Pro Wrestling Insider. Retrieved November 17, 2017.
  28. ^ "Celebrity Moment of the Year". WWE. December 21, 2015. Retrieved December 21, 2015.
  29. ^ "'Arrow' Star Stephen Amell To Appear At Survival Of The Fittest In San Antonio". Ring of Honor Wrestling. Retrieved November 11, 2017.
  30. ^ "ROH San Antonio, TX, live results: Stephen Amell teams with Bullet Club". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. November 18, 2017. Retrieved November 18, 2017.
  31. ^ @ALL_IN_2018 (August 6, 2018). "Christopher Daniels -VS- Stephen Amell September 1st" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  32. ^ DeFelice, Robert (March 1, 2020). "Stephen Amell Appears Alongside Cody, Tag Team Title Classic | Post-AEW Revolution Fight-Size". Fightful. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
  33. ^ Couch, Aaron (September 24, 2014). "Why 'Arrow' Star Stephen Amell Is Saying "F--- Cancer" for Charity". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved October 7, 2015.
  34. ^ Lash, Jolie (November 25, 2014). "'Arrow' Star Stephen Amell Brings Back 'F--- Cancer' Charity Campaign". Access Hollywood. Retrieved October 7, 2015.
  35. ^ a b Burks, Robin (January 22, 2015). "Stephen Amell Launches New Charity Campaign, Sinceriously". Tech Times. Retrieved October 7, 2015.
  36. ^ Stroud, Brandon (September 14, 2015). "Stephen Amell And Stardust Delivered A Huge Check For Charity". Uproxx. Retrieved October 7, 2015.
  37. ^ "Arrow's Stephen Amell Crushes Celebrity Ninja Warrior Course". Screen Rant. May 25, 2017. Retrieved September 19, 2017.
  38. ^ "Old Boys News". The Andrean – Spring 2008. 2008. Retrieved January 20, 2017.
  39. ^ "Superheroes". Reelside. Season 1. Episode 6. July 9, 2015. The Movie Network.
  40. ^ "Stephen Amell Marries Cassandra Jean In The Caribbean". "Huffington Post". January 12, 2013. Retrieved January 13, 2013.
  41. ^ "Arrow's Stephen Amell Marries for a Second Time". People. June 27, 2013. Archived from the original on June 3, 2023. Retrieved April 5, 2019.
  42. ^ Massabrook, Nicole (July 23, 2022). "1st Photos! Stephen Amell and Wife Cassandra Reveal Newborn Son Bowen". Us Weekly. Retrieved November 9, 2022.
  43. ^ Ge, Linda (September 16, 2015). "'Arrow' Star Stephen Amell Blasted on Twitter for Ahmed Mohamed Comment: 'Stereotyping Texas Isn't Any Better'". TheWrap. Retrieved August 2, 2023.
  44. ^ "Amell Leaves Social Media "For A Bit" Following Controversial Tweet". CBR. September 17, 2015. Retrieved August 1, 2023.
  45. ^ McRady, Rachel (September 17, 2015). "Stephen Amell Takes Twitter Hiatus After Ahmed Mohamed Tweet Offends". Us Weekly. Retrieved August 1, 2023.
  46. ^ Corriston, Michele. "Arrow' 's Stephen Amell Says He 'Didn't Mean to Offend Anyone' with Controversial Tweets About Texas Teen Arrested for Homemade Clock". People. Retrieved August 1, 2023.
  47. ^ Kennedy, John R. "'Arrow' Star Stephen Amell Attacked For Beyoncé Tweet". www.iheartradio.ca. Retrieved August 2, 2023.
  48. ^ "'Arrow' Star Stephen Amell's Dumb Beef With Beyoncé Fans, Explained". Inverse. April 19, 2018. Retrieved August 2, 2023.
  49. ^ Ashton, Will (April 18, 2018). "Why Beyonce Fans Are Mad At Stephen Amell". CINEMABLEND. Retrieved August 2, 2023.
  50. ^ Crabtree, Erin (June 3, 2020). "Stephen Amell Responds After Being Accused of Racism". Us Weekly. Retrieved August 2, 2023.
  51. ^ Kimble, Lindsay. "Stephen Amell Confirms He Was Removed from Flight After Argument with His Wife". People Magazine. Retrieved August 1, 2023.
  52. ^ Mazzeo, Esme. "Stephen Amell opens up about the 'really, really shameful' moment he got kicked off a plane for yelling at his wife: 'I had too many drinks'". Insider. Retrieved August 1, 2023.
  53. ^ Massabrook, Nicole (September 1, 2021). "Stephen Amell Is Ashamed of Plane Fight With Wife Cassandra Jean". Us Weekly. Retrieved August 1, 2023.
  54. ^ White, Peter (July 31, 2023). "Stephen Amell Calls Actors Strike "Myopic" & "A Reductive Negotiating Tactic"". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved July 31, 2023.
  55. ^ Piña, Christy (August 1, 2023). "Stephen Amell Says He Doesn't Support the Actors Strike: "It Is a Reductive Negotiating Tactic"". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved August 1, 2023.
  56. ^ Hibberd, James (August 1, 2023). "Stephen Amell Clarifies His "Misinterpreted" Anti-Strike Comments in Lengthy Statement". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved August 1, 2023.
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