Posted in: Arrow, CW, Preview, Trailer, TV | Tagged: arrowverse, preview, season 9, the cw, The Flash

The Flash: Panabaker on Gustin Sharing Series End News; New Key Art

The Flash star & director Danielle Panabaker on reacting to Grant Gustin's news of the show's end and more; new Season 9 key art released.

In our earlier update on The CW's Grant Gustin (Barry Allen), Candice Patton (Iris West-Allen) & Danielle Panabaker (Caitlin Snow)-starring The Flash, director Panabaker was clueing us in on what's sounding like a really important ninth episode of the final season. You know, the one featuring Stephen Amell (Oliver Queen), David Ramsey (John Diggle/Spartan), Keiyan Lonsdale (Wally West/Kid Flash), and Sendhil Ramamurthy (Dr. Ramsey Rosso/Bloodwork). But this time around, we're hitting the "PAUSE" button on looking ahead to pass along what Panabaker had to share with TVLine regarding her reaction when Gustin first informed her about the long-running Arrowverse series' end. From there, Panabaker explains how directing the ninth episode really brought home to her the fact that this would be the final run.

"When Grant called last summer to tell me, I laughed and said, 'I'm not sure I believe you because I've heard this before!' And then, when the news actually hit the press, the first thing I texted him was, 'OK, I believe you now.' So, that's our relationship for you," Panabaker shared regarding first learning about the show's end. By directing one of the final 13 episodes, Panabaker gained a better sense of just how "real" it felt know that the series was ending.

"It definitely has felt real this season, and I think it's hit me in different waves. I will say that when directing [Episode 9], I got a little emotional because I have such gratitude for the show and the people who make this show," Panabaker revealed. "Oftentimes actors, because we're the face of the show, get a lot of the attention for it, but this is truly a team sport. And it's not just the few of us who've been here for nine seasons or whatever; there are hundreds, if not thousands, of people working behind the scenes that make the show so special and that I've, in particular as a director, gotten the opportunity to collaborate with in a different capacity. I am extremely grateful to all of them and for this opportunity and to get to direct, knowing that it would be my last time doing it alongside these people who mean so much to me."

For Panabaker, the series ending means saying goodbye to a number of people she's gotten to know on both personal and professional levels, creating a strong bond. "We're just a few weeks away from wrapping up, and I'll be sad to say goodbye to a lot of the people I've worked with. When you work the hours we work, you spend more time with your coworkers than you do with your family, it seems."

The Flash S09E02, S09E03 & S09E04 Images, Overviews & More!

The Flash Season 9 Episode 2 "Hear No Evil": NEW KID IN TOWN – Barry (Gustin) feels guilty for what happened to Caitlin, and Mark (Jon Cor) comes up with a plan which makes everyone skeptical. Meanwhile, Red Death looms in Central City and commands that failure is not an option. Joe (Jesse L. Martin) asks Cecile (Danielle Nicolet) to make a choice which leads Cecile to think about the greater good. Allegra (Kayla Compton) and Chester (Brandon McKnight) take a step in a new direction. Lastly, old friends pay an unexpected visit to S.T.A.R. Labs. Eric Wallace directed the episode written by Jonathan Butler & Kristen Kim.

The Flash Season 9 Episode 3 "Rogues of War": ON THE MOVE – Barry (Gustin) and Iris (Patton) start to put together the pieces of what's happening in Central City and believe they know what the Rogues are after. Team Flash works together and recruits some unlikely allies to help, and the plan does not go as Team Flash expects. Meanwhile, Allegra (Compton) does her best to avoid having a conversation with Chester (McKnight). Brenton Spencer directed the episode, with a story by Sam Chalsen and written by Jeff Hersch & Jess Carson.

The Flash Season 9 Episode 4 "The Mask of the Red Death, Part 1": LET THERE BE DARKNESS – The Flash (Gustin) is forced to make an impossible choice. With the power out in the city, Team Flash calls upon the Rogue Squad to help as Iris (Patton) is visited by an old friend. Joe (Martin) and Cecile (Nicolet) work on finding a balance. Menhaj Huda directed the episode written by Joshua V. Gilbert & Emily Palizzi.

After defeating the Reverse Flash once and for all, the 13-episode Season 9 picks up one week later following their epic battle, and Barry Allen (Gustin) and Iris West-Allen (Patton) are reconnecting and growing closer than ever before. But when a deadly group of Rogues descends on Central City led by a powerful new threat, The Flash and his team – Caitlin Snow (Panabaker), Meta-Empath Cecile Horton (Danielle Nicolet), the light-powered meta Allegra Garcia (Kayla Compton), brilliant tech-nerd Chester P. Runk (Brandon McKnight), and reformed cryogenics thief Mark Blaine (Jon Cor) – must once again defy impossible odds to save the day. But as The Rogues are defeated, a deadly new adversary rises to challenge Barry Allen's heroic legacy. And in their greatest battle yet, Barry & Team Flash will be pushed to their limits to save Central City one last time.

Joining the cast for the show's final run are Javicia Leslie (Ryan Wilder/Batwoman), Nicole Maines (Nia Nal/Dreamer), Keiynan Lonsdale (Wally West/Kid Flash), David Ramsey (John Diggle/Spartan), Sendhil Ramamurthy (Ramsey Rosso/Bloodwork), Stephen Amell (Oliver Queen/Green Arrow), Rick Cosnett (CCPD Det. Eddie Thawne), Matt Letscher (Eobard Thawne(s)/Reverse-Flash), and Jessica Parker Kennedy (Nora West-Allen/XS).

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