On ‘Arrow’ season 4, episode 18 and the big paparazzi problem

(We’re going to start this “Arrow” article off with a big warning. While we have no plans to spoil anything in this article or link to any leaked images, there is still sensitive material ahead. Therefore, if you REALLY want to watch Wednesday’s episode blind to what is being talked about on the internet, our suggestion is to stop reading this particular article right now.)

Still with us? Then read on for our discussion of how terrible on-set paparazzi truly are…

There are few things we personally dislike more than set photos leaking from unauthorized sources, largely because it disrupts the creative process in such a significant way. We’re not saying this because we’re kissing the butt of a network or any producer; it’s just that paparazzi aren’t there to cheer on the show. Instead, they’re there to disrupt the actors, the crew members, and the story for the sake of a cheap buck, not caring that they potentially ruin the story for many people who want to watch cleanly. We have not even sought out conversation about what is going to happen on Wednesday night’s new episode “Eleven-Fifty-Nine,” but as someone who works in this profession and visits a lot of places on the internet, some keyboard cowboys have of course ruined the fun for us in advance.

Some key scenes for this upcoming episode were visited by paparazzi, and thanks to process of elimination and a few other things, it was easy for some to determine just who is set to die. We’re rather glad to actually see executive producer Marc Guggenheim address the issue outright, as he does in an Entertainment Weekly piece:

“Honestly, all I can say is that we’ve had the paparazzi on Legends and Arrow, so you’re talking about two shows’ worth of crews, people who work really, really hard to do the jobs that they do, who care a lot about the shows, who care a lot about the stories that we’re telling … I just look at these paparazzi people like they’re just spoiling it for everybody. They’re kind of taking a big steaming dump on the work that all these people do. They work in Vancouver [for] unbelievable hours — [often] in the rain, terrible conditions — and they do it all to produce shows that everyone can be entertained by and part of being entertained is being surprised.”

The reality here is that these sort of things are almost impossible to stop now other than hoping out of good faith that paparazzi don’t show up (which is unlikely). Their cameras get more and more advanced, so even if you hire more people for security (and “Arrow” has a fairly-limited budget given this is not some huge motion-picture epic), there’s still no guarantee you keep spoilers from getting out. Also, you can’t film everything on a soundstage if you want the show to feel authentic.

We’re going to be giving you some more on this big character death tomorrow night, some come back for that and click here to read some “Arrow” news that makes us at least marginally happier than writing about this. Also, sign up over here to have some other TV news sent over to you courtesy of our CarterMatt Newsletter. (Photo: The CW.)