The Arrow may have finally met his match in the guise of villain Ra's al Ghul.
The character will be the main threat to Arrow and his crimefighting crew in the upcoming season of the CW show, and he will be played by Matt Nable, according to Entertainment Weekly.
Matt Nable is an Australian actor best known as the villain Johns from the "Riddick" film. He has also appeared in the 2011 action film "Killer Elite." He was also a professional Rugby player.
Ra's al Ghul had already been mentioned several times in the "Arrow" television series, as the head of the League of Assassins. Several Assassins have gone after hero Oliver Queen and his crew. Even Arrow's love interest and fellow vigilante Black Canary was trained by the League.
The name Ra's al Ghul is usually translated from Arabic as "The Head of the Demon."
The character has gone through many iterations, though in the past he has primarily been a Batman villain. In the comics, since his first appearance in 1971, al Ghul has been protrayed as an immortal who frequently engages in eco-terrorism. He was used several times in the "Batman: The Animated Series" that began in 1992, where he was voiced by British actor David Warner. The character was portrayed then as an ambitious immortal looking to take over the world to fix it, who often admired Batman and tried to recruit him as his heir.
In director Christopher Nolan's "Dark Knight" films, Ra's al Ghul is a ninja assassin and the head of the League of Shadows, ninja anarchists that want to clean the sins of modern life by destroying Gotham City. At first, we believe Japanese actor Ken Watanabe is playing al Ghul as a quiet leader in the background, but we eventually learn Bruce Wayne's mentor and teacher played by Liam Neeson is actually Ra's al Ghul.
And in the "Arrow" television show, the character of Ra's al Ghul seems to be based more on the Assassin version from the recent films. When Ra' al Ghul does show in the series, played by Nable, perhaps we will learn more about his intentions and learn that the character may have eco-terrorism, global domination or anarchy as his ultimate goal.
According to EW, al Ghul will be a reoccurring character throughout the season, but he will first appear in the fourth episode, "The Magician."
"Arrow" returns to television for season three on October 8.
Photo: Eva Rinaldi
