Jordan Fisher is now a part of the Arrowverse! The To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before actor is debuting in the role of Bart Allen / Impulse, the son of Barry (Grant Gustin) and Iris (Candice Patton) in the future.
In a recent chat with Shadow and Act, Fisher discussed his upcoming arc on the show, landing the role, what to expect and much more.
What was the experience like joining the show? I know that the showrunner, Eric Wallace, has talked about you being the only person that he ever envisioned playing Bart on the show. So what was this process like becoming Bart and taking on this role?
Man, it’s interesting, but I feel like a lot of my career has been like coming into things well after they’ve been pretty established [laughs]. I have a habit of joining shows when it’s like season 4, season 5 or season 7 for this case. And so, going into an environment where it’s already very well-oiled [and] people know each other, there’s definitely a question and just kind of rumors in the air of [like] ‘What’s it going to be when I get there?’ ‘Is everybody going to be kind?’ ‘Are people going to be tired and then they’re waiting and ready to go home?’ Especially filming over COVID, right? I mean, filming in general is a difficult thing to do, but when you’re doing it in a pandemic and there’s masks and all sorts of other rules, and you’re getting tested all the time….the energy of the set, it’s very different. It’s not as boisterous and as vibrant as we all want it to be.
But man, I tell you, I’ve had the time of my life and everyone has been so lovely and so kind. I’ve been given a lot of freedom to do what I want to do and to make Bart who I see [him as] and how I want him to be portrayed. And I’m very grateful to have been given that kind of freedom. And it’s a luxury to be able to play him with this cast…it’s just wonderful. Everyone knows their characters so well…they’ve spent so much time with them. So, it’s been great.
How familiar were you with the character before taking on the role and were you a fan of The Flash before becoming a part of the show?
I’m just a nerd in general, so I’ve been a big comic book fan my entire life. I know more about other DC characters than I did The Flash, but the moment that it became a thing for me, I was like, “All right, it’s homework time, it’s homework time.” I mean, every iteration, watching Young Justice…the goal [was to] very much take care of the fans that love these characters and loved these characters first. And so going into it, obviously [it was] a ton of research where Bart is concerned, [I] watched a lot of stuff, [I] read a lot of stuff and I kind of took all of my favorite things about Bart in every iteration and put my own little Jordan twists on it and got to make Bart my favorite version of Bart. It’s definitely very selfish, but in the same way, the goal is to just let his energy just shine. That’s really it.
Bart is the same in a lot of ways in that he’s very hyper, he’s fun, he has fun. He’s in the middle of a fight and he’s literally just like giggling and laughing the whole time [laughs]. He wants to parkour off a building because it’s just cooler. He’s that guy. He’s the guy that’s like, “All right, what’s the coolest way to enter the fight? All right, I’m going to do that. That’s what I’m doing.” And imagine if you ever played a character like that, you can’t not have fun.
You talked about this incredible cast, what was it like working with the cast, such as Grant and Candice, and did they give you any pointers about working on an Arrowverse show?
Working on the shows in terms of the people and the characters and choices that you make is one thing. I think that the pointers really have meant a lot to me. Something that no one tells you…Grant [told me] how to be on set all day with this suit on and how to move around in it and the little tricks of like, “Oh, you got a little wedgie there? I hear it. But let me show you what to do here. And this stretch gets this out, this movement right here kind of shakes this up real quick.” That’s been the most helpful for me, for sure [laughs].
Bart is an active guy and Bart moves a lot. And the thing that I’ve told anybody that asks me, “Oh, what’s it been like? Whatever, etc.” I’m like, “It’s been great. It’s been great. Anytime you meet an actor that has to wear a super-suit for a show or for a film, thank them. Thank them for doing that [laughs].”
I know you can’t reveal too much but what can you tease about what’s to come and Bart being in the mix?
I really can’t say much. And especially with these next episodes that are coming up, there’s a whole lot that’s about to go down. What I can say is that I think that people are going to be very satisfied and very excited about what they see. It’s definitely been a big build-up this season to introduce a new course and all the nonsense that comes with introducing a new, big character in that way. But I think that fans are going to be thrilled. I really do.
So many fans were buzzing about your role in the show once the first promo image came out, which was kind of like paying homage to the comic book art. How have you felt about the fan response to joining the show? Have you felt embraced by the fandom already?
I feel really good, honestly. I mean, I think that if you can look at anything and you see that there are 10 responses and eight of them are positive, you’re in a really, really good place. As a fan of these characters, it’s unfair for me to build these preconceived notions about what I think about a character or suit, or how they maneuver or what their choices are and things like that. It’s just a matter of you just got to see it, just wait and see it, and then figure it out. And I try to not look at a whole bunch of stuff, I just focus on work.
But I think for me, what I have seen has all been very, very positive and we haven’t done any Comic-Cons or anything like that yet. I was at a theme park recently with my wife and somebody came up to me and was like, “Dude…so happy that you are Impulse.” And that moved me. I mean, I really, I felt like I needed to hear that day.
It was so nice to have someone just candidly come up to me, not ask for a picture or anything, just like, “I am so excited that you are a part of The Flash family and the Arrowverse. That’s it. Thank you. Keep doing great stuff. Can’t wait for the next episode.” It was such a cool feeling. And of course in the back of my mind, I’m like, “Oh my gosh, this guy has no clue what’s coming. He has no idea what he’s about to see.” And that is such an exciting feeling.
The Flash airs Tuesdays on The CW.
