Stephen Amell opens up about his anxiety following Arrow’s ending
Arrow is coming to an end this week, and fans aren’t the only ones having trouble saying goodbye. Apparently, Stephen Amell’s had a hard time parting with Oliver Queen as well.
It’s hard to believe the Arrowverse was born almost eight years ago now — almost as difficult as it is to accept that the series that started it all is coming to a close this week. Fans of DC TV have grown used to Oliver Queen leading the lineup of DC heroes on The CW. And while the future of the Arrowverse is in capable hands, it’s going to be hard to say goodbye to Arrow once and for all (even if we’ve technically already bid farewell to its protagonist…).
As it turns out, fans aren’t the only ones struggling with saying goodbye to Arrow either. After experiencing the symptoms of a panic attack on Michael Rosenbaum’s Inside of You podcast, Stephen Amell admitted he’s been dealing with anxiety recently, which, in part, has to do with his feelings about parting with his role.
Even during his time speaking with Rosenbaum, Amell revealed that he’s felt “mentally exhausted” since he wrapped filming. In fact, the actor even reported not wanting to get off the couch or eat in the days following his final moments on set. And midway through the conversation, Amell reportedly began feeling ill and cut the interview short to get some fresh air.
Amell returned to complete the podcast interview two weeks later, explaining that he’d needed time to process his feelings surrounding Arrow‘s end. According to ScreenRant, professional counseling and talking things through with his wife enabled him to sort through his emotions.
The actor even took to Twitter to vocalize what he’d been going through during the initial recording, and to assure fans that he’s “doing much better” now:
I did Rosey’s podcast after Arrow ended. We had to cut it short because I had a full on panic attack. It wasn’t pretty. I came back a few weeks ago to chat about it. I was in a really bad spot and I’m happy to report that I’m doing much better. Listen please :) https://t.co/bpnUDqtQZN
— Stephen Amell (@StephenAmell) January 21, 2020
Amell’s struggle demonstrates something that many actors and actresses go through when parting with roles they’ve played for years. Losing a part of one’s identity is never easy, and that the Arrow star was so open about his experience may inspire others to open up as well. It’s easy to forget that anxiety and depression affect celebrities as much as they do fans, and highlighting that will, hopefully, push people to get the help they need.
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