And where Simon Stagg goes, will a certain Element Man follow?
Filming for the second episode of the CW's The Flash, titled "Fastest Man Alive," took place yesterday in Vancouver and according to the site Flickering Myth, popular character actor William Sadler will feature prominently in the episode. Sadler, of course, is known to many science fiction and comic book fans for numerous film and television roles, including Death in Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey, Colonel Stuart in Die Hard 2, Luther Sloan on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Sheriff Jim Valenti on Roswell, Doctor Sumner on Fringe, and President Matthew Ellis in Iron Man 3.
And the Twitter account @CWTVFlash posted a photo of Sadler on set that revealed his character as none other than DC Comics character Simon Stagg, the businessman responsible for the creation of the superhero Metamorpho.
William Sadler @Wm_Sadler will be playing 'Simon Stagg' in the second episode of #TheFlash! pic.twitter.com/mb6GhmlGZg
— The Flash (@CWTVFlash) July 12, 2014
As you can see from the photo above, Simon Stagg apparently appears at Central City University to accept a Regent's Choice Award as Man of the Year, presumably putting him in contact with Barry Allen (Grant Gustin), Iris West (Candice Patton) and her father (Jesse L. Martin), who were also spotted on the same set.Previous on the shared television universe series Arrow, the episode "Broken Dolls" featured a van with the label "Metamorpho Chemical" that Oliver Queen used to track the Dollmaker's location. And earlier in Season One, Stagg Industries was mentioned as a benefactor of Laurel Lance's legal firm that dropped their support. So perhaps Simon Stagg will be a character that interacts with both shows?
Created in 1965 by Bob Haney and Ramona Fradon, Simon Stagg first appeared in The Brave and the Bold #57, which was also the first appearance of Metamorpho. Simon is the conniving owner and CEO of Stagg Enterprises and father of Sapphire Stagg, the love of adventurer Rex Mason. When Rex showed his intention to propose to Sapphire, Simon sent Rex to Egypt a radioactive artifact known as The Orb of Ra. However, Simon had his Neanderthal bodyguard Java attack Rex and leave him for dead inside the pyramid. Exposed to the Orb of Ra's radiation, Rex transformed into the Element Man later called Metamorpho.
"Fastest Man Alive" is written by Greg Berlanti and Andrew Kresiberg, and is directed by David Nutter, who also directed the Flash pilot. The episode is expected to air on September 14, 2014 at 8 p.m. EST.