No matter how real it might feel at times, The CW’s beloved Arrowverse is completely fictional. There are no metahumans and there’s no former billionare playboy named Oliver Queen. The particle accelerator and Wave Rider exist only in our imaginations (at least for now).
Even though we don’t exist in a world with superheroes and metahumans, not everything in the interconnected multiverse is for show. The actors may not be ending innocent lives and saving people’s lives, but they’re not the cushy Hollywood elite who some might assume.
These stars might not turn into vigilante heroes any day, but that’s only because being a superhero is impossible for anyone.
Still, there are members of the Arrowverse who are legitimately and physically tough. The Arrowverse loves showing the actors in various states of undress but all of those muscles aren’t just for show– some of the Arrowverse stars are real deal athletes.
There’s also some actors who couldn’t be more removed from the superheroes or supervillains that they play. Whether they’re just too sweet to do anything as aggressive as their fictional characters or whether they wouldn’t, in a million years, be able to do the same stunts as their characters, there are stars of the Arrowverse who exact opposite of tough. They’re not tricking the audience.
This list is also in no way a condemnation of them. It’s a credit to their skills as an actor as they do come off as a powerful presence. Still, not every Arrowverse actor can walk the walk.
With that said, here are the 10 Arrowverse Stars Who Are Legitimately Tough (And 10 Who Are Only Tough On Screen)!
Tough: Stephen Amell – Arrow
Stephen Amell might not be the man who started the entire Arrowverse. The credit for that probably goes to super producer, Greg Berlanti.
However, Amell is the first face of the franchise and most of the shows, but especially Arrow, have taken their cues for him. This includes their level of physical fitness and toughness.
As will become incredibly obvious in a short while, Arrow has one of the most fit casts on TV. Amell is at the very top of their very buff pyramid.
Since landing the job of Oliver Queen, the actor has been devoted to keep himself in peak physical condition.
He once explained on Aisha Tyler’s Girl on Guy podcast that if he doesn’t look like he could do some serious damage, Arrow simply wouldn’t work. Oliver, and by consequence Amell, must look like he’s constantly training and in the gym.
This has resulted in Amell doing many of his own stunts. He frequently does the salmon ladder, an Arrow staple, while delivering lengthy monologues.
Amell’s physical regime has been so widely recognized that it’s opened other opportunities for him. He’s participated in professional wrestling and Celebrity American Ninja Warrior.
During the latter, he did much better on the course than any of his fellow famous people.
Not Tough: Chyler Leigh – Supergirl
As Alex Danvers, Chyler Leigh comes across as one of the Arrowverse’s toughest warriors. Alex doesn’t have any powers like her sister, Kara, aka Supergirl, but she can still throw down with the best of them.
Alex has frequently taken out rooms of baddies on Supergirl and not just humans either. Alex is just as capable of handling an alien and metahuman as she is the standard thug.
However, Chyler Leigh is far pretty removed from the rough and tumble Alex. The actress is much more like the kind and motherly side of Alex than anything from the gun-toting, punch throwing secret agent side.
Chyler Leigh is the definition of sweet and nurturing, especially to her fans but also to anyone she comes across.
Since Alex’s big coming out storyline in season 2, Chyler Leigh has become a huge advocate for LGBTQ rights. Leigh, with her husband Nathan West, started her own company Charity Pulse.
The aim of Charity Pulse to connect to people with a platform and to get them to use that popularity for more altruistic purposes. Pulse represents and supports a number of causes, including LGBTQ rights.
It’s a much different type of fight than the one Alex faces on Supergirl, but it’s still important. While Chyler Leigh obviously has some pretty strong morals, no one should be expecting her to neutralize a room full of armed hostiles any time soon.
Tough: Katee Sackhoff - The Flash
Katee Sackhoff is a new addition to the Arrowverse. Sackhoff joined the universe during The Flash season 4 as the villain Amunet.
As an adaption of the character Blacksmith from the comics, most of Amunet’s action scenes revolve around her pointing her hand and spouting some sassy line.
Amunet has a limited control over magnetism. She uses a glove made of metal shards to fire bullet-like projectiles at Team Flash and other heroes.
Amunet is a new villain but she’s proven to be quite a threat. Even if what she’s doing doesn’t appear to be all that taxing. Yet even if Amunet isn’t straining too much, that doesn’t mean that Katee Sackhoff isn’t as tough as metal herself.
Since her role on Battlestar Galatica, the actress has a long history of keeping in shape and bulking up. It all started with Battlestar.
Sackhoff’s character on that series, Starbuck, frequently got into fistfights, often with much larger looking male characters, and won. Sackhoff was adamant that she would have to look like she could take down a man twice her size and frequently worked out during the series.
It’s a dedication that has continued throughout her career.
It’s also resulted in some of the jobs she’s landed after Battlestar. Since that series ended, Sakchoff has typically played action-heavy and physically imposing characters. Amunet is just the latest.
Not Tough: Katie Cassidy – Arrow
Throughout the Arrowverse, actress Katie Cassidy has played several roles. All of them have had the name Laurel Lance but thanks to the multiverse, few have been the same person.
Cassidy started out playing the Earth-One Laurel, who was upstanding attorney who eventually turned to a life of vigilantism as The Black Canary. Laurel’s time as Black Canary was brief as she was destroyed quickly after her transformation.
After Earth-One Laurel passed away, Cassidy transitioned into playing the “evil” dopplegänger of Laurel, The Black Siren. There’s been a couple Black Sirens but the one of Earth-2 is the most prominent.
Since taking over the role, Cassidy has relished playing the much more aggressive and violent character. Black Siren is terrifying force to be reckoned with when she’s moved to destruction.
However, Cassidy is nearly as threatening as her many alter egos. Cassidy enjoys doing as many stunts as she can, but she rarely gets the chance to throw punches on set.
It’s her stunt double who is doing most of Laurel’s moves, not Cassidy. This has become even more true as the actress as transitioned into Black Siren as most of her power comes from her devastating sonic scream.
Black Siren might seem like a human wrecking ball, but it’s almost entirely an acting job on Cassidy’s part, and not any physical prowess of her own.
Tough: Dominic Purcell – Legends of Tomorrow
To most viewers, Legends of Tomorrow’s Heatwave might seem more deranged than tough. It’s true that Mick Rory has been mostly played for laughs on the series.
Mick is all about fire and destruction, all of the time. He’s mayhem personified. Legends has used Mick’s wild nature to great comedic effect.
However, it’s important to remember that before Mick joined the time-traveling crew, he was a hardened criminal. Mick has taken the lives of many people, including his own family.
He might be a con with a heart of gold, but he’s still a hardened con. Yet actor Dominic Purcell might give Mick a run for his money in the toughness department.
Purcell has never harmed anyone like Mick, but the actor isn’t a pushover either. The intimidating size of Mick is all Purcell and his commitment to his own physical fitness.
Purcell is an intimidating looking guy, but it’s not all just looks.
While filming the Prison Break revival, there was an on-set accident in which Purcell was involved. Purcell participated in one of his own stunts and an explosion was involved. The stunt went wrong, and Purcell was struck in the head. The hit was so hard that his skull was showing.
Purcell was medlifted to the hospital and treated, but returned to work shortly thereafter. Mick Rory has been through a lot, but his skull has never been exposed (yet) on Legends of Tomorrow.
Not Tough: Danielle Panabaker – The Flash
Danielle Panabaker’s Caitlin Snow has a basis in DC comics. However, the way she transforms into Killer Frost has been handled is a lot more like Marvel’s The Hulk.
Caitlin and Killer Frost are two separate entities. Caitlin can only turn into Killer Frost given the right emotional parameters. While Caitlin is relatively demure and gentle, Killer Frost is anything but even-keel.
Though The Flash has turned Killer Frost into a hero, she’s still pretty dangerous and aggressive. Killer Frost is literally and metaphorically cold, as she’s able to be chilling in the exact right manner to come across as threat.
However, Danielle Panabaker is a lot more like the innocent Caitlin and the chilly vixen of Killer Frost.
Being an actress from a very young age, Panabaker has done a lot to inspire her fans and support them.
When Panabaker isn’t acting in The Flash or any other project, she’s devoting her time to charity work. In 2015, Panabaker teamed up with several ladies in the Arrowverse cast, including Katie Cassidy and Emily Bett Rickards, for the charity Woman Up.
The goal of Woman Up is assist women in poor and under-resourced communities. The aim of Women Up isn’t just to raise funds, providing resources and tools for those who may be unable to receive help otherwise.
The organization also exists to empower women and inspire them to be the best version of themselves.
Tough: Mehcad Brooks – Supergirl
The comic inspiration for Mehcad Brooks’ Supergirl character is one of the most beloved dorks in all of superhero history.
Jimmy Olsen is the quintessential nerdy best friend, being Superman’s de facto sidekick almost since the Man of Steel’s first appearance. Yet Supergirl changed Jimmy, now named James, substantially and turned him to a built hunk (whose taller than Superman).
Not only does Jimmy look different, but he acts different as well. James has become his own superhero, Guardian. With the help of a suit and his own considerable physique, James fights crimes and super powered aliens as Guardian.
James’ move from super friend to superhero was done to give his character something– anything– to do. However, it’s also inspired by Mehcad Brooks’ own workout regime.
For a long time, the actor has been dedicated to building up his body.
He played a football player in Necessary Roughness and was a starring character on True Blood, a series where nearly every man needed to be ripped.
Mehcad Brooks, who also been a model, has been very vocal about the amount of work he’s done in the gym. He doesn’t just do it to be a believable Guardian, but also to be his most fit self.
Not Tough: John Barrowman – Arrow
John Barrowman’s Malcolm Merlyn was the first major villain of the Arrowverse. To date, he’s still the longest running villain.
Barrowman first appeared as Malcolm during Arrow season 1, where he nearly destroyed Oliver Queen’s vigilante mission before it even began.
In his every appearance during the first five seasons of Arrow and one season on Legends of Tomorrow, Barrowman exuded menace. Malcolm was a violent sociopath… and the polar opposite of Barrowman in real life.
While Malcolm rarely cracked a smile on Arrow, Barrowman is almost constantly beaming. The actor is loud, exuberant, and bursting with joy during his every public appearance.
This larger-than-life attitude could be because Barrowman got his start in the theater. Born in England, Barrowman’s acting career began on West End during 1989 where he played Billy Crocker in Anything Goes.
Ever since then, Barrowman has appeared on stage and in musicals. The affable and often belting Barrowman is about as far from a trained assassin like Malcolm Merlyn as it is possible to get.
In addition, Barrowman does countless bits of charity work. Barrowman is involved in so many causes that a whole section of his website is devoted to the organizations that he works with and donates to, just so fans can also participate.
Tough: Manu Bennett – Arrow
The Big Bad of Arrow season 2, Slade Wilson, was a force to be reckoned with before he ever took the mirakuru that turned into a deranged super solider.
As a trained assassin, Deathstroke is a big factor in why Oliver turned into the Green Arrow. Slade trained Oliver when they were stranded on the island of Lian Yu. It’s this connection that Slade exploited after he felt that Oliver was the cause of every bad thing in his life.
As a hulking figure, Deathstroke was terrifying in seasons 2 and 3. Slade remains a horrifying threat even though he is currently Oliver’s ally, instead of his antagonist.
Most of that is due to Manu Bennett’s considerable size, which makes Stephen Amell look tiny. However, all the muscles on Bennett aren’t just for show.
Thankfully, he’s never done anything quite as violent as Deathstroke. If he had, Bennett would be behind bars for decades.
The actor has still gotten into his fair share of his real-life fights, though.
In 2015, Bennett got into a drunken brawl while attending the Alamo City Comic Con in Texas. The fight, which involved a 29-year-old man, caused Bennett to be arrested for assault, although he was later released on bail.
It’s a moment that the actor deeply regrets, and he calls it a huge mistake. However, it does prove that all of Deathstroke’s menace was invented.
Not Tough: Wentworth Miller - The Flash
Wentworth Miller has had one of the more interesting histories in the Arrowverse. Originally introduced in The Flash season 1 as Leonard Snart, aka Captain Cold, Miller quickly became a recurring villain.
Although there was some complexity to Snart, he was a thorn in Barry Allen’s side for a long time. Eventually, Snart joined Legends of Tomorrow and heroically sacrificed himself at the end of season 1.
However, that wasn’t the end of Miller’s journey. Thanks to time travel, the multiverse, and even hallucinations, Miller continued to play different versions of Leonard Snart. All of them have had the same hard edge.
Armed with his famous cold gun, Snart became one of the most powerful and charismatic villains / antiheroes in the Arrowverse.
Wentworth Miller is almost nothing like Leonard Snart.
Unlike Snart, who speaks in a loud and intentionally antagonistic manner, Miller is soft-spoken and gentle.
As very private person, Miller is rarely seen outside of his various acting roles. As powerful as he seems in front of the camera, very few of Miller’s stunts are done by him, but rather a stunt double.
Yet even more than that, Miller has used his public platform to do a fair bit of charity work.
Since Miller fights against cyberbullies and for mental health support, there’s a huge difference between Miller and his (reformed) criminal character.
Tough: Katrina Law - Arrow
For many viewers, Katrina Law’s role as Nyssa al Ghul in Arrow was their first exposure to the actress. However, Nyssa isn’t Law’s first experience with an action-heavy role.
Before Law joined Arrow, she was apart of Starz’ Spartacus, which hosted many eventual Arrowverse stars.
Law’s character on Spartacus, Mira, wasn’t quite as accomplished as Nyssa al Ghul, The Daughter of the Demon. Mira was never trained by the League of Assassin and bred from birth to take the lives of others. However, she still knew her way around the battlefield.
It’s while playing Mira that Law learned how to handle and shoot a bow and arrow. It wasn’t an easy process, but eventually Law learned the difficult technique and it’s something that she’s brought onto Arrow.
Law does try to do as many of her stunts as possible when playing Nyssa on Arrow. However, she does share duty with her stunt double. Yet when Nyssa is wielding a bow and arrow, that’s all Katrina Law.
The actress isn’t nearly as dangerous as Nyssa, though. Nyssa is considered one of the best living fighters in the Arrowverse, which is no small feat.
Still, Law isn’t helpless on the set of Arrow and could hit a target.
Not Tough: Josh Segarra - Arrow
Josh Segarra’s Arrow character, Prometheus, is one of the most formidable characters in Arrowverse history. The main villain of Arrow’s excellent season 5, Segarra imbued Prometheus with a palpable and horrifying instability.
Prometheus was a manic and dangerous monster who tormented Oliver. He nearly destroyed everything and everyone who Oliver Queen loved.
Prometheus was a reminder that Arrow could still thrill and chill with the right villain. Segarra was tremendous as the dark mirror of Oliver Queen. However, it was all an act. Segarra shares very little with his villainous character.
Though Segarra is in shape, he’s nowhere near the level of the rest of the Arrow cast.
Even while playing Prometheus, most of Segarra’s free time wasn’t spent in the gym.
Prometheus is also an exception in Segarra’s career. Before Segarra took on the role, he played much more goofy and comedic characters. Rather than cut his teeth harming people wantonly, Segarra has spent a lot of time on Broadway, being cheerful and silly.
By all accounts from fans and the Arrow cast themselves, Segarra couldn’t be more different than Prometheus.
He’s the type of person that everyone get along with and wants to hang out around, not run away screaming from in the opposite direction.
Tough: Juliana Harkavy – Arrow
Juliana Harkavy is the third Black Canary in Arrow’s impressive line-up of Canaries. Following the passing of Laurel Lance and “retirement” of Sara Lance, Team Arrow recruited Harkavy’s character, Dinah Drake, to take up the mantle of Black Canary.
Dinah came to Team Arrow a fully formed vigilante. She was a metahuman and had been fighting, underground, for years to take down corruption in Central City.
Team Arrow just gave Dinah a name and a costume. This parallels Harkavy’s own journey with the series, as she was already a seriously tough woman before playing a superhero.
Dinah Drake is the first time Juliana Harkavy has been able to show off her fitness skills. However, she comes from a family of athletes, with her father and brother both having athletic backgrounds.
Though Harkavy’s primary career has been an actress, she’s also participated in athletics nearly her entire life.
Juliana has long been interested in fitness but once she was cast Black Canary, she really threw herself into working out.
Much like Stephen Amell, Harkavy believes that physical fitness is a huge part of selling her character.
“I think the physicality of being an athlete or working out, it grounds you,” she explained in an interview withMen’s Health. “It centers you. I’ve been able to really use that in this role.”
Not Tough: Willa Holland - Arrow
Willa Holland’s character, Thea Queen, was someone created specifically for Arrow. Before Arrow, Oliver Queen never had a sister, in any form.
Thea quickly became a fan-favorite and the comics even introduced a character, heavily inspired by Thea, called Emiko. Like Thea, Emiko Queen is Oliver’s half-sister who joins him in the field as a sidekick.
Thea did become Speedy on Arrow and was recognized as one of the best crimefighters in Team Arrow. Thea combined the skills of Oliver and her biological father, Malcolm Merlyn, into one feisty little package.
Yet Speedy’s skill with a bow, sword, and in hand-to-hand combat are much like herself– completely fictional.
During her stint on Arrow, Willa Holland almost never did her own stunts. The hood and mask that Speedy wore while fighting wasn’t just a good identity concealment for Thea but Holland herself.
During almost every fight scene with Thea, it was the stunt double in the role, except of course, when Holland had a line or close-up.
Holland went as far to say in an interview with The Hollywood News that, “I tell my stunt double almost every single day that she’s actually Speedy. Yes, I’m Thea Queen. But she’s definitely Speedy.”
Tough: David Ramsey – Arrow
Since the very first episode of Arrow, David Ramsey’s John Diggle has been Oliver Queen’s partner. Diggle is the first person to learn Oliver’s secret identity of The Hood and the first person to be recruited into his mission of saving the city.
It wasn’t long after Dig joined Oliver that he gained his own superhero identity, Spartan, and started to go off on his own mission.
John growing out of his sidekick role from Oliver wasn’t just the right move for his character. It made complete logical sense. There’s no way anyone as physically imposing as David Ramsey would play second fiddle for too long.
Though Ramsey is reportedly as sweet as they come in terms of personality, he has an impressive physical résumé– one that rivals his character’s own achievements.
Ramsey isn’t an ex-special ops officer like Diggle, but he is a martial arts master.
Unlike many of the toughest Arrowverse cast members, Ramsey didn’t start training in martial arts when he landed the role of Diggle. Ramsey has been dedicated to martial arts for nearly 20 years.
He has expertise in Wing Chun, Jeet Kune Do, and kickboxing.
Diggle’s main method of fighting in Arrow is through ranged methods, with a handgun or crossbow. Yet David Ramsey can take out an opponent just as well, if not better than Diggle, at close range.
Not Tough: Neal McDonough – Legends of Tomorrow
For three consecutive seasons in the Arrowverse, Neal McDonough has been the face of evil as Damien Darhk.
Introduced in Arrow season 4 but eventually ending up on Legends of Tomorrow, Darhk was a huge headache for every hero that encountered him. Semi-immortal, dangerous, and magical, Damien Darhk could do almost anything and no one could stop him.
Darhk was nothing new for McDonough’s career. The character actor has a long history of taking roles with a morbid bent. McDonough does creepy very well and he’s done it in everything from Suits to Justified.
Part of the reason why McDonough can embrace his villainous roles so well is because his characters are so far different from his actual personality.
McDonough is a devout Catholic and has been one for nearly his entire life. McDonough enjoys playing villains like Darhk but it’s all intentionally ridiculous and outlandish.
There’s nothing slightly realistic about playing a villain for McDonough– it’s all make-believe for the actor.
The actor feels so strongly about his religion and morals that there are even some things he won’t do.
McDonough refuses to even kiss a woman on-screen, even if his character is married to them because he feels like it would be cheating on his wife. McDonough is the type of upstanding citizen who would probably make Darhk violently ill.
Tough: Caity Lotz – Legends of Tomorrow
Caity Lotz originated the role of Canary on Arrow. Though her character Sara Lance was first introduced in the Arrow pilot, it wouldn’t be until season 2 that Lotz would take over the role.
Quickly into her tenure as the character, Lotz proved that she wasn’t messing around. Although she is one of the shorter members of the Arrowverse, she loomed large as Sara Lance and the first Black Canary.
Lotz’ portrayal of Sara proved to be a huge smash hit with fans. So, when the character was cut off in season 3, there was a clamor to bring Sara back to life.
This happened during Arrow season 4 and Sara spun-off onto Legends of Tomorrow, where she eventually became the de facto main character of the ensemble series.
While the popularity of Sara has a lot to with Lotz’ performance, the actress has also been devoted to making the idea of her seemingly like trained assassin a reality.
The actress tries to work out every day and trains constantly on the set with the bo staff to feel comfortable during action scenes and be able to do her own stunts.
In both Arrow and Legends of Tomorrow, but especially the latter, Lotz has tried to be in front of the camera for her own stunts as much as possible.
This resulted in one of her most impressive physical displays. During Arrow season 2, Lotz hopped onto the salmon ladder and was able to complete a workout on camera.
Not Tough: Tom Cavanagh – The Flash
Tom Cavanagh has been a series regular on The Flash since the first episode, but he’s rarely played the same character for an extended period.
Allof Cavanagh’s characters have gone by the name Harrison Wells but they’re not the same person. In the first season, Harrison Wells was an impostor who was really named Eboard Thawne, the Reverse Flash.
In season 2, Cavanagh played the Earth-2 Harrison Wells, Harry, and in season 3, he was Earth-19’s Wells, H.R. Wells. In season 4, he’s back to Harry (with occasional appearances from Wells from other universes and timelines).
Usually, though, Cavanagh’s characters have an hardness to them. They’re either literally evil, like Eobard Thawne, or just rough with an inner kindness ,like Harry Wells.
The only Wells who has been that close to to Cavanagh is the hyperactive, coffee-guzzling H.R. Wells.
Cavanagh might’ve turned in a terrifyingly effective performance as Eobard Thawne, who destroyed Barry Allen’s mother in cold blood, but in real life, he probably wouldn’t hurt a fly– well, except maybe the mosquitos that carry malaria.
Cavanagh has spearheaded a charity that is dedicated to combating Malaria sickness.
Cavanagh’s initiative Nothing But Nets raises money to fund Malaria research and provide bug nets to those who desperately need them. Malaria isn’t a common disease in the Western world, but it is one of the highest causes of people perishing in Africa.
Tough: Melissa Benoist - Supergirl
Kara Danvers is arguable the strongest hero in the Arrowverse. However, her more famous cousin, Superman, often gets all the credit as being the most powerful superhero ever.
Yet in the Arrowverse, Supergirl has been proven to be stronger than Superman. There’s a reason why Supergirl exists in her own universe in the Arrowverse, and that’s because she can handle almost every problem single-handedly.
However, it’s true that most of Supergirl’s greatest feats are assisted by CGI. Actress Melissa Benoist isn’t shooting lasers from her eyes, taking flight, or lifting space stations into orbit.
No matter how much time she spends in the gym, it’s just not happening. It’s not all smoke and mirrors with Benoist and Supergirl, though.
Benoist wasn’t much of a gym rat before Supergirl. In fact, she admitted that she’s never hit anyone, in real life or for a job, before taking the role.
Once she got the gig, though, she threw herself completely into training to believably be called the Girl of Steel.
Supergirl does fly due post-production magic, but Benoist tries to do as much of her stunts as she can manage.
Occasionally her stunt double, Jesse Graff, will step in for the really dangerous moments, but Benoist is a lot more than pretty face– there’s got more Kara Zor-El than Kara Danvers in her.
Not Tough: Grant Gustin - The Flash
The Arrowverse is more than three shows. Yet the three faces of the franchise are Stephen Amell as the Green Arrow, Melissa Benoist as Supergirl and Grant Gustin as The Flash.
While Amell and Benoist have some physical cred to back up their fictional superhero status, the same can’t be said of Gustin.
Gustin is akin to the dorky powerless Earth-2 version of Barry Allen than any metahuman.
Gustin keeps in shape but he’s not spending as much time in gym as the other leads. Gustin’s way of keeping trim is more due to dancing and singing.
The actor has a long history in musical theater, which resulted in his first big break on the musical TV series, Glee. Gustin’s dancing background is also why The Flash made the decision to have a musical episode (with Supergirl) during season 3.
Things go even farther than Gustin being a song and dance man, though. When The Flash first began, the actor would actually have to run, obviously not as fast as her powered alter ego, but there was still some cardio involved.
Nowadays ,Gustin doesn’t even run on the set of The Flash. Barry’s moments of super speed are almost entirely through CGI trickery or, quite lamely, Gustin moving his arms back and forth quickly in front a camera.
It’s hard to blame Gustin, though, as no one likes to run that much. However, it is a little disappointing that almost everything about The Flash is CGI.
Are there any other big Arrowverse stars who are extremely tough or super soft? Sound off in the comments below!
