#DemAmells: Stephen and Robbie Treat Fans Like Family at HVFF
The first ever Heroes & Villains FanFest (in San Jose) billed itself as a singular fan experience which would allow fans to get intimately acquainted with celebrities, and Stephen and Robbie Amell brought that spirit to their Sunday afternoon panel. The cousins, not brothers, are both CW stars whose routes to their success were very different. With a seven-year age gap, they’ve grown together and apart, but now the two are very close and that familial feeling was evident during their panel.
During a game of cornhole with some fans (Stephen chose the two fans wearing San Jose Sharks jerseys as a nod to his favorite team, The Kings), the two answered questions about their shows and their careers. Stephen shared his admiration for his younger cousin, who early on took his acting career very seriously and even recommended the Arrow pilot to him. Now that Robbie is older and doesn’t use his cousin’s ID to get into bars anymore, the two bond over their mutual love of the LA Kings and beer pong. Both enjoy the stunt work they do on their shows and Stephen ribbed Robbie about not being able to do the salmon ladder that his character, Oliver, is known for. Where their differences in age shows is Stephen’s fastidiousness and Robbie’s laidback attitude and love of pizza.
In terms of their shows, Robbie says he would love to return to The Flash even though his character is currently dead. The audience joked that on Earth-2, Oliver is dead so maybe Ronnie can be alive there. Robbie is busy with other projects, though. He can be seen on the new X-Files series and he and Stephen have co-produced a short film that will premiere at HVFF-New Jersey in the new year. They teased it involves superpowers and feels like District 9.
A lot of fans asked about what’s currently happening on Arrow and Stephen teased that one of the best stunts he’s done won’t be seen on his show so keep your eyes peeled on the upcoming The Flash crossover episode. There were also lots of Olicity questions and Stephen let it slip that an upcoming episode would involve Oliver, Felicity, a limo ride and some Christmas carols. Perhaps the proposal Oliver’s been working up to this season? Some of the questioners asked them about what they would like to see, and Stephen said his ideal ending for Arrow is an evil Oliver Queen being taken down by a new hero who can truly save Star City. How’s that for an ending?
Overall, the two managed to juggle answering questions and interacting with fans with skill and grace. It’s easy to see how they’ve built a very loyal and hardcore fanbase.
