Tom Cavanagh is a man of many faces. Sort of. But there is a reason why the man behind Harrison Wells is currently playing a version of Eobard Thawne on The Flash instead of Matt Letscher.
While Matt Letscher did reprise the role of Eobard Thawne during the second season of Legends of Tomorrow, Cavanagh, since the Crisis on Earth-X crossover and beyond, he’s the face we saw as the Reverse Flash. Even during his brief nightmare appearance in the Elseworlds event, Reverse Flash was Tom Cavanagh and not Matt Letscher. Why is that?
In an interview with TV line, Flash showrunner Todd Helbing was asked about Eobard Thawne looking like Tom Cavanagh and if there was a reason Matt Letscher did not return. But it ties into the theme of the season:
“We love Matt — he’s fantastic as Reverse-Flash, too. But it’s funny, if you plot out the Thawne timeline — I think there’s a version of this online somewhere — it makes more sense, logically, in a weird, time-travel way, that this is the Thawne that we see. Also, the whole theme of this season is “legacy,” so it felt more applicable in the way that we introduce Reverse-Flash, as Wells, for it to play out that way with Tom.”
Admittedly, when talking about “legacy,” if you consider the face that we’ve seen behind the Reverse Flash the most, Tom Cavanagh does fit more, narratively speaking, compared to Matt Letscher. It’s also worth noting that Letscher himself has a very busy schedule, given his main role on Narcos: Mexico.
Though Helbing did not say that scheduling conflicts were the reason for going with Cavanagh, it still does make more sense in the grand scheme of things to go with him over Letscher. Combined with Nora supposedly working with Eobard Thawne, it would be an interesting way to bring things full circle, given Barry’s history with this version of Eobard Thawne.
Still, though, what do you think of Tom Cavanagh remaining in the role of Reverse Flash? Would you want to see Matt Letscher reprise the role at some point? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
The Flash stars Grant Gustin, Candice Patton, Carlos Valdes, Danielle Panabaker, Tom Cavanagh, Jesse L. Martin, Danielle Nicolet, Hartley Sawyer and Jessica Parker Kennedy.
The series airs on Tuesday nights at 8 pm on the CW.
Source: TV Line
