Arrow: Why Tommy Merlyn Was Killed Off After Just One Season

Oliver Queen’s childhood best friend Tommy Merlyn was killed off at the end of Arrow season 1, and his death stuck for a surprisingly long time. Though he was recently brought back to life in the wake of the Crisis on Infinite Earths crossover (and Oliver encountered a couple of his doppelgangers in the meantime), Tommy stayed dead for seven whole seasons – a lifetime in the Arrowverse, where death is rarely permanent.

Played by Colin Donnell, Tommy was the son of Malcolm Merlyn a.k.a. the Dark Archer, the main villain of Arrow season 1. There was naturally a lot of potential conflict in Oliver being best friends with the son of his worst enemy, so it felt like Arrow was building to exploring this further in season 2. Instead, Malcolm ended up inadvertently killing his own son during his plan to destroy the Glades, when Tommy was impaled on a concrete reinforcement bar in a building collapsed by Merlyn’s earthquake machines.

Tommy was a well-liked character who seemed set to be a long-term fixture in Arrow‘s storylines, so his death came as a major shock to fans. That was actually the point of it. Speaking to Syfy in 2013, producer Marc Guggenheim explained that the writers had wanted a big death at the end of Arrow season 1, and settled on Tommy as the loss that would be the most devastating for Oliver and the other characters:

“It really had to do with the fact that we wanted Oliver to suffer a loss at the end of the season. When we thought about the characters that he could lose who would have the biggest impact not just on Oliver, but on the show, Tommy was the name that rose to the top very quickly. Tommy’s death impacts pretty much every member of our cast. Obviously his death impacts Oliver and Laurel, but there’s a closeness between Thea and Tommy that we’ve established on the show, Lance, obviously because of the connection that Laurel has with Tommy, and Moira because of her responsibility with Tommy. He’s the one character whose death would have the biggest impact.”

Reflecting on Tommy’s death in an interview with The AU Review in 2017, Donnell remarked that in hindsight it was actually the best thing that ever happened to him. After exiting Arrow, he returned to New York and started dating actress Patti Murin, who would later become his wife. At the time, though, even he didn’t see Tommy’s death coming:

“[The writers] had this idea that they wanted to really do something major at the end of the first season and the best way to accomplish that and the character that would have the most impact across the board, would be to give Tommy the axe! So, I mean, it took me by surprise certainly, but the way they gave him such an exit is pretty cool for me, especially now, almost 5 going on 6 years later people are still remembering it.”

While the version of Tommy Merlyn that died in the Arrow season 1 finale wasn’t officially brought back to life until the series finale earlier this year, Connell returned to the show many times over the years. He played Tommy as a guiding vision experienced by Oliver, as another character disguising themselves as Tommy, and even a couple of Tommy doppelgangers. His presence was felt throughout the series despite his early departure, which is a testament to just how powerful that season 1 death was.

About The Author

Hannah Shaw-Williams
(3313 Articles Published)

See also  What Bobbie’s Roci Story Means For The Expanse Season 6

Hannah has been with Screen Rant since 2013, covering news, features, movie premieres, Comic-Con and more! You can follow her on Twitter @HSW3K

More From Hannah Shaw-Williams