New Zealand ‘Arrow’ Star Manu Bennett Unhappy With Departure From Show

Manu Bennett's portrayal of Slade Wilson/Deathstroke in hit series Arrow made him a fan favourite, but the New Zealand actor has revealed he’s not likely to return to the show.

Currently in its third season, Arrow brought back Bennett’s character for one episode, but he is unhappy with the writers’ direction.

“I think Deathstroke had a lot of possibilities with Arrow but, I think they took it in the wrong direction,” Bennett told theMusic.com.au’s Daniel Cribb a head of his appearances at Supanova.

“I think they should have honoured the Marv Wolfman character who was literally unstoppable. I read the DC comic books and thought Deathstroke was so bad arse because they make it that nobody can stop him. He’s not even super-powered, he is just a mercenary.

“It took the Justice League to defeat him; it took an army to take him on. In Arrow, it took a while for Oliver [Queen/Arrow] to prove his point, but [season three] was just a beating of Slade, adding insult to injury.”

While Arrow fans might be disheartened by the news, Bennett has moved onto a new project already.

“There was an audition in Hollywood and just by chance I landed a series that they were shooting back here in New Zealand called Shannara. It’s a book series created by Terry Brooks, and is the second largest selling series,” he explained.

“I’m playing Allanon, and he’s like Gandalf meets Deathstroke - kick arse dude. What I think is that The Lord Of The Rings and The Hobbit audiences have sort of been left with nothing now that Peter Jackson’s two trilogies have come to an end. I think that Shannara will fill that void.”

You can catch Manu Bennett at Supanova Pop Culture Expo in Melbourne (10-12 Apr) and the Gold Coast (17-19 Apr).