'Arrow' Season 5 Premiere: Fifth Year Will Be 'Gritty' & 'Dark' With Bratva Institution [VIDEO]
Arrow is heading to Russia where things are about to get super twisted.
On Saturday, TV Line posted details from showrunner Wendy Mericle who dished on Oliver's history with Bratva crime syndicate. Whatever goes down, it's going to be crazy.
"We really wanted to go gritty, dark, and make it feel very real," Mericle said. "We're dealing with the Bratva, and the Bratva is, as we all know, a pretty interesting and messed up institution. I might get shot for saying that, but hey!"
It'll likely be an accurate storyline since the crew looked at the history of what happened at this time.
"Everyone on staff watched [the 2007 film] Eastern Promises," Mericle noted. "I watched documentaries about Bratva and how they operate in Russian prisons."
There's also a new villain coming to the series played by actor Dolph Lundgren who's pretty hard-core.
"[Dolph's character] is a government strongman," the shorunner explained. "He is scary and formidable- and he had a role in some stuff with Taiana's family last season. He's a bit of a bada-s."
In a previous report from Entertainment Weekly, Stephen Amell who plays the leading role, explained what the series needs in upcoming episodes, which involves going back to its original roots.
"When we started Arrow, we were the superpower-less superhero show," Amell said. "Because of our success and because of opportunities that The CW has had, we've had to break away from that original modus operandi a little bit because we were introducing Barry Allen, and in subsequent seasons, we've shepherded some of the Legends of Tomorrow onto their own show."
Arrow Season 5 is expected to premiere on Wednesday, October 5 at 8 p.m. ET on The CW.
