‘Legends of Tomorrow’ Added A Muslim Character And There Is A Very Good Reason Why
Since The CW premiered their very first Arrowverse series, Arrow, the characters have always been relatively diverse across the shows, whether regarding the regular cast members or the show’s guest stars. On Legends of Tomorrow, the ensemble cast has also been relatively diverse in its own way. However, the show has decided to add a new character to the mix going into their third season, a Muslim character with an interesting backstory of her own.
At the Television Critics Association summer press tour, Marc Guggenheim, the executive producer of Legends of Tomorrow, explained that there is a very strong reason behind the decision to introduce this character at this time. While the executive producer did not really want to get political when it came to talking about the introduction of Tala Ashe’s new Muslim character, according to the New York Daily News, Guggenheim pointed out that people know about the past year’s election. It was because of this and the way things have been happening since then, that led to everyone in the writers’ room having “gravitated” towards incorporating this particular character into the story. It was in this room where the decision was ultimately made to have their newest addition to the Legends of Tomorrow be a Muslim character.
Tala Ashe will be portraying the first ever Muslim-American superhero on the series, who also happens to be from the future. The character, Zari Adrianna Tomaz, is what is known as a “hacktivist.” Ashe herself is an “Iranian-born actress,” according to Deadline, and with the inclusion of her character, Legends of Tomorrow is looking to shake up the dynamics of the show and the team themselves.
Welcome aboard the Waverider. Tala Ashe joins the Legends as Zari Adrianna Tomaz for Season 3! pic.twitter.com/BEMsGQ9WmL
— DC’s Legends of Tomorrow (@TheCW_Legends) June 6, 2017
While talking about this new addition to the team, Phil Klemmer, another executive producer on the show, said that Zari would be bringing an entirely new perspective to the team. With so many characters interacting with each other, everyone offers their own unique voice, and hers will be a voice that has not been heard before.
According to Guggenheim, there were multiple reasons for introducing Zari’s character in the third season. Not only did he feel as if there were not enough female voices being heard on the Waverider, but that this was also a chance to represent more of what makes America so unique, its intricate “tapestry” of people.
?? https://t.co/WzcCercSUQ pic.twitter.com/7pTKdUUfn4
— Maisie Richardson-Sellers (@maisie_rs) July 23, 2017
Marc Guggenheim also shared that it is not just the politicians who seem to be letting people down, but the real life heroes that people have been looking up to for so long as well. He went on to say that this means that viewers are turning to on-screen superheroes to get a sense of “wish-fulfillment” that they are not getting in real life. It is the everyday happenings that have helped to shape some of the decisions that are made regarding Legends of Tomorrow, and even though they did not want to get political about the show, it was still something they felt strongly about.
[Featured Image by Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images]
