David Rapaport has helped cast Gossip Girl, 90210, Arrow, and The Flash. For the first time, he talks about auditioning the actors who became iconic faces of The CW.
Willa Holland (Thea Queen, Arrow)
“Melissa Benoist read for Thea,” Rapaport said of the actor he later cast as Supergirl. “We read a bunch of people for Thea and it kept coming back to Willa because, with all these characters on Arrow, there was a duality about who they were on the surface and the darkness behind that. Even being so young, Willa’s lived a bit and that’s what makes her so interesting.
“I had a harder time convincing her to consider the Gossip Girl spin-off, which she ultimately passed on, then I did getting her in for Arrow. I think at that point, enough time had passed [after she co-starred on The O.C.] and it was an exciting, different role with the opportunity to potentially become a comic book hero in the end. I think everyone saw how different and dark and gritty this project was going to be.”
(source)
Willa Holland’s Thea Queen is showing off her physicality this season on “Arrow,” something that was previewed at the end of last week’s episode.
Thea is now being trained as a fighter under the tutelage of her dad, Malcolm Merlyn (John Barrowman).
“I’m still going through it,” Willa said when AccessHollywood.com asked her about her own fight training as an actress, during a set visit to Vancouver with reporters last Friday. “I’m still learning a lot, but I’ve been doing a lot of weight lifting, hitting the gym a lot with my trainer, Brady Roberts, who tortures me on a daily basis for at least an hour every day of the week, like seven days a week, Sundays even. And basically I’ve been working – I don’t know if I can reveal the other trainers that I’ve been working with. I’ve been focusing on weight lifting and getting my mobility going, and I’ve been hitting a few fronts, like kind of dabbling in almost everything the show has been offering, so it’s been kind of nice.”
Continue Reading
Willa Holland‘s Thea Queen makes a bigger return to Arrow with Wednesday night’s new episode, “Corto Maltese.” The episode will flash back to what’s happened since Thea got into that limo with her father Malcolm, and it will likely bring her back into contact with older brother Oliver.
We spoke with Willa last week on the Vancouver set of Arrow for a little bit of what we can expect.
Continue Reading
You can find the interview Willa gave DA MAN magazine bellow, plus i’ve added a few more scans from the magazine. Sadly they don’t have that much quality, however are of bigger size. Enjoy!
GALLERY LINK:
Magazine Scans > 2014 > DA MAN (October/November)
The daughter of a famous movie director and an actress and model since the age of seven, it seems Willa Holland was always destined for stardom. Talented and tenacious, she now arrives on our screens for the third season of “Arrow,” an action drama show following the life of a billionaire playboy who returns home after a long absence to fight crime and corruption as a masked vigilante named Arrow. Holland plays Arrow’s sister Thea Queen, and subsequently has to put up with quite a lot. However, as our encounter with her shows, she appears to be more than up to the task.
DA MAN: Willa, thanks for chatting with DA MAN. Can you tell us a bit about your character thea Queen?
WILLA HOLLAND: Hey, my pleasure! Thea has always been a bit of a wild card, but she’s matured a lot over the years. The end of season two was a bit of a struggle for her to put it lightly, but she comes out in season three with a tougher, stronger side that we haven’t seen before. So watch out! [Laughs]
Continue Reading
WhoWhatWear has posted a new article featuring an interview and a photoshoot of Willa! She looks gorgeous in those outtakes as you can see. You can read the article bellow.
GALLERY LINK:
Studio Photoshoots > Sessions & Outtakes > 2014 > WhoWhatWear
When Willa Holland arrived in Los Angeles for our October fashion shoot, it was a blistering 90 degrees outside. Hardly coat weather, but that didn’t deter the Arrow actress from playing dress-up in the season’s coolest outerwear. With a new chopped haircut and a giant smile on her face, Holland was game for anything—in this case, an arsenal of cozy pieces rich with of-the-moment textures, menswear detailing, and a touch of sport. Take a minute perusing the final looks, and you’ll be ready to try these fall essentials, too.
Within moments of meeting Holland, we couldn’t help but notice that the actress could be a long-lost Delevingne sister—blame it on her striking brows and prominent cheekbones. When asked if she ever gets mistaken for Cara, Holland laughed: “You mean, does she ever get mistaken for me?” It turns out the two grew up together in London, and people would often mix them up. Holland’s personality fits the bill, too. The bubbly 23-year-old is infectious, not afraid to crack a silly face in front of the camera or dance to Taylor Swift.
Despite what we know about what’s coming up in “Arrow” season 3, there is a lot of mystery surrounding Thea’s arc – and Willa Holland couldn’t share much about what she is up to at San Diego Comic-Con. On Monday, Sept. 15, we uploaded that video interview from our press room roundtable with the actress.
Check out the video above or here to see what Holland shared about Thea in season 3. Read on for just a few highlights about what she could reveal.
Continue Reading
This July, Willa did another photoshoot for Katie Cassidy’s fashion blog, Tomboy KC. In this particular article, Katie speaks about Willa’s style and their friendship (that might just be the cutest thing ever!). You can check out bellow the note Katie wrote about Willa, and the pictures from the photoshoot.
GALLERY LINK:
Studio Photoshoots > Sessions & Outtakes > 2014 > Tomboy KC #02
We love showcasing Willa’s style around here because, to us, she is the definition of Tomboy KC. She pretends like she doesn’t have it going on, but the girl has it going on in more ways than one. Equal parts chic, casual, smart, funny, confident and independent, Willa is basically everything we look for in a friend. This girl knows what’s up.
I know I’m pumping her tires, but the truth is the truth. I love her guts… and not just because she sometimes reminds me of myself. Willa is a wonderful friend and the epitome of cool. At the end of the day she’s not afraid to just be Willa, and I love that.
– Katie Cassidy
Down bellow you will find a bit of an interview given by Stephen Amell, among others. Its a interview in which they talk about season 3 of Arrow, what’s coming up and what we can expect. During the interview, Stephen spoke about Willa in the season that got me really curious and looking forwards for the new season and what she will bring us with her character. Aside from Stephen, both John Barrowman and Andrew Kreisberg mention Willa’s character, Thea, but Stephen’s quote was that quote that got me to actually post this. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as i did.
“In general, I think that Willa is incredibly talented, and it really excites me because for all intents and purposes, she’s kind of been a bench player for the first couple of years,” the star continued, shifting the topic back to Willa Holland’s character, Thea. “This year, it’s us saying, ‘We know how much you’re capable of. So here you go. Here’s your episode.’ I know that Diggle’s had a couple episodes like that, but this year Willa is going to have an episode like that. And Emily [Bett Rickards as Felicity] is going to have an episode like that. That’s the most exciting part for me — aside from getting a couple of days off. I’m happy that everyone is getting their moment.”
Thea’s dark path with Malcolm
What exactly transpired between father and daughter in the limo? Guggenheim hints that viewers will find out the answer in season three, though they’ll have to be patient. “We are going to do a flashback at some point in the season that takes you back to that car and continues the conversation, so you’ll get to see what Thea said to Malcolm and what Malcolm said to Thea,” he says. Adds Kreisberg: “At some point, if all the characters are going to become their comic book selves, they have to go through their island. … This year is going to be Thea’s island. How that plays out and which side she lands on will be the fun of the season.”
The list of panels, plus the celebrities that will be attending Comic-Con have been released and it’s been confirmed that Willa will be attending this year with the rest of Arrow cast! No words can describe how happy i am to hear this news, and i cannot wait until this year’s Comic-Con!
FRIDAY, JULY 25
5:30 pm Arrow (The CW) | Stars Stephen Amell, Katie Cassidy, David Ramsey, Emily Bett Rickards, Colton Haynes, Willa Holland, Paul Blackthorne and John Barrowman with executive producers Greg Berlanti, Marc Guggenheim and Andrew Kreisberg. (Ballroom 20)
(source)
