On Arrow, the women are often as tough, or even tougher, as the men. One such example is the character Nyssa al Ghul, daughter of the former Ra's al Ghul, as portrayed by actress Katrina Law.
Arrow fans know that Nyssa is about as tough as it gets on the series: she had no problem frequently defying her father, the former Ra's al Ghul, leader of the League of Assassins. She also had a romantic relationship with Sara Lance, but when it came time to resurrect Sara from the dead with the Lazarus Pit, Nyssa disapproved.
Law spoke with Tech Times about her role on the series, as well as what it's like working in the League of Assassins and about her relationship with the newly resurrected Sara.
First of all, though, Law confirmed that Nyssa would return to Arrow.
"I can't tell you when, but I can tell you that she will be back," said Law.
Of course, that means that Nyssa must first deal with what's happened with Sara. After Sara's resurrection using the Lazarus Pit, she became a wild animal, a thing without a soul. Although John Constantine came in and helped Team Arrow put Sara's soul back in her body, this still changes Nyssa and Sara's relationship.
"I think the interesting thing to find out is how and when Nyssa even finds out, because I'm pretty sure as of right now, she's still stuck in a Nanda Parbat prison somewhere seething over Sara being brought back in the first place, but also still trying to plot how to become the new Ra's al Ghul," said Law. "I think Nyssa has done a very good job of gently releasing Sara and letting go, but still holding onto the memory of her. I think when Nyssa and Sara reunite, it will be interesting to watch Nyssa react to that because Nyssa knows that a part of Sara's soul was gone, and I don't know how she'll feel about it being recovered the way that it has been."
As the daughter of the former Ra's al Ghul, Nyssa also believes that Malcolm Merlyn stole the title from her and might soon find herself focused on taking it for herself.
"She should be R'as," said Law. "I think Nyssa spends her night staring at the ceiling concentrating on how she could possibly get her rightful title bestowed upon her. I think at this point—between Malcolm Merlyn being Ra's al Ghul and having the power to authorize the use of the Lazarus Pit, and him just being Ra's al Ghul in the first place—she didn't want that title before, but I think she wants it desperately now because she's seeing the misuse of the power. And that's not what the League of Assassins is all about, so I think she's gung ho, full force, all jets going, to get that title away from him."
However, Law stated that there's still a strange sort of mutual respect between Nyssa and Malcolm.
"I do think there's a very interesting respect the two of them have for each other. Because at any point, Malcolm Merlyn could have her taken out by the rest of the League of Assassins. And at any given point, Nyssa could decide to poison him or stab him in the back. And as of yet, over seven or eight months, neither of these things have happened. They both have a code of honor when it comes to the League of Assassins and how they handle themselves and that there's a proper way to become Ra's al Ghul."
Law also believes that should Nyssa become Ra's, the League of Assassins would have no problem following a woman as its leader.
"I think if you're Ra's al Ghul, they bow down to you with it in their head that that's the leader," she said. "I don't think Nyssa would have the normal issues that women in power have in our world. I think if she told them to do something, they would do it."
However, Law enjoys playing a strong and independent female character.
"I love that she's a badass female," said Law. "She has her own agenda and it's not tied to a man and she just does her thing. I love it so much."
As an LGBT character, Nyssa also stands as a role model to those in that community, but Law feels that the show's writers take on most of the responsibility by creating the character in a positive light.
"I think the writers have taken on the majority of the responsibility in the way that they bring her and I think they've done such a beautiful job in that they just had her be born that way and that's the end of the story," said Law. "And the way they've handled it, it's not a big deal. Her love for Sara hasn't been treated as some kind of freak show or something immoral. They just said it's genuine love. I love the way the writers have handled it and treated it fairly. I am honored to be a representative for that community because I do think they need strong female representatives who aren't being portrayed in a negative way."
With Sara becoming White Canary and moving over to The CW's Legends of Tomorrow series, will we see Nyssa also appear on that show? Law wasn't sure, but has hopes that she and Sara eventually get more screen time.
"Whether it's on Arrow or Legends of Tomorrow, I would love to see some flashbacks about how Sara and Nyssa met and what the evolution of their backstory was to get them to where they are now," said Law. "I know the fans would love to see that, too. I know that the writers have talked about it, it's just a matter of if or when it manages to fall into a plotline or storyline to where it can be worked in."
Arrow airs Wednesdays on The CW.
Photographer: Evan Duning
Hair: Ashley Lynn Hall
Make Up: Gia Harris
